During the pandemic and the recurring lockdowns, a range of studies explored the positive impact of music on mental health, as well as the ways in which music was understood as a “way out” for various age groups. Research has indicated that listening to music is connected in multiple ways to mental health, significantly affecting self-regulation and decreasing stress, anxiety and levels of pain (Vamvakaris, 2020). For young people in particular, music seems to be of particular importance for their mental health and levels of wellbeing.

The question that was raised in the current research focuses on whether engaging with music had an impact on the wellbeing of undergraduate students’, as emerging adults (Galanaki & Leontopoulou, 2017). We specifically explored music usage for wellbeing during the recurring lockdowns caused by the pandemic by two student groups – those studying and working in music and those with no prior musical experience. We designed an 83-item questionnaire with three scales measuring: a. students’ musical engagement (Goldsmiths Musical Sophistication Index – Gold-MSI), b. Levels of wellbeing during the previous 12 months (Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale, adapted) as well as c. Relationship between music usage and mood (Brief-Music in Mood Regulation Scale, B-MMR). A series of open ended questions collected qualitative data about music usage during the pandemic for wellbeing purposes.

We present here the results from 140 completed questionnaires, focusing particularly on the qualitative data that were collected through the open-ended questions. The research aims to contribute to the general discussion around musical experiences in populations with and without music knowledge and their contribution to their general wellbeing.

• Μουσικές εμπειρίες, δια βίου μουσική μάθηση και ευζωία

Angeliki Triantafyllaki holds a PhD in Music Education from the University of Cambridge. She currently collaborates with the Music Education Lab of the Department of Music Studies, NKUA, on teaching and research projects. She is Associate Professor (appointment pending) of Music Education at the School of Social Sciences, University of Ioannina.

Smaragda Chrysostomou is Professor of Music Pedagogy and Didactics at the Department of Music Studies of NKUA, Head of the Music Education Lab and the Postgraduate Masters Programme "Music Education in form and informal settings".

Christina Anagnostopoulou is Associate Professor at the Department of Music Studies, NKUA and Head of the Music, Cognitive Sciences and Community Lab. She is also scientific collaborator of the Aiginiteio Hospital.