How musical training helps the brain as we age
Aging brings changes that affect how we hear and process speech, especially in noisy places. But researchers now show that older adults with long-term musical training fare better than their non-musician peers.
This study, led by Claude Alain and Yi Du, highlights how years of musical experience can shape brain function in later life. Their work introduces the “Hold-back upregulation” hypothesis and explores its neural basis using brain imaging.
Older adults struggle with noisy speech
As we age, our cognitive and sensory abilities decline. This often leads to the brain compensating by increasing activity and communication between brain regions. But such compensation may require more mental effort and reduces processing efficiency.
This pattern, called the Posterior-Anterior Shift in Aging, shows increased frontal brain activity in older adults. Yet, the extent of this shift varies. Researchers believe lifestyle factors like music training may influence it.
Musical training builds brain strength
Cognitive reserve is built through lifelong learning. It helps the brain stay resilient against age-related decline. This includes things like multilingualism, advanced education, and especially, musical practice.
Music training requires intense coordination of sound, movement, and memory. These demands help strengthen the brain’s sensory and motor systems. The auditory dorsal stream links sound to action and plays a key role here.
Musical training helps adults hear better
To explore the effects of musical training, the study compared three groups: 25 older musicians (OMs), 25 older non-musicians (ONMs), and 24 young non-musicians (YNMs). Each participant completed a speech-in-noise (SIN) task while undergoing fMRI scans.
They listened to syllables such as /ba/, /da/, /pa/, and /ta/ masked by varying levels of background noise. Older musicians outperformed older non-musicians at higher signal-to-noise ratios (0 and +8 dB), though both older groups performed worse than the younger participants.
Two paths of brain aging
The researchers proposed two possible ways musical training might influence the aging brain. The first is called Bolster Compensation. This idea suggests that musical training strengthens the brain by adding extra neural resources.
As people age and cognitive abilities decline, these extra resources could help boost brain activity during tasks, compensating for age-related losses.
The second idea is called Hold-Back Upregulation. This theory suggests that instead of pushing the brain to work harder, musical training helps it work more efficiently. It prevents the brain from becoming overactive in response to aging.
As a result, the brain activity patterns of older musicians remain more similar to those of younger people. This efficient use of brain networks could explain why older musicians perform better on complex listening tasks.
The results supported the second theory. Older musicians showed more efficient brain patterns. Their connectivity strength closely resembled young non-musicians, especially in right hemisphere regions involved in speech processing.
Mapping the brain’s inner workings
Using advanced analyses like task-induced functional connectivity (TiFC) and inter-subject spatial correlation (ISPC), the researchers revealed more than just stronger brain links.
Older musicians’ brains did not just work better. They were organized more like young brains. Their neural activity followed similar spatial patterns and had fewer shifts in peak connectivity locations.
In one region (left precentral gyrus), non-musicians showed clear spatial drift in activity peaks, while musicians did not. This suggests that musical training preserves both structure and function.
Musical training during tasks
The study also measured resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) and found that both older musicians and non-musicians exhibited stronger RSFC compared to younger participants.
However, this increased connectivity at rest did not correlate with their performance on speech-in-noise (SIN) tasks.
These findings suggest that it is the brain’s reorganization during active tasks – not just its resting state – that plays a key role in shaping behavior. In other words, how the brain adapts while engaged in a challenge may be more important than its baseline connectivity.
There were no differences in BOLD activation (a measure of brain region activity strength) across groups. This supports the idea that spatial organization and connection strength matter more than raw activity.
Music builds a youthful brain
This work reveals how lifelong musical training may protect older adults from neural inefficiency. Instead of overactivating brain regions, trained musicians preserve a more youthful balance. This is especially true in the dorsal auditory stream.
“Just like a well-tuned instrument doesn’t need to be played louder to be heard, the brains of older musicians stay finely tuned thanks to years of training,” said Dr. Yi Du.
“A positive lifestyle helps older adults cope better with cognitive aging, and it is never too late to take up, and stick with, a rewarding hobby such as learning an instrument,” added Dr. Lei Zhang.
Further research is needed
While the evidence supports the “Hold-back upregulation” idea, the researchers caution that causality isn’t proven. They recommend future work to examine other sources of reserve such as physical fitness or multilingualism.
Other brain tasks like memory and attention should also be studied. Still, this study adds strong support to the argument for keeping enriching hobbies throughout life.
For older adults hoping to sharpen their minds, picking up a musical instrument might be a smart place to start.
The researchers are from the University of Toronto, Baycrest Academy, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
The study is published in the journal PLOS Biology.
—–
Like what you read? Subscribe to our newsletter for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.
Check us out on EarthSnap, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.
—–
