Research Updates
Here at Bigger Better Brains we believe that through educating yourself, you can then educate and affect positive change in your community.
With all of the research in the field of neuromusical science, our BBB Research section serves as a content hub for you. We regularly share findings and break down the latest research to educate and inspire discussion. We hope you enjoy this page on our website and share BBB news with your colleagues, parents and students.
Being musical is part of our human design
In today’s world, filled with myriad parenting methods and high-tech toys that promise to enhance infant development, it is easy to overlook how fundamental the time-honoured practice of music is for all children—starting pre-birth.
Everything in moderation, including syncopation and harmony
This new research looks at the emotive factors in music and uses an idea called the “inverted U”.
Where does perfect pitch come from?
There is a great deal of debate around this question. In the research, the term Absolute Pitch (AP) is used for the more common term of perfect pitch. This recent study points to a stronger genetic link than previously thought.
I got rhy-thm?
Do you know someone who seems to have rhythm coming out of every part or pore and other people who couldn’t walk to a beat if their life depended on it?
If you have perfect pitch, your brain looks different!
Researchers have known for sometime that the brain structures (parts) of a person with absolute pitch has specific areas that are identified as unique or different. However, they don’t know how those structural differences might function or connect in equally unique or specific ways.
Why does white matter matter?
You have probably heard of grey matter but have you heard of white matter? White matter in our brain is tissue composed of nerve fibres.
There isn’t a music centre in the brain, the brain is the music centre
We used to think that there was a centre for every major processing task, like language or maths. We know that there are both centres for processing as well as a complex set of interlinking and overlapping networks that contribute to the processing of information.
Are musicians‘ brains wired differently?
Dr Psyche Loui is a psychologist, neuroscientist and musician who investigates how music can be used to understand the brain. She is a violinist and works to connect our understanding of the brain with the experience of being a music learner and performing musicians.
Here’s how to train your brain!
There is an interesting term in this article – experience-dependent plasticity. Here is a good plain language definition that also happens to include a musical reference.
Starting music at 6 years old supercharges the brain
Here is one of those research sentences that are so useful when we are explaining how music learning impacts on every child’s development.
A solution to stuck song syndrome!
Finally, that song that keeps playing on a loop inside our heads for no apparent reason has a name – stuck song syndrome!
Auditory processing may be different for girls and boys
Do men and women hear differently? Maybe. This report speaks on the lack of auditory processing differences at birth and in young children, but how differences may appear in adolescents as puberty changes our brains and bodies.
The evidence behind everything you teach, in one book
From Dr Anita Collins, music educator and creator of the TED-Ed video watched 17+ million times, translating the world's neuroscience research into the case for music education and the strategies to bring it into your teaching.
You already know music changes your students. The Music Advantage gives you the research that proves it. Because Anita explains the science through real-life stories, it reads like a good conversation rather than a textbook. Use it to advocate for your program, win over parents and leadership, and sharpen what you do in the classroom.
WHAT YOU GET
The complete book, 260 pages
Easy to read: the neuroscience explained through real classroom and family stories
Practical strategies you can apply across any age you teach, from birth to the teenage years
CHOOSE YOUR EDITION
Global edition: for readers outside the US
US edition: US terminology and examples
Signed copy: personally signed by Dr Anita Collins [while stocks last]
HOW TEACHERS USE IT
Advocacy: make the evidence-based case to school leadership for funding and keeping your program
Parent conversations: answer "is it really worth it?" with authority at enrolment and parent nights
In the classroom: practical strategies, from clapping to help a struggling reader, to ensemble play for concentration and social skills
Professional development: deepen your grasp of the "why" behind your teaching, or read it as a department
WHY IT WORKS
Written by Dr Anita Collins and grounded in research from leading neuromusical scientists worldwide, so when you make the case for music you are standing on the science, not opinion. And the real-life stories mean you will actually enjoy reading it.
"This book is my bible. I have so many highlights and pages flagged that I can use with parents and for quotes in emails." Kirsten, Music Teacher.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Which edition should I choose? Global for outside the US, US edition for US spelling and examples.
Is it a hard read? Not at all. Anita uses real-life stories to make the science clear and enjoyable.
What ages does it cover? Birth to the 18 years, useful whatever level you teach.
Add to cart NOW. Put the evidence for music behind your program today.
KEEP THE ADVOCACY GOING
BBB+ gives music teachers everything they need to make the case for music all year round:
A new advocacy toolkit every month
A library of 500+ tools and resources
Exclusive student exercises and advocacy materials
Member discounts
See what members get HERE