The impact of music on learning 

Students with coursework/experience in music performance scored higher on the SAT.

Students in music performance scored 57 points higher on the verbal and 41 points higher on the math, than did students with no arts participation. — College-Bound Seniors National Report: Profile of SAT Program Test Takers. Princeton, NJ: The College Entrance Examination Board, 2001

High School music students have been shown to hold higher grade point averages (GPA) than non-musicians in the same school.   www.menc.org: Horne 1983

The U.S. Department of Education lists the arts as subjects that college-bound middle and junior high school students should take, stating "Many colleges view participation in the arts and music as a valuable experience that broadens students’ understanding and appreciation of the world around them. It is also well known and widely recognized that the arts contribute significantly to children’s intellectual development."
- Getting Ready for College Early: A Handbook for Parents of Students in the Middle and Junior High School Years, U.S. Department of Education, 1997

Music education improves student listening skills. www.menc.org: Kohanski 1970

A research team exploring the link between music and intelligence reported that music training is far superior to computer instruction in dramatically enhancing children's abstract reasoning skills, the skills necessary for learning math and science.
— Shaw, Rauscher, Levine, Wright, Dennis and Newcomb, "Music training causes long-term enhancement of children's spatial-temporal reasoning," Neurological Research, Vol. 19, February 1997

 Receiving increased music instruction can lead to increased learning in math. www.menc.org: Malester 1986

An Auburn University study found significant increases in overall self-concept of at-risk children participating in an arts program that included music, movement, dramatics and art, as measured by the Piers-Harris Children’s Self-Concept Scale.
— N.H. Barry, Project ARISE: Meeting the needs of disadvantaged students through the arts, Auburn University, 1992

“Music is one way for young people to connect with themselves, but it is also a bridge for connecting with others. Through music, we can introduce children to the richness and diversity of the human family and to the myriad rhythms of life.”
— Daniel A. Carp, Eastman Kodak Company Chairman and CEO.

“Music education opens doors that help children pass from school into the world around them — a world of work, culture, intellectual activity, and human involvement. The future of our nation depends on providing our children with a complete education that includes music.”
— Gerald Ford, former President, United States of America