An Extra 90 Minutes of Sleep Could Change How Musicians Perform, Study Finds
For musicians, another hour of sleep might be more useful than another hour in the practice room. New research from Hong Kong Baptist University suggests that extending sleep by roughly 60 to 90 minutes per night can improve several skills that are central to musical performance.
The study, published in Music & Science in October 2025, examined how additional sleep affected rhythmic stability, sightreading, musical memory, and psychological flexibility among musicians. The findings add to a growing body of research examining how sleep and performance are connected.
Study Examines Sleep and Musical Performance
The research, led by Benjamin Pelletier of the Academy of Music at Hong Kong Baptist University, included 50 musicians between the ages of 18 and 55. Participants were either full-time tertiary music performance majors or professional musicians, with players represented across string, woodwind, brass, and keyboard instruments.
The musicians were randomly divided into two groups. One group continued with its usual sleep schedule, while the other was instructed to increase sleep by 90 minutes above its normal baseline.
Sleep was monitored using wearable WHOOP devices throughout the seven-day study. Although participants were asked to add 90 minutes, the sleep-extension group ultimately averaged an additional 1 hour and 26 minutes of sleep per night.
The researchers assessed the musicians before the intervention, after one day, and again after seven days. The tests focused on three musical skills: rhythmic stability, sightreading, and musical memory.
Rhythm, Sightreading and Memory Improved
The most notable changes appeared across all three musical performance measures.
Musicians in the sleep-extension group showed a 4.50% improvement in rhythmic stability compared with the control group. Sightreading performance improved by 7.12%, while musical memory showed a 38.24% improvement. The researchers reported these differences as statistically significant.
For the sightreading test, participants performed newly composed musical passages designed to have comparable levels of difficulty. Their performances were evaluated for pitch and rhythmic errors.
The memory test presented musicians with a new 25-measure composition. Participants received five minutes to practice the material before being asked to perform it from memory during subsequent assessments.
The same experienced adjudicator evaluated the sightreading and memory performances without knowing which participants had received the sleep intervention.
Sleep Extension Also Affected Psychological Flexibility
The study also looked beyond technical musical skills.
Researchers measured psychological flexibility, which relates to a person's ability to adapt to changing circumstances, manage difficult experiences, and continue working toward a goal. This can be particularly relevant to musicians dealing with the demands of rehearsals, performances, mistakes, and changing conditions on stage.
The sleep-extension group showed a significant increase in psychological flexibility over the course of the study, while the control group remained relatively stable.
The researchers also monitored participants' subjective sleepiness as part of the study.
What the Findings Could Mean for Musicians
The study does not suggest that musicians should stop practicing. Instead, the results raise questions about how musicians divide their time between practice and recovery.
The researchers noted that extending sleep could potentially improve the efficiency of practice and skill development. Their findings also suggest that sleep may have a role in preparing musicians for performance, alongside established practices such as rehearsal and technical training.
This could be particularly relevant in professional music environments where long rehearsals, recording sessions, performances, and touring schedules can make consistent sleep difficult.
At the same time, the study has limitations. It involved only 50 musicians and lasted seven days, and participants managed their own sleep extension within their normal lives. The researchers also noted that other lifestyle factors, including diet, exercise, and daily activities, were not directly controlled.
The authors therefore say further research is needed to establish causality and determine whether the effects continue over longer periods.
A Different Look at Musical Practice
The findings add another piece to the research surrounding how musicians learn, rehearse, and perform. Previous studies have already connected sleep with memory consolidation and motor-skill development, but research specifically examining extended sleep among musicians has been limited.
This study provides early evidence that adding roughly an hour to an hour and a half of sleep each night may be associated with measurable changes in several core musical abilities.
For musicians balancing another late-night practice session against getting more sleep, the research offers an interesting question: could some of that extra practice time be better spent sleeping?
The answer will require more research, but the latest findings suggest that sleep deserves a place in the conversation about musical performance and training.
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