Music matters: preattentive musicality of the human brain.
During listening to a musical piece, unexpected harmonies may evoke brain responses that are reflected electrically as an early right anterior negativity (ERAN) and a late frontal negativity (N5). In the present study we demonstrate that these components of the event-related potential can be evoked preattentively, that is, even when a musical stimulus is ignored. Both ERAN and N5 differed in amplitude as a function of music-theoretical principles. Participants had no special musical expertise; results thus provide evidence for an automatic processing of musical information in onmusicians."
Max-Planck-lnstitute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Leipzig, Germany. mail@stefan-koelsch.de
Stefan
S
Koelsch
Erich
E
Schroger
Thomas C
TC
Gunter
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D001307:Auditory Perception; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009146:Music / Q000523:psychology*