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Comment by ProxCoques | Hacker News Reader

This paper looks at the benefits of "engagement in an environment that requires sustained cognitive effort". This seems to support the idea that playing music might be one of the better things you can do to maintain or improve cognition based on this article:

https://www.inc.com/john-rampton/the-benefits-of-playing-mus...

(BTW I'm 52 and have played drums since I was 12. I think that counts as being a musician. But I'm not sure...)

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I recently attended a talk by Dr. Nina Kraus of Northwestern University [1], her main thesis was exactly that, based on evidence from many studies: playing music (even badly) has an incredible effect on cognition. In particular on speech comprehension, which of course has a strong relationship with rhythm [2].

[1] http://www.brainvolts.northwestern.edu/ [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INt4GGr-EGU

Did singing count? Improvisation (on an instrument)?

Or did it have to be more formal, e.g. sight-reading; aiming at a specific performance.

Found her page, but there's a lot of material there.http://www.brainvolts.northwestern.edu/projects/music/index....

Does programming count as requiring sustained cognitive effort?

Reminds me of the old joke:

What do you call somebody who hangs out with a group of musicians?

A drummer.

Heh. Or, "How do you know the stage is level?"

"The drummer* drools out of both sides of his mouth."

*or bass player

If we're telling mean musician jokes, my favourite:

Q. What do you call a bass player without a (girl|boy)friend?

A. Homeless.

How do you know when a drummer is at the door?

The knocking speeds up.

How do you know when a singer is at the door?

They don't have the key, and they never know when to come in.

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