Learning to Play: Cognitive and Physical Development of Children and the Requirements of Playing the Piano

Musical learning and performance has traditionally been understood as the process of cognitive ability and physical action. If a musician lacks or is underdeveloped in one of these areas it will either be harder or almost impossible to create music. In this presentation I will focus on the connection between them. Cognitive ability and knowledge increases with age as we gain more facts and experiences. Likewise, a child’s physical abilities expand and become more advanced with age. There is an increasing amount of evidence that cognitive abilities and physical developments are linked in children’s development.