Implications of Singing and Listening to Music on Working Memory

Music is known to improve focus and memory, yet different brain regions are activated when listening to music versus singing. For example, singing uniquely engages the frontal and parietal systems, closely linked with thinking and problem-solving. However, singing also requires certain motor skills and is considerably more cognitively taxing than simply listening to music. Despite the differences in brain activation, the benefits of singing to memory remain poorly understood. This project aims to understand the distinct roles of listening to music and singing in two cognitive processes - attention and memory - and how music may be advantageous. Participants were assigned to one of three groups (n=90): no music, listening to a song, or singing along with a song. The song used for this study was “Here Comes the Sun” by the Beatles, commonly associated with positive valence. From there, analyses were conducted to examine the effect of music listening on memory and focus. The results of this study have immense potential to highlight music-based therapies as a tool for those with poor working memory, and the power of music in improving well-being.