National survey launched by Centre of Performance Science

Friday 9 November 2018

The Centre for Performance Science (CPS) has launched the HEartS music survey. The HEartS project is a major £1million study funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) examining the health, economic and social impact of the arts on public health. The project strives to advance our understanding of how arts and cultural engagement in the UK can support people’s lives.

The new survey was created to explore a surprising gap in understanding: the relationship in the general population between music activities – such as singing in a choir, learning an instrument or attending concerts – and outcomes for mental health and social wellbeing. The ultimate goal is to shape music’s role in society and illuminate its value for public health.

You can take part in the HEartS music survey here.

Professor Aaron Williamon, HEartS principal investigator and Director of the CPS, said: ‘We are keen to discover not only the effects of culture on health and happiness, but the reasons for those effects. For example, singing in a choir has been shown to improve mental health, but is this the result of socialising with others or something inherent to the very process of creating music? And how is this different from other social pursuits, such as sharing a meal with friends or going to the cinema?’

The CPS is a cross-institutional partnership between the Royal College of Music and Imperial College London. Its internationally distinctive research focuses on performance in the arts, business, education, medicine, science and sport. The CPS’ vision is that understanding how skilled performers meet the distinctive challenges of their work can serve both as a source of inspiration and a rich resource for research.

For more information and to take part in the HEartS survey, visit the CPS website and follow #HEartSMusic on Twitter.