Do you love music? Are you learning to play a musical instrument?

There are more benefits to learning a musical instrument than you might have imagined. My colleague Diego Cardini of The Musician Lab prepared a special infographic on the benefits of learning music which you can download here on key-notes.com. Here are some of the most important benefits:

1) Memory Skills

Playing a musical instrument is a workout for your brain. If you play a musical instrument regularly, your brain will have better memory and power of concentration.

2) Coordination Skills

When you are playing an instrument, you are asking your body and brain to coordinate your eyes, hands and mind quickly. Your hand-eye coordination will significantly start to improve when you learn a musical instrument.

3) Math

Did you know that playing a musical instrument can help you understand mathematics better? Music develops the sense of beat, rhythm and scale which triggers problem solving skills.

4) Reading & Comprehension Skills

When you are learning a musical instrument, you are always reading and trying to understand notes, pitches and chords. This will improve your reading and comprehension skills.

5) Responsibility

Each musical instrument requires maintenance. When you practice music, you are responsible for taking care of your instrument. This helps to build a sense of responsibility.

6) Culture & History

Music is very closely tied to the history and culture of different parts of the world. Learning music connects us to a rich world culture.

7) Musical Creativity

With a musical instrument, you can create music from your own imagination—an incomparable benefit.

8) Social Skills

A musical instrument can be a conversation starter. Depending on what type of music you are creating, you can engage in different kinds of conversations. Music learners are never alone.

9) Self-expression

When you learn a musical instrument, you also learn how to express yourself. Playing music enables us to express the full range of emotions and even to turn sad experiences into beauty and meaning.

10) Emotional Development

People who learn musical instruments are more emotionally stable and develop greater empathy towards others.

11) Auditory Attention

Music improves auditory attention. Once you’re familiar with a musical instrument, you will be able to pick up predictable patterns from surrounding noise.

12) Academic Achievement

A study about an SAT exam showed that those who had experience with musical instruments scored 63 points higher on verbal skills and 44 points higher on math compared to those who didn’t have any experience.

13) Relaxation

We all need to relax at one point or another. A musical instrument can be a tool for relaxation. Spending half an hour with an instrument can take away the tough memories that you had throughout the day.

14) Discipline

Learning an instrument is not an easy task! You’ll need to practice in order to be good at playing music. The learning process teaches you to be more disciplined in everything you do.

15) Creative Thinking

Creative thinking is something that you learn to use when you are surrounded by instruments that can perform creative tasks. Any musical instrument is a great help to improve your creative thinking—which need not be limited to music. Many directors and artists were good musicians before they started their careers.

16) Teamwork

Musical instruments offer the best results when they are performed with other instruments.You will often engage in jamming sessions with your friends or bandmates. This improves the ability to collaborate and work in a team.

17) Risk-taking

Performing any new piece is a challenge. The process of preparing a piece for performance teaches you to take calculated risks and how to handle risk.

18) Confidence

Knowing how to play a musical instrument can give you a confidence boost!

19) Management Skills

When you are learning a musical instrument, you’ll need to be a good manager to keep things organized. Whether it is getting your piano tuned or organizing your next gig, everything needs care and management. This will teach you the art of being a good manager.

20) Performance Skills

If you are learning a musical instrument, at some point you’ll no doubt perform, be it for family or on a big stage. This skill can help you to become a better presenter in general.

21) Likability

People love music, and they love musicians! Far from being a mere party trick, music adds beauty and meaning to people’s lives.