Music has big brain benefits compared to other leisure pursuits

Music rocks. Musical activity was found to preserve cognition, including memory, as you age, when comparing variability in cognitive outcomes of older adults active in musical instrumental and other leisure activities.

You won’t lose it if you don’t use it. A range of cognitive benefits including memory were sustained for musicians between the ages of 60-80 if they played for at least 10 years throughout their life, confirming the maintenance of advantages is not reliant on continued activity.

Start young. Timing of musical instrumental acquisition, before age nine, is important in optimizing cognitive benefits and was associated with enhanced verbal working memory functions.

It’s never too late, so keep at it.  Sustained musical activity over the age of 60 was associated with other nonverbal cognitive benefits, and appeared to compensate for low educational attainment, which is possibly the greatest protection against age-related cognitive declines. This suggests that musical training should be considered an alternative form of education.