Do you play an instrument?
The subject of music has come up in a number of threads and I was wondering how many people have studied music and how it affects their appraoch to learning languages,
As for me, I studied piano and saxophone for several years as a child, then started learning guitar a few years ago after a long break from music playing, but not from listening. Other than having an appreciation for cadence and tonal variation, it hasn't had much impact on how I learn Spanish.
21 Answers
I have heard and have come to believe that anyone who is musically inclined is at a slight advantage when studying foreign languages.
Well Nichole, I'm another one who throws a wrench into that theory. I started out playing accordion when I was 6 {my fathers instrument of choice}. By 12 I informed my parents that it was just not a very cool instrument and after a year off, switched to organ and bass guitar. Doing the rock band scene throughout High School was very cool. Two years later I was married to wife number 1 and goodbye to that lifestyle. Anyway, back to the question. I now still play keyboard and pick a little on the acoustic guitar and with10 years of studying musical instruments and another 42 years of off and on playing I can say it hasn't helped my Spanish one bit. And boy do I wish it did.
I played drums and percussion for a job, and I was in the US Navy music program for 7 years. If it affects how you learn, you might not be conscious of it. I do remember, though, that my band teacher in high school found some article that said that music majors do the best on standardized tests (over engineering majors etc). I thought it was funny how he posted it outside of his office window.
I think that one concept that I can sort of connect to playing music is that it takes repetition to learn. For instance, once you get a handle on some technique you need to practice doing it properly over and over to really be able to use it. Or for instance memorizing songs, I would play something until I could play it from memory and then do it a generous amount of times more to make sure I really knew the song.
So this translates to learning a language. The more times (and how recently) someone has used vocabulary the better he or she will remember it. I'm sure there are other parallels such as making a habit of listening, but I have other stuff to do tonight. lol
I have played the piano since childhood. I also sing, but prefer to sing the harmony or back up parts. I have been fascinated with harmony for as long as I can remember.
I have heard and have come to believe that anyone who is musically inclined is at a slight advantage when studying foreign languages.
Here is an article about the parallels of learning music and language that I found interesting: Here is a second article.
That is not to say that all non-musicians should give up. However, it is easy to see how the topics are related.
I make my guitar scream everytime I touch it.
But I like it!
I played trumpet for 6 years when I was younger and guitar for the last 25 years. I've taught guitar for many years along the way and have played professionally. Music like Spanish is most definitly a language. There are many rules (some, when learned can be broken) as well as exceptions to the rules, as in Spanish. There are many different styles (or dialects) of music, Jazz, Blues, Rock, Classical. etc. Spanish has many different dialects all over the world. Also you can express yourself freely when you become articulate in your certain instrument of choice, just like when speaking a language. So for me learning music has helped me in my Spanish studies because I can easily relate the two. As in music, if you have the patience and I stress patience, drive and desire, you will certainly succeed in learning this beautiful language. Good luck to all!
Music is not my profession, but It is my passion. I have played the piano too, since I was a child, and a bit of the Spanish guitar. I also was a member of a choir while I was in University and this was a great opportunity which enabled me to travel to interesting places.
I love classical music, and opera. I began with Mozart 
and continued with Beethoven, Bach, Vivaldi, Debussy, Mahler, Rachmaninov... I never could stop.
I love jazz too, intrumental and vocal, and rock music, I'm still young enough!
And tradicional music, like folk, touches me emocionally, a lot.
I started with the piano when I was 4. Nowadays, I focus on the guitar.
I'm not so convinced with the whole 'people that play musical instruments have an advantage in learning languages' thing (believe me, I've been through some rough times where I felt like I was at a disadvantage compared to 'everyone else' - so I've definitely not felt any advantages due to my musical instrument experience).
The whole 'repetition' to master a particular technique or song is not relegated to just musical instruments. This applies to any skill. How many practice free throws does it take for a basketball player to become consistent in a live game situation?? They take hundreds upon hundreds.
The real only musical advantage in learning languages that I can see is mainly with vocalists (for obvious reasons).
-Charlie Tan-
I do not think that the "ability " to play an instrument is the determining factor as whether one is good at languages, but I think if one has the discilpline to study
and learn to play then it follows that one will have the same determination to
learn a language . when one has the desire the will and need to succeed then
everything is possible . From what I have read about the people on SD , although
they may complain that they are not proceeding at a fast enough rate ,as I have
done, I am confident that they are the type of people who will eventually succeed at whatever task they set themselves , whether it be music or a language.
As a point of interest I have had a musical background therefore I hope that Nicole
and her theory has some credence. 
I started played the piano when I was ten and took lessons for 6 years. Later I played piano and organ for our church for over 20 years. Although I can read music, I found that when playing with a group of musicians, I had to train myself to play by ear which was not easy if you do not have perfect pitch. Frequently, our song leader would go from one song to the other, and stay in the same key, so I would just have to know all the chords and changes and be able to switch them in my mind. Sometimes, I could do it well, and other times, we all would all get a little mixed up. None of us were professional musicians. When it worked, it was very exciting. I had to stop playing in church because of severe tinnitus, but I still play once and a while at home. I have read that learning to read music is similar to learning a foreign language. I really don't know. Maybe it has something to do with concentration. However, it would be nice if it did help....I am not sure that is has.
I am learning to play the piano. But I mostly sing. I am a soprano. My family is mostly French Canadian so learning spanish is hard because I have a little bit of a french accent.
I play clarinet.
I play the violin and piano! I love music, in general. I don't think it's really impacted my spanish...except learning is a lot more enjoyable when I get to learn through song. I study the transcript to learn different phrases... Cuando me enamoro--Enrique Iglesias!
Charlius said:
Anyways, you said that the skills in learning a language are the same as those skills being learned and practiced in music..I agree with this if we're talking about vocalists/singers, but what skills would say, a guitarist be honing that are related to language learning?? I can't think of any.
Charlius, I am definitely not an expert on this subject, but I find it very interesting. I definitely agree that "elbow grease" is needed for practically everyone but the exceptionally gifted. There are other categories of people who appear to have an advantage. These would include those with photographic memories, those living in bilingual homes, and even those with a ton of spare time on their hands. I am fairly certain that you have the advantage over me at this moment since you are currently in an immersion environment.
We all come to the table with a variety of skills, gifts and experiences that will probably help or hinder us in some way as we learn Spanish. That being said, here is an excerpt from the articles I have linked above. Maybe as you read it, you will see why I believe that guitarists and other instrumentalists enter the language learning arena with a leg up. Then again, you might disagree and that's fine. It is still an interesting discussion.
It is so great that you are back in Spain! I was wondering if you were returning. I hope you have a great year with your students. And please....start your blog up again! 
Here is the excerpt:
The study found that playing an instrument primes the brain to choose what is relevant in a complex process that may involve reading or remembering a score, timing issues and coordination with other musicians.
“A musician’s brain selectively enhances information-bearing elements in sound,” Kraus said in a statement. “In a beautiful interrelationship between sensory and cognitive processes, the nervous system makes associations between complex sounds and what they mean.”
The study reviewed literature showing, for example, that musicians are more successful than non-musicians in learning to incorporate sound patterns for a new language into words.
Children who are musically trained are better at observing pitch changes in speech and have a better vocabulary and reading ability than children who did not receive music training.
Musicians trained to hear sounds embedded in networks of melodies and harmonies are primed to understand speech in a noisy background.
Some of my guitars:
Hey Nicole,
First, thanks for the vote of confidence in me, haha.
Anyways, you said that the skills in learning a language are the same as those skills being learned and practiced in music..I agree with this if we're talking about vocalists/singers, but what skills would say, a guitarist be honing that are related to language learning?? I can't think of any.
Anyways, I don't know if there's a sure answer to all of this. It seems pretty hard to gauge. If a musically gifted person learns a certain language very well in a relatively short period of time - how much of this is due to his musical gifts and how much was due to plain elbow grease?? Tough you see?
Anyways, that's why I like to just think that we all have the same potential (most of us I mean, I know there are the truly gifted out there). I feel that people sometimes look for reasons as to why they're never as good as somebody else due to a certain advantage or gift when most times, a lot of it just comes down to hard work..which in turn should serve as an inspiration to all - 'Hey, all I need to do is work a bit harder, then I'll be just as good (or better)!'
On another note Nicole, I'm actually back here in Malaga, Spain. Same apartment, same school, some new people and experiences. I'm really enjoying my 2nd time around the block since now, as opposed to my 1st go around, I'm taking everything around super normally and feel completely at ease. I remember when I got off the plane a few weeks ago..it felt like coming back to my second home whereas the first time was like..'Hollllyyyy macarel, what have I got myself into??!!!!'
-Charlius-
