Music, emotion, and executive functions: A narrative revision of literature

Abstract

This work presents a narrative bibliographic review on music and executive functions (EF) associated with the prefrontal cortex (PFC) in interaction with the limbic system related to the processing of emotions, discussing its indissociability. The article aims to examine the most recent literature on PFC and EF, correlational, longitudinal, and experimental studies about musical practice, and the development of skills related to executive brain functions. It concludes by emphasizing the importance of using validated tests that capture EF sub-functions, emotions, and musical abilities in order to verify the efficacy of interventions that use music teaching as a way of benefitting the human development of populations in risk situations.