Gallup Poll: Music Making On the Rise in the U.S. | Wanna Play Music

NAMM’s State of the Music Industry Report Suggests Playing Music Continues To Be Highly Important to Americans

CARLSBAD, Calif., August 21, 2006—A new U.S. Gallup Poll reveals
Americans of all ages are continuing to pursue music making and offers
insight into the attitudes behind this passion as part of the 2006 Music USA: NAMM Global Report.

NAMM, the trade association for the international music products industry, has released the 2006 Music USA: NAMM Global Report,
a state of the industry focusing on trends, sales and music education
issues from around the world. The report – which covers a broad
spectrum of music industry segments from grand pianos, to DJ gear, to
violins, to electric guitars – reveals interesting data on the industry
and attitudes toward music making:

• Americans are making more music than any other nationality.
• The U.S. market accounts for 42.7% of musical instrument purchases, followed by Japan at 15.6% and U.K. at 6.7%
• More than one-half of U.S. households (52%) has at least one
  person, age 5 or older, who currently plays a musical instrument – a
  sharp contrast compared to the United Kingdom at 37% and Australia* at
  36%
• 40% of U.S. households have two or more musicians
• More women (51%) play musical instruments than men (49%)
• The fastest growing segment of music makers is between the ages of 18 and 34; an increase of 5% percent since 2003
• More people are encouraged by their parents to take up an
  instrument (37%) than become interested on their own (29%), or are
  encouraged by a teacher (17%) or someone else (16%)

*2001 data

• Almost three-quarters of survey participants started playing before the age of 11
• The number of people participating in school instrumental music activities and private lessons increased by 11% since 2003

The report also highlights attitudes behind these trends:

• 85% of Americans believe that music is a very important part of their life
• 82% of Americans wish they had learned to play a musical instrument, and 67% expressed an interest in learning to play
• 94% of respondents believe music is part of a well-rounded
  education, and that schools should offer instrument music instruction
  as part of the regular curriculum
• 85% believe participation in school music corresponds with better grades and higher test scores
• Seniors are turning to music making as not just an enjoyable
  pastime, but also for the health and wellness benefits such as enhanced
  immune systems, stress reduction, and staving off depression and
  loneliness

“With more emerging research linking active music making to a host
of educational and health benefits as well as being a source of
expressing creativity and having fun, it’s only natural to see an
increase in playing across every U.S. demographic group,” said Joe
Lamond, president and CEO, NAMM. “More Americans are discovering that
you don’t have to be a ‘musician’ to enjoy the proven benefits and
enjoyment of playing music.”

The music products industry’s 16 million unit transactions last year
in the U.S. alone show that the industry reaches a broad swath of the
population. As more people learn about the benefits of playing music,
the industry expects to see America’s fondness for music making
continue.

In addition to the U.S. data, the 2006 Music USA report
also features industry trends on different market segments and offers a
global overview of the music products industry by featuring data from
nine countries: Australia, Austria, Canada, China, Germany, Italy,
Japan, Spain and The United Kingdom.

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