title: Musical learning in children and adults with Williams syndrome.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There is recent interest in using music making as an empirically supported intervention for various neurodevelopmental disorders due to music's engagement of perceptual-motor mapping processes. However, little is known about music learning in populations with developmental disabilities. Williams syndrome (WS) is a neurodevelopmental genetic disorder whose characteristic auditory strengths and visual-spatial weaknesses map onto the processes used to learn to play a musical instrument.
  
  
  METHODS
  We identified correlates of novel musical instrument learning in WS by teaching 46 children and adults (7-49 years) with WS to play the Appalachian dulcimer.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Obtained dulcimer skill was associated with prior musical abilities (r = 0.634, P < 0.001) and visual-motor integration abilities (r = 0.487, P = 0.001), but not age, gender, IQ, handedness, auditory sensitivities or musical interest/emotionality. Use of auditory learning strategies, but not visual or instructional strategies, predicted greater dulcimer skill beyond individual musical and visual-motor integration abilities (β = 0.285, sr(2) = 0.06, P = 0.019).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings map onto behavioural and emerging neural evidence for greater auditory-motor mapping processes in WS. Results suggest that explicit awareness of task-specific learning approaches is important when learning a new skill. Implications for using music with populations with syndrome-specific strengths and weakness will be discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA. miriam.lense@vanderbilt.edu
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lense
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dykens
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001303:Auditory Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002658:Developmental Disabilities / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D059167:Mirror Neurons / Q000502:physiology; D009048:Motor Skills / Q000502:physiology*; D009146:Music; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013028:Space Perception / Q000502:physiology; D018980:Williams Syndrome / Q000503:physiopathology*; D055815:Young Adult