Music reveals which brain areas are affected by aging

A new study led by Aarhus University has revealed that older individuals are just as capable as younger people at remembering familiar musical pieces, though certain parts of their brains must work harder. 

The research, recently published in Nature Communications Biology, offers insights into how aging affects the brain’s ability to process and recall music.

Exploring age-related changes in the brain

What makes this study particularly noteworthy is its combination of classical music and neurophysiology to explore the brain’s functional changes with age. 

At Aarhus University Hospital, 76 participants, ranging in age, underwent brain scans while listening to a piano piece by Johann Sebastian Bach – a composer whose structured and harmonious music was chosen for its memorability. 

The participants had heard the piece twice before their scans, allowing the researchers to observe how their brains responded to familiar music.

Sensory areas of older brains

The results showed that when older people listen to familiar music, sensory-related areas of their brains become more active, while the brain regions typically responsible for memory processes show less activity compared to younger people.

“This suggests that the sensory areas of older brains work harder to compensate for the reduced response from the areas typically involved in memory processes,” explained associate professor Leonardo Bonetti from the Center for Music in the Brain, part of the Department of Clinical Medicine at Aarhus University. 

The older brain adapts to challenges 

One of the key takeaways of the research is that changes in brain function with age do not necessarily point to decline or disease. 

“The study emphasizes that changes in brain functionality do not necessarily lead to disease or dysfunction. Aging is not just about having a declining brain, but about having a brain that adapts to challenges and compensates for mechanisms that become less effective,” Bonetti explained.

Brain regions associated with memory 

In addition to playing the familiar Bach piece, the researchers also presented participants with altered versions of the original melodies to examine how their brains responded to unfamiliar music. 

The scans revealed that older individuals show less activity in the brain regions associated with memory when listening to new variations of the music. In contrast, sensory-related regions of the brain remained equally active, regardless of whether the participants were listening to familiar or unfamiliar versions.

“The older group simply does not show the same brain responses when hearing new variations of the music as the younger group. This may help explain the mechanism that makes it challenging for older people to cope with changes in general,” Bonetti said.

This finding has significant implications for understanding how memory functions in aging individuals and could potentially offer insights into age-related memory decline. 

Music as a tool to study the aging brain 

Bonetti hopes the study can inform dementia research and contribute to more effective screening methods for early detection of cognitive impairments.

“We are now planning to expand the study to include people with mild dementia. The hope is that we can identify biomarkers and use the data to predict how changes in brain functionality indicate the likelihood of developing dementia,” Bonetti said. 

By studying the brain’s response to familiar and unfamiliar music, researchers may be able to identify early signs of cognitive decline and use this information to develop strategies for treatment or intervention.

Music that is suitable for memory studies 

The researchers chose music sequences based on Johann Sebastian Bach’s compositions for a reason. Bonetti explained that Bach’s music is particularly suitable for memory studies because of its strong harmonic structure and clear patterns, making it easier to remember than other types of stimuli like numbers or text. 

The piece used in the study, a simplified version of Prelude in C Minor from Das Wohltemperirte Clavier, was selected because of its repetitive structure, which helps embed the music in memory after just a few listens.

“Bach’s music is very easy to remember because it combines strong harmonies and a clear hierarchical structure, which is repeated many times,” Bonetti explained. 

“The participants heard the piece twice and then remembered it. In memory research, music is often better than, for example, numbers or text, because it is intuitively memorable. This allows us to more easily discover how the brain processes information over time.”

Improving early detection of cognitive decline

Music, with its ability to evoke strong emotional and sensory responses, provides a valuable tool for studying how the brain processes and retains information. In particular, it helps researchers observe how the brain adapts and compensates for changes related to aging.

The use of Bach’s music, which naturally lends itself to memorability, also allowed the researchers to better understand the mechanisms the brain uses to recall information as we age. 

The study’s findings shed new light on how aging brains adapt to the challenges of memory retention, particularly through the increased engagement of sensory areas to compensate for diminished memory activity. This shift underscores the adaptability of the brain, showing that while aging may change how the brain works, it doesn’t necessarily mean a decline in its overall function.

As the research continues, it holds the potential to improve early detection of cognitive decline in aging populations and offer new approaches for understanding how memory functions across the lifespan. 

By studying the interaction between music, memory, and the aging brain, researchers like Bonetti hope to unlock further insights into how we can maintain cognitive health as we grow older.

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