Abstract We used both structural and functional brain imaging techniques to investigate the neural basis of absolute pitch (AP), a specialized skill present in some musicians. By using positron emission tomography, we measured cerebral blood flow during the presentation of musical tones to AP possessors and to control musicians without AP. Listening to musical tones … Read more
Conversation with Telsa-scientist Eric P. Dollard. Interviewed by Charles Roland Berry & Yogi Robert Emin. This is a true story of suppressed technology. Some powerful people don’t want the rest of us to have access to new technology– unless of course those people can make billions of dollars from the rest of us. Professor Dollard … Read more
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 … Read more
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfePSZx7Ysc
Abstract A=432Hz is a frequency we choose for tuning our instruments and music. If experienced acoustically, it seems to feel better for singing and for acoustic instruments such as pianos. Tunings such as Twelve True Fifths at A=432Hz and C=256Hz sound richer. Unfortunately it Must be experienced to come to that conclusion. Ultimately you have … Read more
Abstract “…subject-specific amygdala responses to fearful music and vocalizations were correlated, consistent with the proposal that the brain circuitry involved in the processing of musical emotions might be shared with the one that have evolved for vocalizations. Overall, our results show that processing of fear expressed through music, engages some of the same brain … Read more
Some combinations of musical notes sound pleasing and are termed “consonant,” but others sound unpleasant and are termed “dissonant.” The distinction between consonance and dissonance plays a central role in Western music, and its origins have posed one of the oldest and most debated problems in perception. In modern times, dissonance has been widely believed … Read more
Abstract For music and language processing, memory for relative pitches is highly important. Functional imaging studies have shown activation of a complex neural system for pitch memory. One region that has been shown to be causally involved in the process for nonmusicians is the supramarginal gyrus (SMG). The present study aims at replicating this … Read more
Abstract We used both structural and functional brain imaging techniques to investigate the neural basis of absolute pitch (AP), a specialized skill present in some musicians. By using positron emission tomography, we measured cerebral blood flow during the presentation of musical tones to AP possessors and to control musicians without AP. Listening to musical … Read more
“…the perception of musical pitch at high frequencies is not constrained by temporal phase locking in the auditory nerve but may instead stem from higher-level constraints shaped by prior exposure to harmonic sounds.” Humans’ ability to recognize musical melodies is generally limited to pure-tone frequencies below 4 or 5 kHz. This limit coincides with the … Read more
