What is Music Psychology? The Impact of Music on the Brain, Behavior, and Musicians

Music psychology is the scientific study of how music affects the brain, behavior, and overall well-being. Rooted in music perception and cognition, the field has expanded since the 1950s to explore music’s influence on emotions, social dynamics, and mental health. While music psychology is often associated with music therapy, which uses music to improve physical and mental health, it also examines how music shapes our thoughts and behaviors from a scientific perspective and over 70 years of academic research.

You could also think of it as sports psychology “for musicians”.

The discipline shares surprising parallels with sports psychology. Just as athletes endure rigorous training, grueling schedules, and intense performance pressure, so do musicians. Athletes often benefit from a team of sports psychologists and medical professionals, enabling them to perform at their best. Musicians, however, lack equivalent institutionalized support, despite their equally demanding careers. Imagine if top orchestras or major recording artists had music psychologists on staff. These professionals could address performance anxiety, stress management, and career longevity—challenges that musicians often face without adequate resources.

Performance anxiety, a common social phobia among musicians, highlights the need for tailored mental health interventions. Musicians are expected to perform flawlessly under public scrutiny, yet few resources are available to help them cope with the psychological toll. This gap in support became glaringly apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, the Metropolitan Opera laid off its orchestral musicians, leaving these world-class professionals without income or healthcare. Such actions not only underscored the instability of careers in music but also revealed a lack of systemic safety nets for artists, who often face financial and mental health challenges alone. (The same would likely not affect professional athletes of top pro sports teams - something I talk about in my research, and the historical and systemic reasons for why this occurs in the US.)

On a broader scale, music psychology explores how music impacts cognition and behavior. Listening to music activates brain regions associated with emotion, memory, and reward, releasing dopamine and influencing mood. Music can improve focus, enhance memory retention, and even assist in neurological recovery. Studies also reveal that musical training enhances cognitive skills like attention, language development, and emotional intelligence, showcasing the profound ways music reshapes the brain over time.

For musicians, the field of music psychology holds particular promise. It not only highlights the mental health challenges of performing artists but also offers strategies to foster resilience, creativity, and community. By integrating psychological insights into the world of music, we can better support musicians while unlocking the full potential of music as a force for human connection and growth.

Just as sports psychology improves the lives of athletes, music psychology has the power to uplift musicians, and how music impacts our health, behavior, and wellbeing daily.