Eighty-year-olds can identify familiar tunes just as easily as teenagers, according to new research. This suggests that the ability to remember and recognise musical themes is remarkably resistant to the effects of ageing, unlike many other cognitive functions.
"You often hear stories of people with severe Alzheimer's who can't speak or recognise loved ones, but can still sing songs from their childhood or play the piano," says Sarah Sauvé, a music scientist at the University of Lincoln in the UK. This anecdotal evidence hinted at a unique resilience of musical memory, prompting Sauvé to investigate further.
Previous studies have shown that while some aspects of memory, such as real-time processing tasks, are affected by ageing, others, such as recognition tasks relying on familiar information and automatic processes, remain largely intact. While the impact of age on musical recall has been explored, Sauvé sought to examine this in a real-world setting, such as a concert.
In her study, published in *PLoS ONE*, Sauvé tested the ability of 90 healthy adults, aged 18 to 86, to recognise familiar and unfamiliar musical themes during a live performance by the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra in St. John's, Canada. An additional 31 participants watched a recording of the concert in a laboratory setting.
The study focused on three musical pieces: *Eine kleine Nachtmusik
by Mozart, assumed to be familiar to most participants, and two specially commissioned pieces, one tonal and easily accessible, the other atonal and more challenging. A short melodic phrase from each piece was played three times at the beginning of the piece, and participants noted whenever they recognised that theme within the music.
The results showed that the melodic phrase from *Eine kleine Nachtmusik
was recognised equally well across all ages and musical backgrounds, with no decline in recognition as age increased. While all participants were less confident in recognising the theme in the unfamiliar tonal piece, and even less so in the unfamiliar atonal piece, this pattern did not vary with age. Importantly, the study found no age-related difference in recognition between those attending the live concert and those watching the recording.
Steffen Herff, a cognitive neuroscientist at the University of Sydney, Australia, suggests that the emotional connection we form with music might contribute to its resilience against age-related cognitive decline. "We know from general memory research that the amygdala, which processes emotions, acts like an 'importance stamp' on memories," he explains.
The inherent structure of music, with its predictable patterns and rules, also makes it easier for the brain to anticipate and remember. "It's relatively easy to guess what happened between notes," says Herff.
While the study gathered limited data on participants' cognitive health, it did not provide detailed insights into how cognitive impairments or neurodegenerative diseases affect musical memory recall. However, Herff highlights the growing interest in using music as a "cognitive scaffolding" - a memory aid for other information - in individuals with conditions like dementia.
This research suggests that musical memory might be a powerful tool for maintaining cognitive function throughout our lives. It reinforces the importance of engaging with music, even as we age, to potentially enhance our cognitive abilities and preserve precious memories.