Neural mechanisms underlying melodic perception and memory for pitch

Author(s): Evans, A. C., Meyer, E.

Journal/Book: J Neurosci. 1994; 14: 1908-19.

Abstract: The neural correlates of music perception were studied by measuring cerebral blood flow (CBF) changes with positron emission tomography (PET). Twelve volunteers were scanned using the bolus water method under four separate conditions: (1) listening to a sequence of noise bursts, (2) listening to unfamiliar tonal melodies, (3) comparing the pitch of the first two notes of the same set of melodies, and (4) comparing the pitch of the first and last notes of the melodies. The latter two conditions were designed to investigate short-term pitch retention under low or high memory load, respectively. Subtraction of the obtained PET images, superimposed on matched MRI scans, provides anatomical localization of CBF changes associated with specific cognitive functions. Listening to melodies, relative to acoustically matched noise sequences, resulted in CBF increases in the right superior temporal and right occipital cortices. Pitch judgments of the first two notes of each melody, relative to passive listening to the same stimuli, resulted in right frontal-lobe activation. Analysis of the high memory load condition relative to passive listening revealed the participation of a number of cortical and subcortical regions, notably in the right frontal and right temporal lobes, as well as in parietal and insular cortex. Both pitch judgment conditions also revealed CBF decreases within the left primary auditory cortex. We conclude that specialized neural systems in the right superior temporal cortex participate in perceptual analysis of melodies; pitch comparisons are effected via a neural network that includes right prefrontal cortex, but active retention of pitch involves the interaction of right temporal and frontal cortices.

Keyword(s): Brain blood supply; Brain radionuclide imaging; Cerebellum blood supply; Cerebellum physiology; Cerebellum radionuclide imaging; Cerebral Cortex blood supply; Cerebral Cortex physiology; Cerebral Cortex radionuclide imaging; Frontal Lobe blood supply; Frontal Lobe physiology; Frontal Lobe radionuclide imaging; Gyrus Cinguli blood supply; Gyrus Cinguli physiology; Gyrus Cinguli radionuclide imaging; Inferior Colliculus blood supply; Inferior Colliculus physiology; Inferior Colliculus radionuclide imaging; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Neurons radionuclide imaging; Noise ; Oxygen Radioisotopes diagnostic use; Regional Blood Flow; Temporal Lobe blood supply; Temporal Lobe physiology; Temporal Lobe radionuclide imaging Auditory Perception; Brain physiology; Cerebrovascular Circulation; Memory physiology; Music ; Neurons physiology Female; Human; Male; Support, Non U.S. Gov't Oxygen Radioisotopes

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