Abstract
Community music making is an avenue to cultivating camaraderie in a lonely and disconnected world. Much of the scholarship on community music making groups and wellbeing focuses on singular activity or specific case studies. Several studies utilize the World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire to measure participant wellbeing, specifically the four domains of quality of life. The longevity hot spots—Blue Zones—offer insights into lifestyle habits for not only longevity, but vitality into old age. The aging population is increasing, and aging with vitality has grown increasingly important. As such, music making as a serious leisure activity in a community setting offers a pathway to positive and successful aging. There is little research connecting longevity to music making. The purpose of this literature review is to compile and review scholarship related to various community music making activities (i.e., singing ensembles, instrumental ensembles, ukulele, drum circles, piano), the nonmusical benefits on quality of life, and how it improves wellbeing and potentially longevity.