title: Bridging the gap between perceptual and cognitive perspectives on absolute pitch.
abstract: Absolute pitch (AP) refers to the rare ability to identify the chroma of a tone or to produce a specific pitch without reference to keyality (e.g., G or C). Previously, AP has been proposed to rely on the distinctive functional-anatomical architecture of the left auditory-related cortex (ARC), this specific trait possibly enabling an optimized early "categorical perception". In contrast, currently prevailing models of AP postulate that cognitive rather than perceptual processes, namely "pitch labeling" mechanisms, more likely constitute the bearing skeleton of AP. This associative memory component has previously been proposed to be dependent, among other mechanisms, on the recruitment of the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) as well as on the integrity of the left arcuate fasciculus, a fiber bundle linking the posterior supratemporal plane with the DLPFC. Here, we attempted to integrate these two apparently conflicting perspectives on AP, namely early "categorical perception" and "pitch labeling". We used electroencephalography and evaluated resting-state intracranial functional connectivity between the left ARC and DLPFC in a sample of musicians with and without AP. Results demonstrate significantly increased left-hemispheric theta phase synchronization in AP compared with non-AP musicians. Within the AP group, this specific electrophysiological marker was predictive of absolute-hearing behavior and explained ∼30% of variance. Thus, we propose that in AP subjects the tonal inputs and the corresponding mnemonic representations are tightly coupled in such a manner that the distinctive electrophysiological signature of AP can saliently be detected in only 3 min of resting-state measurements.
authors.affiliation: Division Neuropsychology, Institute of Psychology, s.elmer@psychologie.uzh.ch lutz.jaencke@uzh.ch.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Elmer
authors.affiliation: Division Neuropsychology, Institute of Psychology.
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rogenmoser
authors.affiliation: Division Neuropsychology, Institute of Psychology.
authors.forename: Jürg
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kühnis
authors.affiliation: Division Neuropsychology, Institute of Psychology, Center for Integrative Human Physiology (ZIHP), International Normal Aging and Plasticity Imaging Center (INAPIC), and University Research Priority Program (URPP) "Dynamic of Healthy Aging," University of Zurich, CH-8050 Zurich, Switzerland and Department of Special Education, King Abdulaziz University, 21589 Jeddah, Saudi Arabia s.elmer@psychologie.uzh.ch lutz.jaencke@uzh.ch.
authors.forename: Lutz
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2110-9067
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jäncke
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001303:Auditory Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D004569:Electroencephalography / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009146:Music; D010898:Pitch Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: absolute pitch; associative memory; intracerebral functional connectivity; pitch labeling; resting-state EEG; theta phase synchronization