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Hsieh IH, Yeh WT. The Interaction Between Timescale and Pitch Contour at Pre-attentive Processing of Frequency-Modulated Sweeps. Front Psychol 2021; 12:637289. [PMID: 33833720 PMCID: PMC8021897 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.637289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2020] [Accepted: 02/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Speech comprehension across languages depends on encoding the pitch variations in frequency-modulated (FM) sweeps at different timescales and frequency ranges. While timescale and spectral contour of FM sweeps play important roles in differentiating acoustic speech units, relatively little work has been done to understand the interaction between the two acoustic dimensions at early cortical processing. An auditory oddball paradigm was employed to examine the interaction of timescale and pitch contour at pre-attentive processing of FM sweeps. Event-related potentials to frequency sweeps that vary in linguistically relevant pitch contour (fundamental frequency F0 vs. first formant frequency F1) and timescale (local vs. global) in Mandarin Chinese were recorded. Mismatch negativities (MMNs) were elicited by all types of sweep deviants. For local timescale, FM sweeps with F0 contours yielded larger MMN amplitudes than F1 contours. A reversed MMN amplitude pattern was obtained with respect to F0/F1 contours for global timescale stimuli. An interhemispheric asymmetry of MMN topography was observed corresponding to local and global-timescale contours. Falling but not rising frequency difference waveforms sweep contours elicited right hemispheric dominance. Results showed that timescale and pitch contour interacts with each other in pre-attentive auditory processing of FM sweeps. Findings suggest that FM sweeps, a type of non-speech signal, is processed at an early stage with reference to its linguistic function. That the dynamic interaction between timescale and spectral pattern is processed during early cortical processing of non-speech frequency sweep signal may be critical to facilitate speech encoding at a later stage.
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Affiliation(s)
- I-Hui Hsieh
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, National Central University, Taoyuan City, Taiwan
| | - Wan-Ting Yeh
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, National Central University, Taoyuan City, Taiwan
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2
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Global precedence changes by environment: A systematic review and meta-analysis on effect of perceptual field variables on global-local visual processing. Atten Percept Psychophys 2020; 82:2348-2359. [PMID: 32189234 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-020-01997-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Perceptual organization and, in particular, visual processing have been debated for many years. The global precedence effect in local-global visual processing, as introduced by David Navon, refers to the condition that global aspects of a scene are processed more rapidly than are local details. This perceptual dynamic is influenced by many factors that can be divided into two major categories: subjective or internal factors (e.g., age, disorder, culture) and the external factors called perceptual field variables (PFVs; e.g., stimulus size, eccentricity, sparsity). The aim of the current study was to identify the latter factors using a meta-analysis followed by a systematic literature review. In accordance of the standard framework suggested by PRISMA, 28 PFVs were observed through a literature search on articles published from 1982 to 2019, among which 10 factors have been qualified to be included in a meta-analysis. Subsequently, the random effects model proposed by Hedges and Olkin was used to estimate pooled effect sizes of PFVs. These effect sizes were used to compare and sort the PFVs on the basis of their intensity. According to Cohen's index, our analyses show that relevance, sparsity, and solidness type are categorized as small effects; visual field, level repetition, spatial frequency, and shape type are categorized as medium effects; and congruency, eccentricity, and size as large effect PFVs on global precedence.
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3
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Lumaca M, Kleber B, Brattico E, Vuust P, Baggio G. Functional connectivity in human auditory networks and the origins of variation in the transmission of musical systems. eLife 2019; 8:48710. [PMID: 31658945 PMCID: PMC6819097 DOI: 10.7554/elife.48710] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2019] [Accepted: 10/09/2019] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Music producers, whether original composers or performers, vary in their ability to acquire and faithfully transmit music. This form of variation may serve as a mechanism for the emergence of new traits in musical systems. In this study, we aim to investigate whether individual differences in the social learning and transmission of music relate to intrinsic neural dynamics of auditory processing systems. We combined auditory and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) with an interactive laboratory model of cultural transmission, the signaling game, in an experiment with a large cohort of participants (N=51). We found that the degree of interhemispheric rs-FC within fronto-temporal auditory networks predicts—weeks after scanning—learning, transmission, and structural modification of an artificial tone system. Our study introduces neuroimaging in cultural transmission research and points to specific neural auditory processing mechanisms that constrain and drive variation in the cultural transmission and regularization of musical systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Massimo Lumaca
- Center for Music in the Brain, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University and The Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Boris Kleber
- Center for Music in the Brain, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University and The Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Elvira Brattico
- Center for Music in the Brain, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University and The Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Peter Vuust
- Center for Music in the Brain, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University and The Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Giosue Baggio
- Language Acquisition and Language Processing Lab, Department of Language and Literature, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
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4
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Chen A, Stevens CJ, Kager R. Pitch Perception in the First Year of Life, a Comparison of Lexical Tones and Musical Pitch. Front Psychol 2017; 8:297. [PMID: 28337157 PMCID: PMC5343020 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2016] [Accepted: 02/16/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Pitch variation is pervasive in speech, regardless of the language to which infants are exposed. Lexical tone is influenced by general sensitivity to pitch. We examined whether the development in lexical tone perception may develop in parallel with perception of pitch in other cognitive domains namely music. Using a visual fixation paradigm, 100 and one 4- and 12-month-old Dutch infants were tested on their discrimination of Chinese rising and dipping lexical tones as well as comparable three-note musical pitch contours. The 4-month-old infants failed to show a discrimination effect in either condition, whereas the 12-month-old infants succeeded in both conditions. These results suggest that lexical tone perception may reflect and relate to general pitch perception abilities, which may serve as a basis for developing more complex language and musical skills.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ao Chen
- Utrecht Institute of Linguistics, Utrecht UniversityUtrecht, Netherlands; Communication Science School, Beijing Language and Culture UniversityBeijing, China
| | - Catherine J Stevens
- The MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development, Western Sydney University, Sydney NSW, Australia
| | - René Kager
- Utrecht Institute of Linguistics, Utrecht University Utrecht, Netherlands
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5
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Black E, Stevenson JL, Bish JP. The Role of Musical Experience in Hemispheric Lateralization of Global and Local Auditory Processing. Perception 2017; 46:956-975. [DOI: 10.1177/0301006616685954] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The global precedence effect is a phenomenon in which global aspects of visual and auditory stimuli are processed before local aspects. Individuals with musical experience perform better on all aspects of auditory tasks compared with individuals with less musical experience. The hemispheric lateralization of this auditory processing is less well-defined. The present study aimed to replicate the global precedence effect with auditory stimuli and to explore the lateralization of global and local auditory processing in individuals with differing levels of musical experience. A total of 38 college students completed an auditory-directed attention task while electroencephalography was recorded. Individuals with low musical experience responded significantly faster and more accurately in global trials than in local trials regardless of condition, and significantly faster and more accurately when pitches traveled in the same direction (compatible condition) than when pitches traveled in two different directions (incompatible condition) consistent with a global precedence effect. In contrast, individuals with high musical experience showed less of a global precedence effect with regards to accuracy, but not in terms of reaction time, suggesting an increased ability to overcome global bias. Further, a difference in P300 latency between hemispheres was observed. These findings provide a preliminary neurological framework for auditory processing of individuals with differing degrees of musical experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Black
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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6
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Foster NEV, Ouimet T, Tryfon A, Doyle-Thomas K, Anagnostou E, Hyde KL. Effects of Age and Attention on Auditory Global-Local Processing in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 2016; 46:1415-28. [PMID: 26724923 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-015-2684-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
In vision, typically-developing (TD) individuals perceive "global" (whole) before "local" (detailed) features, whereas individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit a local bias. However, auditory global-local distinctions are less clear in ASD, particularly in terms of age and attention effects. To these aims, here ASD and TD children judged local and global pitch structure in nine-tone melodies. Both groups showed a similar global precedence effect, but ASD children were less sensitive to global interference than TD children at younger ages. There was no effect of attention task. These findings provide novel evidence of developmental differences in auditory perception and may help to refine sensory phenotypes in ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas E V Foster
- International Laboratory for Brain Music and Sound Research (BRAMS), Pavillon 1420 Mont-Royal, Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, C.P. 6128, Succ. Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC, H3C 3J7, Canada.
- Faculty of Medicine, McIntyre Medical Building, McGill University, 3655 Sir William Osler, Montreal, QC, H3G 1Y6, Canada.
| | - Tia Ouimet
- International Laboratory for Brain Music and Sound Research (BRAMS), Pavillon 1420 Mont-Royal, Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, C.P. 6128, Succ. Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC, H3C 3J7, Canada
- Faculty of Medicine, McIntyre Medical Building, McGill University, 3655 Sir William Osler, Montreal, QC, H3G 1Y6, Canada
| | - Ana Tryfon
- International Laboratory for Brain Music and Sound Research (BRAMS), Pavillon 1420 Mont-Royal, Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, C.P. 6128, Succ. Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC, H3C 3J7, Canada
- Faculty of Medicine, McIntyre Medical Building, McGill University, 3655 Sir William Osler, Montreal, QC, H3G 1Y6, Canada
| | - Krissy Doyle-Thomas
- Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, University of Toronto, 150 Kilgour Road, Toronto, ON, M4G 1R8, Canada
| | - Evdokia Anagnostou
- Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, University of Toronto, 150 Kilgour Road, Toronto, ON, M4G 1R8, Canada
| | - Krista L Hyde
- International Laboratory for Brain Music and Sound Research (BRAMS), Pavillon 1420 Mont-Royal, Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, C.P. 6128, Succ. Centre-Ville, Montreal, QC, H3C 3J7, Canada
- Faculty of Medicine, McIntyre Medical Building, McGill University, 3655 Sir William Osler, Montreal, QC, H3G 1Y6, Canada
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7
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Ziv N, Radin S. Absolute and relative pitch: Global versus local processing of chords. Adv Cogn Psychol 2014; 10:15-25. [PMID: 24855499 PMCID: PMC3996714 DOI: 10.2478/v10053-008-0152-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2013] [Accepted: 10/28/2013] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Absolute pitch (AP) is the ability to identify or produce notes without any reference note. An ongoing debate exists regarding the benefits or disadvantages of AP in processing music. One of the main issues in this context is whether the categorical perception of pitch in AP possessors may interfere in processing tasks requiring relative pitch (RP). Previous studies, focusing mainly on melodic and interval perception, have obtained inconsistent results. The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of AP and RP separately, using isolated chords. Seventy-three musicians were categorized into four groups of high and low AP and RP, and were tested on two tasks: identifying chord types (Task 1), and identifying a single note within a chord (Task 2). A main effect of RP on Task 1 and an interaction between AP and RP in reaction times were found. On Task 2 main effects of AP and RP, and an interaction were found, with highest performance in participants with both high AP and RP. Results suggest that AP and RP should be regarded as two different abilities, and that AP may slow down reaction times for tasks requiring global processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naomi Ziv
- Department of Psychology, College of Management Academic Studies,
Israel
| | - Shulamit Radin
- Department of Behavioral Sciences, Tel Aviv-Yafo Academic College,
Israel
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8
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Ouimet T, Foster NEV, Hyde KL. Auditory global-local processing: effects of attention and musical experience. THE JOURNAL OF THE ACOUSTICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2012; 132:2536-2544. [PMID: 23039447 DOI: 10.1121/1.4747009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
In vision, global (whole) features are typically processed before local (detail) features ("global precedence effect"). However, the distinction between global and local processing is less clear in the auditory domain. The aims of the present study were to investigate: (i) the effects of directed versus divided attention, and (ii) the effect musical training on auditory global-local processing in 16 adult musicians and 16 non-musicians. Participants were presented with short nine-tone melodies, each comprised of three triplet sequences (three-tone units). In a "directed attention" task, participants were asked to focus on either the global or local pitch pattern and had to determine if the pitch pattern went up or down. In a "divided attention" task, participants judged whether the target pattern (up or down) was present or absent. Overall, global structure was perceived faster and more accurately than local structure. The global precedence effect was observed regardless of whether attention was directed to a specific level or divided between levels. Musicians performed more accurately than non-musicians overall, but non-musicians showed a more pronounced global advantage. This study provides evidence for an auditory global precedence effect across attention tasks, and for differences in auditory global-local processing associated with musical experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tia Ouimet
- Faculty of Medicine, Montreal Children's Hospital, McGill University, 4060 Sainte Catherine West, room 322, Montréal, Québec H3Z 2Z3, Canada.
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9
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Abstract
The perception of a melody is invariant to the absolute properties of its constituting notes, but depends on the relation between them-the melody's relative pitch profile. In fact, a melody's "Gestalt" is recognized regardless of the instrument or key used to play it. Pitch processing in general is assumed to occur at the level of the auditory cortex. However, it is unknown whether early auditory regions are able to encode pitch sequences integrated over time (i.e., melodies) and whether the resulting representations are invariant to specific keys. Here, we presented participants different melodies composed of the same 4 harmonic pitches during functional magnetic resonance imaging recordings. Additionally, we played the same melodies transposed in different keys and on different instruments. We found that melodies were invariantly represented by their blood oxygen level-dependent activation patterns in primary and secondary auditory cortices across instruments, and also across keys. Our findings extend common hierarchical models of auditory processing by showing that melodies are encoded independent of absolute pitch and based on their relative pitch profile as early as the primary auditory cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Schindler
- Vision and Cognition Lab, Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
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10
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Ouimet T, Foster NEV, Tryfon A, Hyde KL. Auditory-musical processing in autism spectrum disorders: a review of behavioral and brain imaging studies. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2012; 1252:325-31. [PMID: 22524375 DOI: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2012.06453.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition characterized by atypical social and communication skills, repetitive behaviors, and atypical visual and auditory perception. Studies in vision have reported enhanced detailed ("local") processing but diminished holistic ("global") processing of visual features in ASD. Individuals with ASD also show enhanced processing of simple visual stimuli but diminished processing of complex visual stimuli. Relative to the visual domain, auditory global-local distinctions, and the effects of stimulus complexity on auditory processing in ASD, are less clear. However, one remarkable finding is that many individuals with ASD have enhanced musical abilities, such as superior pitch processing. This review provides a critical evaluation of behavioral and brain imaging studies of auditory processing with respect to current theories in ASD. We have focused on auditory-musical processing in terms of global versus local processing and simple versus complex sound processing. This review contributes to a better understanding of auditory processing differences in ASD. A deeper comprehension of sensory perception in ASD is key to better defining ASD phenotypes and, in turn, may lead to better interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tia Ouimet
- Montreal Children's Hospital Research Institute and McGill University, Psychiatry, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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11
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Predictive information processing in music cognition. A critical review. Int J Psychophysiol 2012; 83:164-75. [PMID: 22245599 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2011.12.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 100] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2011] [Revised: 12/27/2011] [Accepted: 12/28/2011] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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12
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Lee YS, Janata P, Frost C, Hanke M, Granger R. Investigation of melodic contour processing in the brain using multivariate pattern-based fMRI. Neuroimage 2011; 57:293-300. [PMID: 21315158 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2011.02.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2010] [Revised: 01/28/2011] [Accepted: 02/02/2011] [Indexed: 10/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Music perception generally involves processing the frequency relationships between successive pitches and extraction of the melodic contour. Previous evidence has suggested that the 'ups' and 'downs' of melodic contour are categorically and automatically processed, but knowledge of the brain regions that discriminate different types of contour is limited. Here, we examined melodic contour discrimination using multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) of fMRI data. Twelve non-musicians were presented with various ascending and descending melodic sequences while being scanned. Whole-brain MVPA was used to identify regions in which the local pattern of activity accurately discriminated between contour categories. We identified three distinct cortical loci: the right superior temporal sulcus (rSTS), the left inferior parietal lobule (lIPL), and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). These results complement previous findings of melodic processing within the rSTS, and extend our understanding of the way in which abstract auditory sequences are categorized by the human brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yune-Sang Lee
- Dept. of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA; Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA; Neurology Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
| | - Petr Janata
- Center for Mind and Brain, U.C. Davis, CA, USA
| | - Carlton Frost
- Dept. of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Michael Hanke
- Dept. of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA; Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA; Dept. of Experimental Psychology, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Richard Granger
- Dept. of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA; Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA
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13
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McDermott JH, Keebler MV, Micheyl C, Oxenham AJ. Musical intervals and relative pitch: frequency resolution, not interval resolution, is special. THE JOURNAL OF THE ACOUSTICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2010; 128:1943-1951. [PMID: 20968366 PMCID: PMC2981111 DOI: 10.1121/1.3478785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2009] [Revised: 07/16/2010] [Accepted: 07/19/2010] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Pitch intervals are central to most musical systems, which utilize pitch at the expense of other acoustic dimensions. It seemed plausible that pitch might uniquely permit precise perception of the interval separating two sounds, as this could help explain its importance in music. To explore this notion, a simple discrimination task was used to measure the precision of interval perception for the auditory dimensions of pitch, brightness, and loudness. Interval thresholds were then expressed in units of just-noticeable differences for each dimension, to enable comparison across dimensions. Contrary to expectation, when expressed in these common units, interval acuity was actually worse for pitch than for loudness or brightness. This likely indicates that the perceptual dimension of pitch is unusual not for interval perception per se, but rather for the basic frequency resolution it supports. The ubiquity of pitch in music may be due in part to this fine-grained basic resolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Josh H McDermott
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, 4 Washington Place, New York, New York 10003, USA.
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14
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Bizley JK, Walker KMM. Sensitivity and selectivity of neurons in auditory cortex to the pitch, timbre, and location of sounds. Neuroscientist 2010; 16:453-69. [PMID: 20530254 DOI: 10.1177/1073858410371009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
We are able to rapidly recognize and localize the many sounds in our environment. We can describe any of these sounds in terms of various independent "features" such as their loudness, pitch, or position in space. However, we still know surprisingly little about how neurons in the auditory brain, specifically the auditory cortex, might form representations of these perceptual characteristics from the information that the ear provides about sound acoustics. In this article, the authors examine evidence that the auditory cortex is necessary for processing the pitch, timbre, and location of sounds, and document how neurons across multiple auditory cortical fields might represent these as trains of action potentials. They conclude by asking whether neurons in different regions of the auditory cortex might not be simply sensitive to each of these three sound features but whether they might be selective for one of them. The few studies that have examined neural sensitivity to multiple sound attributes provide only limited support for neural selectivity within auditory cortex. Providing an explanation of the neural basis of feature invariance is thus one of the major challenges to sensory neuroscience obtaining the ultimate goal of understanding how neural firing patterns in the brain give rise to perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer K Bizley
- Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.
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15
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Cortical encoding of pitch: recent results and open questions. Hear Res 2010; 271:74-87. [PMID: 20457240 PMCID: PMC3098378 DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2010.04.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2009] [Revised: 04/30/2010] [Accepted: 04/30/2010] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
It is widely appreciated that the key predictor of the pitch of a sound is its periodicity. Neural structures which support pitch perception must therefore be able to reflect the repetition rate of a sound, but this alone is not sufficient. Since pitch is a psychoacoustic property, a putative cortical code for pitch must also be able to account for the relationship between the amount to which a sound is periodic (i.e. its temporal regularity) and the perceived pitch salience, as well as limits in our ability to detect pitch changes or to discriminate rising from falling pitch. Pitch codes must also be robust in the presence of nuisance variables such as loudness or timbre. Here, we review a large body of work on the cortical basis of pitch perception, which illustrates that the distribution of cortical processes that give rise to pitch perception is likely to depend on both the acoustical features and functional relevance of a sound. While previous studies have greatly advanced our understanding, we highlight several open questions regarding the neural basis of pitch perception. These questions can begin to be addressed through a cooperation of investigative efforts across species and experimental techniques, and, critically, by examining the responses of single neurons in behaving animals.
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16
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List A, Justus T. Relative priming of temporal local--global levels in auditory hierarchical stimuli. Atten Percept Psychophys 2010; 72:193-208. [PMID: 20045889 PMCID: PMC2802320 DOI: 10.3758/app.72.1.193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Priming is a useful tool for ascertaining the circumstances under which previous experiences influence behavior. Previously, using hierarchical stimuli, we demonstrated (Justus & List, 2005) that selectively attending to one temporal scale of an auditory stimulus improved subsequent attention to a repeated (vs. changed) temporal scale; that is, we demonstrated intertrial auditory temporal level priming. Here, we have extended those results to address whether level priming relied on absolute or relative temporal information. Both relative and absolute temporal information are important in auditory perception: Speech and music can be recognized over various temporal scales but become uninterpretable to a listener when presented too quickly or slowly. We first confirmed that temporal level priming generalized over new temporal scales. Second, in the context of multiple temporal scales, we found that temporal level priming operates predominantly on the basis of relative, rather than absolute, temporal information. These findings are discussed in the context of expectancies and relational invariance in audition.
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17
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Franconeri SL, Bemis DK, Alvarez GA. Number estimation relies on a set of segmented objects. Cognition 2009; 113:1-13. [PMID: 19647817 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2009.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2007] [Revised: 06/23/2009] [Accepted: 07/06/2009] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- S L Franconeri
- Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, United States.
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18
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Stewart L, Overath T, Warren JD, Foxton JM, Griffiths TD. fMRI evidence for a cortical hierarchy of pitch pattern processing. PLoS One 2008; 3:e1470. [PMID: 18231575 PMCID: PMC2198945 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0001470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2007] [Accepted: 12/30/2007] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Pitch patterns, such as melodies, consist of two levels of structure: a global level, comprising the pattern of ups and downs, or contour; and a local level, comprising the precise intervals that make up this contour. An influential neuropsychological model suggests that these two levels of processing are hierarchically linked, with processing of the global structure occurring within the right hemisphere in advance of local processing within the left. However, the predictions of this model and its anatomical basis have not been tested in neurologically normal individuals. The present study used fMRI and required participants to listen to consecutive pitch sequences while performing a same/different one-back task. Sequences, when different, either preserved (local) or violated (global) the contour of the sequence preceding them. When the activations for the local and global conditions were contrasted directly, additional activation was seen for local processing in right planum temporale and posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS). The presence of additional activation for local over global processing supports the hierarchical view that the global structure of a pitch sequence acts as a “framework” on which the local detail is subsequently hung. However, the lateralisation of activation seen in the present study, with global processing occurring in left pSTS and local processing occurring bilaterally, differed from that predicted by the neuroanatomical model. A re-examination of the individual lesion data on which the neuroanatomical model is based revealed that the lesion data equally well support the laterality scheme suggested by our data. While the present study supports the hierarchical view of local and global processing, there is an evident need for further research, both in patients and neurologically normal individuals, before an understanding of the functional lateralisation of local and global processing can be considered established.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren Stewart
- Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths, University of London, London, United Kingdom.
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Sanders LD, Poeppel D. Local and global auditory processing: behavioral and ERP evidence. Neuropsychologia 2007; 45:1172-86. [PMID: 17113115 PMCID: PMC1850243 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2006.10.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2006] [Revised: 10/05/2006] [Accepted: 10/24/2006] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Differential processing of local and global visual features is well established. Global precedence effects, differences in event-related potentials (ERPs) elicited when attention is focused on local versus global levels, and hemispheric specialization for local and global features all indicate that relative scale of detail is an important distinction in visual processing. Observing analogous differential processing of local and global auditory information would suggest that scale of detail is a general organizational principle of the brain. However, to date the research on auditory local and global processing has primarily focused on music perception or on the perceptual analysis of relatively higher and lower frequencies. The study described here suggests that temporal aspects of auditory stimuli better capture the local-global distinction. By combining short (40 ms) frequency modulated tones in series to create global auditory patterns (500 ms), we independently varied whether pitch increased or decreased over short time spans (local) and longer time spans (global). Accuracy and reaction time measures revealed better performance for global judgments and asymmetric interference that were modulated by amount of pitch change. ERPs recorded while participants listened to identical sounds and indicated the direction of pitch change at the local or global levels provided evidence for differential processing similar to that found in ERP studies employing hierarchical visual stimuli. ERP measures failed to provide evidence for lateralization of local and global auditory perception, but differences in distributions suggest preferential processing in more ventral and dorsal areas respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa D Sanders
- Department of Psychology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA.
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20
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List A, Justus T, Robertson LC, Bentin S. A mismatch negativity study of local-global auditory processing. Brain Res 2007; 1153:122-33. [PMID: 17434461 PMCID: PMC1949024 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2007.03.040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2006] [Revised: 03/14/2007] [Accepted: 03/15/2007] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
We used mismatch negativity (MMN) to examine structural encoding of local and global auditory patterns in perceptual memory. Unlike previous MMN studies of local-global auditory perceptual organization that used interval-contour stimuli, here we presented hierarchical stimuli in which local pattern organization formed global patterns. Importantly, our stimuli allowed independent manipulation of the two structural levels. In separate blocks, participants were exposed to frequent local standard patterns and rare local deviant patterns, or to frequent global standard patterns and rare global deviant patterns. Within each deviant pattern, the variation from the standard pattern could occur at onset (early), towards the end of the pattern (late) or over both time windows (both). To isolate pattern indexing at one level, the other level continuously changed (e.g., in a global standard block, local elements varied trial-by-trial). MMN was found only for global deviant patterns, and only when deviation occurred late in the pattern. In a separate behavioral experiment, global deviants were detected more often than local ones, although initial similarity followed by a late deviation from the standard pattern was not required for explicit deviant detection (as with the MMN). This report demonstrates neural structural encoding for global information, when independently manipulated from local information. Furthermore, it extends previous MMN findings that have revealed indexing of complex abstract auditory information to the realm of hierarchical perceptual organization.
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Seppänen M, Brattico E, Tervaniemi M. Practice strategies of musicians modulate neural processing and the learning of sound-patterns. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2006; 87:236-47. [PMID: 17046293 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2006.08.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2006] [Revised: 08/17/2006] [Accepted: 08/19/2006] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Previous studies suggest that pre-attentive auditory processing of musicians differs depending on the strategies used in music practicing and performance. This study aimed at systematically revealing whether there are differences in auditory processing between musicians preferring and not-preferring aural strategies such as improvising, playing by ear, and rehearsing by listening to records. Participants were assigned to aural and non-aural groups according to how much they employ aural strategies, as determined by a questionnaire. The change-related mismatch negativity (MMN) component of event-related brain potentials (ERPs) was used to probe pre-attentive neural discrimination of simple sound features and melody-like patterns. Further, the musicians' behavioral accuracy in sound perception was tested with a discrimination task and the AMMA musicality test. The data indicate that practice strategies do not affect musicians' pre-attentive neural discrimination of changes in simple sound features but do modulate the speed of neural discrimination of interval and contour changes within melody-like patterns. Moreover, while the aural and non-aural groups did not differ in their initial neural accuracy for discriminating melody-like patterns, they differed after a focused training session. A correlation between behavioral and neural measures was also obtained. Taken together, these results suggest that auditory processing of musicians who prefer aural practice strategies differs in melodic contour and interval processing and perceptual learning, rather than in simple sound processing, in comparison to musicians preferring other practice strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Seppänen
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology, University of Helsinki, Finland.
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22
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Justus T, List A. Auditory attention to frequency and time: an analogy to visual local-global stimuli. Cognition 2005; 98:31-51. [PMID: 16297675 PMCID: PMC1987383 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2004.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2004] [Revised: 07/27/2004] [Accepted: 11/11/2004] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Two priming experiments demonstrated exogenous attentional persistence to the fundamental auditory dimensions of frequency (Experiment 1) and time (Experiment 2). In a divided-attention task, participants responded to an independent dimension, the identification of three-tone sequence patterns, for both prime and probe stimuli. The stimuli were specifically designed to parallel the local-global hierarchical letter stimuli of [Navon D. (1977). Forest before trees: The precedence of global features in visual perception. Cognitive Psychology, 9, 353-383] and the task was designed to parallel subsequent work in visual attention using Navon stimuli [Robertson, L. C. (1996). Attentional persistence for features of hierarchical patterns. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 125, 227-249; Ward, L. M. (1982). Determinants of attention to local and global features of visual forms. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 8, 562-581]. The results are discussed in terms of previous work in auditory attention and previous approaches to auditory local-global processing.
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Deruelle C, Schön D, Rondan C, Mancini J. Global and local music perception in children with Williams syndrome. Neuroreport 2005; 16:631-4. [PMID: 15812322 DOI: 10.1097/00001756-200504250-00023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Musical processing can be decomposed into the appreciation of global and local elements. This global/local dissociation was investigated with the processing of contour-violated and interval-violated melodies. Performance of a group of 16 children with Williams syndrome and a group of 16 control children were compared in a same-different task. Control participants were more accurate in detecting differences in the contour-violated than in the interval-violated condition while Williams syndrome individuals performed equally well in both conditions. This finding suggests that global precedence may occur at an early perceptual stage in normally developing children. In contrast, no such global precedence is observed in the Williams syndrome population. These data are discussed in the context of atypical cognitive profiles of individuals with Williams syndrome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine Deruelle
- Mediterranean Institute of Cognitive Neurosciences, CNRS, UMR 6193, Marseille, France.
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24
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Meyler A, Breznitz Z. Visual, auditory and cross-modal processing of linguistic and nonlinguistic temporal patterns among adult dyslexic readers. DYSLEXIA (CHICHESTER, ENGLAND) 2005; 11:93-115. [PMID: 15918369 DOI: 10.1002/dys.294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
This study examined visual, auditory, and cross-modal temporal pattern processing at the nonlinguistic and sublexical linguistic levels, and the relationships between these abilities and decoding skill. The central question addressed whether dyslexic readers are impaired in their perception of timing, as assessed by sensitivity to rhythm. Participants were college-level adult dyslexic and normal readers. The dyslexic adults evidenced generalized impairment in temporal processing: they were less accurate and slower than normal readers when required to detect the temporal gap that differentiated pairs of patterns. Impairment was greatest when processing visual syllables. Temporal pattern processing correlated to decoding ability only among normal readers. It is suggested that high-functioning dyslexics may cope with temporal processing problems by adopting a predominantly holistic, orthographic strategy when decoding. It is proposed that there may be cumulative effects of processing demands from different sources including modality, stimulus complexity, and linguistic demands, and that combinations of these may interact to impact temporal processing ability. Moreover, there may be fundamentally distinct and dissociable temporal processing abilities, each of which may be differently linked developmental dyslexia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ann Meyler
- Carnegie Mellon University, Center for Cognitive Brain Imaging, Department of Psychology, Baker Hall, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.
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25
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Kuriki S, Isahai N, Ohtsuka A. Spatiotemporal characteristics of the neural activities processing consonant/dissonant tones in melody. Exp Brain Res 2004; 162:46-55. [PMID: 15578169 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-004-2114-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2004] [Accepted: 09/01/2004] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
To identify neural correlates underlying melody processing, we measured MEG responses elicited by keynote and out-of-key tones at the end of musical phrases. These melodies were newly composed and unknown to the subjects. Significant enlargements of N1m/P2m peaks at about 120-160 ms were observed in response to dissonant (out-of-key) tones compared to those in response to consonant (keynote) tones. The equivalent current dipoles (ECD) of the N1m were localized in areas centered at bilateral primary auditory cortices in the superior surface of the temporal lobe. Following the N1m/P2m, a late component occurring at 280-530 ms was observed. As the latency proceeded, the location of ECD sources of the late component shifted in the right hemisphere, but not in the left hemisphere, from the supratemporal auditory cortex to a posterior inferior auditory association cortex around the superior temporal sulcus (STS). The grand mean locations of the ECDs for consonant and dissonant tones were separated at a peak period of 380-410 ms of the late component but converged to the same region around the STS in the last period of 440-530 ms. These observations suggest that the neural activities generating the N1m component in the bilateral auditory cortices may play a role in automatic detection of tonality mismatch based on the pitch analysis. The activities of the late component around the posterior part of the right STS are thought to be involved in the analysis of pitch-sequence, such as how the pitch changes temporally, as a pre-process of melody perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shinya Kuriki
- Research Institute for Electronic Science, Hokkaido University, 060-0812 Sapporo, Japan.
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26
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Affiliation(s)
- Paulo Estévão Andrade
- Department of Pedagogical Studies, School of Elementary and Secondary Education Colégio Criativo, São Paulo, Brazil
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Joydeep Bhattacharya
- Division of Biology, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125,
USA, Commission for Scientific Visualization, Austrian Academy of Sciences,
Tech-Gate Vienna, Vienna A-1220, Austria
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28
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Schneider P, Scherg M, Dosch HG, Specht HJ, Gutschalk A, Rupp A. Morphology of Heschl's gyrus reflects enhanced activation in the auditory cortex of musicians. Nat Neurosci 2002; 5:688-94. [PMID: 12068300 DOI: 10.1038/nn871] [Citation(s) in RCA: 413] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Using magnetoencephalography (MEG), we compared the processing of sinusoidal tones in the auditory cortex of 12 non-musicians, 12 professional musicians and 13 amateur musicians. We found neurophysiological and anatomical differences between groups. In professional musicians as compared to non-musicians, the activity evoked in primary auditory cortex 19-30 ms after stimulus onset was 102% larger, and the gray matter volume of the anteromedial portion of Heschl's gyrus was 130% larger. Both quantities were highly correlated with musical aptitude, as measured by psychometric evaluation. These results indicate that both the morphology and neurophysiology of Heschl's gyrus have an essential impact on musical aptitude.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Schneider
- Department of Physics, University of Heidelberg, Philosophenweg 12, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
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Trainor LJ, McDonald KL, Alain C. Automatic and controlled processing of melodic contour and interval information measured by electrical brain activity. J Cogn Neurosci 2002; 14:430-42. [PMID: 11970802 DOI: 10.1162/089892902317361949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Most work on how pitch is encoded in the auditory cortex has focused on tonotopic (absolute) pitch maps. However, melodic information is thought to be encoded in the brain in two different "relative pitch" forms, a domain-general contour code (up/down pattern of pitch changes) and a music-specific interval code (exact pitch distances between notes). Event-related potentials were analyzed in nonmusicians from both passive and active oddball tasks where either the contour or the interval of melody-final notes was occasionally altered. The occasional deviant notes generated a right frontal positivity peaking around 350 msec and a central parietal P3b peaking around 580 msec that were present only when participants focused their attention on the auditory stimuli. Both types of melodic information were encoded automatically in the absence of absolute pitch cues, as indexed by a mismatch negativity wave recorded during the passive conditions. The results indicate that even in the absence of musical training, the brain is set up to automatically encode music-specific melodic information, even when absolute pitch information is not available.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurel J Trainor
- Department of Psychology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8S 4K1.
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