Musical Scale Research Articles

Does Background Music Affect Silent Dining Emotions? An Empirical Study of Restaurants during COVID-19.

The music environment of a restaurant is an important factor that affects consumer behaviors during the dining experience, especially silent dining behaviors among people who are not encouraged to talk in the context of COVID-19. This study empirically analyzed the influence of consumers' background music preferences on their emotions and behavioral responses during their dining experience at a high-end Chinese restaurant. A total of 393 valid samples were obtained through purposive sampling and snowball sampling. The research tools used in this study included a personal background information questionnaire, four Oriental and Western music conditions, a background music preference scale, a scale for evaluating emotions during the dining experience, and a behavioral response scale. The results showed that the subjects preferred the Chinese classical music-the Butterfly Lovers Concerto. Background music affected the participants' emotions during their dining experience, and different background music conditions resulted in significant differences in emotions and behaviors. The consumers' emotions, during their dining experience significantly predicted their behaviors under all four music conditions. The greatest contribution and value of this study stem from the finding that the background music at a restaurant can arouse specific positive emotions in consumers during their dining experience and thus affect their eating behavior.

Personalized audio montage: Impact of a receptive music therapy method-variation on youth experiencing homelessness

ABSTRACT Introduction This quantitative research investigates the impact of a receptive music therapy method-variation, Personalized Audio Montage (called Montage Audio Personnalisé [MAP] in French), on self-reported levels of stress, anxiety, physical tension, fatigue, and mood of youth experiencing homelessness. Method A single-group pretest-posttest design was used to determine the impact of MAP. Participants completed the co-researcher music therapist-developed Visual Analogue Scales (VAS) for five independent variables (i.e. self-reported levels of stress, anxiety, fatigue, physical tension, and mood), before and after participating in individual MAP sessions. Multivariate ANOVAs for repeated measures were used considering time (pretest-posttest), and MAP sessions as within-subjects factors. Results Nine youth (n = 9) participated in one to three MAP sessions. There were 20 pre-tests and post-tests for each independent variable except for anxiety, for which 19 pre-tests and post-tests were completed. Results of quantitative data analysis show a statistically significant decrease in scores for self-reported levels of stress, anxiety and physical tension at post-session as compared to pre-session. No significant effect was observed for fatigue. Finally, mood scores significantly improved from prettest to posttest. Discussion Findings suggest that MAP holds potential to be a valuable part of music therapists’ intervention strategies to support the emotional and physical well-being of youth experiencing homelessness. Limitations and future research recommendations are presented with regard to the small sample size and complexity of conducting research with youth experiencing homelessness.

Data and code for: Convergent evolution in a large cross-cultural database of musical scales

Data and code for: Convergent evolution in a large cross-cultural database of musical scales

The Individual Music-Centered Assessment Profile for Neurodevelopmental Disorders (IMCAP-ND) for use in Portugal: Translation and psychometric evidence

There is a comprehensive need for music-centred assessment tools as specific outcome measures of music therapy efficacy for people with neuro-developmental disorders (NDD), namely, autism spectrum disorders (ASD), as music facilitates communicative and social skills of these individuals and allows unique ways to assess their particular deficits. This research explored the initial psychometric properties of the Individual Music-Centered Assessment Profile for Neurodevelopmental Disorders’ European Portuguese version (IMCAP-NDPT), by examining 1) translation and adaptation, 2) inter-rater reliability, 3) test-retest reliability and 4) criterion and convergent validity. Study I had a sample of 87 children aged between 21 and 91 months, 30 of them with neurotypical development and 57 with several neurodevelopmental disorders, while studies II, III and IV had autistic children aged between 26 and 65 months (n = 10, n = 12 and n = 11, respectively). The translated and transculturally adapted version of IMCAP-NDPT seemed adequate for its purposes. This outcome measure obtained statistical significance when differentiating between groups with and without pathology. Findings also revealed a moderate / satisfactory test-retest repeatability (95% CI – CCI = .424 p= .022 ranging to CCI= .791 p= .000) and solid interobserver agreement (95% CI – ICC from .924 to .996 single measures p = .000, (κ) between two raters ranging from .81 to 1.00 in 63 of 109 items of the three scales as well as Pearson’s r ranged between .7 and .9; α = .997). Regarding criterion and convergent validity, positive significant correlations were found between several Musical Emotional Assessment Rating Scale (MEARS) and Musical Cognitive/Perception Scale (MCPS) items and totals and the Griffiths Mental Development Scales (GMDS) domains, varying from .60 to .90; no negative or null correlations were found. The results showed a noticeable level of inter-rater reliability as well as a good internal consistency. Thus, the IMCAP-ND Portuguese version can be used more confidently in clinical practice; nevertheless, future studies are recommended with a larger sample.

Transfer effects of discrete tactile mapping of musical pitch on discrimination of vocoded stimuli

Many studies have found benefits of using somatosensory modality to augment sound information for individuals with hearing loss. However, few studies have explored the use of multiple regions of the body sensitive to vibrotactile stimulation to convey discrete F0 information, important for music perception. This study explored whether mapping of multiple finger patterns associated with musical notes can be learned quickly and transferred to discriminate vocoded auditory stimuli. Each of eight musical diatonic scale notes were associated with one of unique finger digits 2-5 patterns in the dominant hand, where pneumatic tactile stimulation apparatus were attached. The study consisted of a pre and post-test with a learning phase in-between. During the learning phase, normal-hearing participants had to identify common nursery song melodies presented with simultaneous auditory-tactile stimulus for about 10 min, using non-vocoded (original) audio. Pre- and post-tests examined stimulus discrimination for 4 conditions: original audio + tactile, tactile only, vocoded audio only, and vocoded audio + tactile. The audio vocoder used cochlear implant 4 channel simulation. Our results demonstrated audio-tactile learning improved participant’s performance on the vocoded audio + tactile tasks. The tactile only condition also significantly improved, indicating the rapid learning of the audio-tactile mapping and its effective transfer.

Audible Empire: Musical Orthodoxy and Spectacle in the Sui Dynasty

After conquering the Chen in 589, the Sui became a powerful empire that ruled over both the northern and southern regions, a vast territory that featured distinct regional cultures and customs. To foster an impression of political unity, the Sui court initiated a series of projects aimed at implementing central control over remote areas and reconciling interests of different cultural groups. This ideology of concordia discors found no better avenue of expression than music, which included musical performance, lyric composition, and standardization of pitches and musical scales. This article investigates the politics of music and the creation of an “audible empire” in the first decade of the Sui. Specifically, it examines how imperial subjects at the time perceived and articulated the Sui court ritual music, including both its history and its public display. Based on court memorials, historical records, and poems, I argue that the Sui’s musical lineage—how the music of orthodoxy was transmitted and inherited by the Sui—was carefully constructed and often contested in the empire’s early years and that poems that describe viewers’ experience of observing the Sui music performance reveal courtiers’ ambivalent attitudes towards music as an imperial tool of persuasion.

Examining the Relationships between High School Students' Interests in Music and Their Creativity

In this study, high school students' interest in music and their creativity were analyzed relationally. For this purpose, high school students' interest in music and their creativity were compared in terms of school type, gender and grade level variables. Comparative relational survey model was used as a method in this study. In this study, which was carried out on 9th and 11th grade students in public and private schools in three different cities in Turkey, the scales were applied to a total of 315 students. 'Personal Information Form', 'Affinity for Music Scale', and 'Kaufman Creativity Scales' were used to collect research data. In the analysis of the obtained data, arithmetic mean, standard deviation, correlation coefficient, t test and analysis of variance techniques were used. According to the research findings, the interest and creativity of the participants towards music was found to be moderate. Finally, significant and positive relationships were found between high school students' interest in music and their creativity.

Universal Design for Learning in a Music Camp: Perspectives and Musical Self-Efficacy of Children With Disabilities

The purpose of this qualitative study was to evaluate a summer music camp, designed using principles of Universal Design for Learning, for children with disabilities. Data included one parent–child group interview, a children’s musical self-efficacy rating scale, children’s drawings, and children’s explanations of their drawings. Participants were elementary school children with disabilities ( n = 4) and their mothers ( n = 4). The children were all male, aged 5 to 8 years. Three children had Autism Spectrum Disorder; one had a diagnosis not specified by his mother. Three themes for children’s perceptions of the camp (social interaction/play, enjoyment of making music, and positive representation) and three themes for parents’ perceptions (camp structure, camp teachers, and benefits for the children) emerged. Musical self-efficacy ratings did not change, but the children’s explanations of the sources of musical self-efficacy indicated that two children may have experienced positive changes in musical self-efficacy.

NBP 2.0: Updated Next Bar Predictor, an Improved Algorithmic Music Generator

Deep neural network advancements have enabled machines to produce melodies emulating human-composed music. However, the implementation of such machines is costly in terms of resources. In this paper, we present NBP 2.0, a refinement of the previous model next bar predictor (NBP) with two notable improvements: first, transforming each training instance to anchor all the notes to its musical scale, and second, changing the model architecture itself. NBP 2.0 maintained its straightforward and lightweight implementation, which is an advantage over the baseline models. Improvements were assessed using quantitative and qualitative metrics and, based on the results, the improvements from these changes made are notable.

General Musical Self-Efficacy Scale: Adaptation and validation of a version in Spanish

This article presents the process of translation into Spanish, adaptation, and validation of the General Musical Self-Efficacy Scale by Ritchie and Williamon. After having carried out reverse translation and a preliminary study, the scale was tested on a sample of 668 students enrolled in six Spanish music academies (secondary school and university level). Our results corroborated the two original subscales: one for self-efficacy for learning (α = .792 and α = .734), and the other for self-efficacy for public performance (α = .773 and α = .780), after having removed one item in each subscale on the basis of internal consistency indicators and factorial analysis. The subscales we thereby obtained likewise presented good temporal stability ( r = .513 and .539); they both correlated with performance anxiety (stage fright); both correlated more highly with the public performance subscale. Validation data signaled higher scores obtained by students enrolled in university-level music academies, by students who had started music training at an earlier age, for the boys at secondary level, and for the younger group of students at secondary level. To summarize, this version of the General Musical Self-Efficacy Scale is a valid, reliable tool for measuring self-efficacy in Spanish music students.

Imagined Musical Scale Relationships Decoded from Auditory Cortex.

Notes in a musical scale convey different levels of stability or incompleteness, forming what is known as a tonal hierarchy. Levels of stability conveyed by these scale degrees are partly responsible for generating expectations as a melody proceeds, for emotions deriving from fulfillment (or not) of those expectations, and for judgments of overall melodic well-formedness. These functions can be extracted even during imagined music. We investigated whether patterns of neural activity in fMRI could be used to identify heard and imagined notes, and if patterns associated with heard notes could identify notes that were merely imagined. We presented trained musicians with the beginning of a scale (key and timbre were varied). The next note in the scale was either heard or imagined. A probe tone task assessed sensitivity to the tonal hierarchy, and state and trait measures of imagery were included as predictors. Multivoxel classification yielded above-chance results in primary auditory cortex (Heschl's gyrus) for heard scale-degree decoding. Imagined scale-degree decoding was successful in multiple cortical regions spanning bilateral superior temporal, inferior parietal, precentral, and inferior frontal areas. The right superior temporal gyrus yielded successful cross-decoding of heard-to-imagined scale-degree, indicating a shared pathway between tonal-hierarchy perception and imagery. Decoding in right and left superior temporal gyrus and right inferior frontal gyrus was more successful in people with more differentiated tonal hierarchies and in left inferior frontal gyrus among people with higher self-reported auditory imagery vividness, providing a link between behavioral traits and success of neural decoding. These results point to the neural specificity of imagined auditory experiences-even of such functional knowledge-but also document informative individual differences in the precision of that neural response.

Effects of alexithymia and its subfactors on emotional response to music

Alexithymia is a trait characterized by decreased emotional response to visual or verbal stimuli. However, Lyvers et al. suggest that alexithymia is positively correlated with the magnitude of emotional response to music (ERM). This study reexamines their findings in two sets of Asian population (China [ n = 344] and Japan [ n = 341]) using online surveys to investigate the subfactors of alexithymia. The Toronto Alexithymia Scale and the Geneva Emotional Music Scale (GEMS) were used to measure alexithymia and ERM in the participants, along with trait anxiety and music experiences in their daily lives. The obtained data showed that in both the Chinese and the Japanese populations, individuals with higher alexithymia tend to have higher GEMS scores (i.e., higher ERM), which is consistent with the finding of the previous study. Furthermore, alexithymia and ERM are correlated because of difficulty in identifying feelings, a subfactor of alexithymia. These results were not influenced by trait anxiety. In addition, alexithymia showed no correlation with either the frequency of listening to music or the degree of music absorption in daily life. We argued that the nonverbal characteristic of music might be key to the association between alexithymia and ERM.

Short-term effects of passive listening to an Indian musical scale on blood pressure and heart rate variability among healthy individuals – A randomised controlled trial

Objectives: Listening to music is entertaining but also has different health benefits. Music medicine involves passive listening to music, while music therapy involves active music-making. Indian music is broadly classified into Hindustani and Carnatic music, each having its system of musical scales (ragas). Scientific studies of Indian music as an intervention are meagre. The present study determines the effect of passive listening to one melodic scale of Indian music on cardiovascular electrophysiological parameters. Materials and Methods: After informed consent, healthy individuals aged 18–30 years of either gender were recruited and randomly divided into two groups (n = 34 each). Group A was exposed to passive listening to the music intervention (Hindustani melodic scale elaboration [Bhimpalas raga alaap]), while Group B received no intervention except for a few natural sounds (played once in every 2 min). Blood pressure (BP, systolic, SBP; diastolic, DBP) and electrocardiogram in Lead II were recorded with each condition lasting for 10 min (pre, during and post). Heart rate variability (HRV) analysis was done. Data were analysed using SPSS 18.0 version and P ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. Results: In Group A, the SBP did not change during the intervention but increased mildly after the intervention (P = 0.054). The DBP increased in both the groups during the intervention, significant in Group A (P = 0.009), with an increase of 1.676 mmHg (P = 0.012) from pre-during and 1.824 mmHg (P = 0.026) from pre-post intervention. On HRV analysis, mean NN interval increased and HR reduced in both the groups, but was significant only in Group B (P = 0.041 and 0.025, respectively). In Group A, most of the HRV parameters were reduced during music intervention that tended to return toward baseline after the intervention, but the change was statistically significant for total power (P = 0.031) and low frequency (P = 0.013); while in Group B, a consistent significant rise in parasympathetic indicators (SDNN, RMSSD, total power and HF [ms2]) over 30 min was observed. Conclusion: Unique cardiovascular effects were recorded on passive listening to a particular Indian music melodic scale. The scale, raga Bhimpalas, produced a mild arousal response. This could be due to attention being paid to the melodic scale as it was an unfamiliar tune or due to the features of this melodic scale that led to an arousal or excitation response. In contrast, the control group had only a relaxation response. Exploring electrophysiological effects of different genres, melodic scales and their properties after familiarising with the music may thus be illustrative.

The forgotten role of absorption in music reward.

Interindividual differences in music-related reward have been characterized as involving five main facets: musical seeking, emotion evocation, mood regulation, social reward, and sensory-motor. An interesting concept related to how humans decode music as a rewarding experience is music transcendence or absorption (i.e., music-driven states of complete immersion, including momentary loss of self-consciousness or even time-space disorientation). Here, we investigated the relation between previously characterized facets of music reward and individual differences in music absorption. A first sample of participants (N=370) completed both the Barcelona Music Reward Questionnaire (BMRQ) and the Absorption in Music Scale (AIMS). Results showed that both constructs were highly interrelated (r=0.78, p<0.001), indicating that higher music reward sensitivity is associated with a greater tendency to music-related absorption states. In addition, four items from the AIMS were identified as suitable to be added to an extended version of the BMRQ (eBMRQ). A second sample (N=550) completed the eBMRQ for a validation study. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses on the whole sample (N=920) showed the reliable psychometric properties of the eBMRQ and suggested that taking into account an absorption facet could contribute to a better characterization of individual differences in the sensitivity to experience music-related reward and pleasure.

Inadequate pitch-difference sensitivity prevents half of all listeners from discriminating major vs minor tone sequences.

Substantial evidence suggests that sensitivity to the difference between the major vs minor musical scales may be bimodally distributed. Much of this evidence comes from experiments using the "3-task." On each trial in the 3-task, the listener hears a rapid, random sequence of tones containing equal numbers of notes of either a G major or G minor triad and strives (with feedback) to judge which type of "tone-scramble" it was. This study asks whether the bimodal distribution in 3-task performance is due to variation (across listeners) in sensitivity to differences in pitch. On each trial in a "pitch-difference task," the listener hears two tones and judges whether the second tone is higher or lower than the first. When the first tone is roved (rather than fixed throughout the task), performance varies dramatically across listeners with median threshold approximately equal to a quarter-tone. Strikingly, nearly all listeners with thresholds higher than a quarter-tone performed near chance in the 3-task. Across listeners with thresholds below a quarter-tone, 3-task performance was uniformly distributed from chance to ceiling; thus, the large, lower mode of the distribution in 3-task performance is produced mainly by listeners with roved pitch-difference thresholds greater than a quarter-tone.

Acoustic Descriptors for Characterization of Musical Timbre Using the Fast Fourier Transform

The quantitative assessment of the musical timbre in an audio record is still an open-ended issue. Evaluating the musical timbre allows not only to establish precise musical parameters but also the recognition, classification of musical instruments, and assessment of the musical quality of a sound record. In this paper, we present a minimum set of dimensionless descriptors, motivated by musical acoustics, using the spectra obtained by the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), which allows describing the timbre of wooden aerophones (Bassoon, Clarinet, Transverse Flute, and Oboe) using individual sound recordings of the musical tempered scale. We postulate that the proposed descriptors are sufficient to describe the timbral characteristics in the aerophones studied, allowing their recognition using the acoustic spectral signature. We believe that this approach can be further extended to use multidimensional unsupervised machine learning techniques, such as clustering, to obtain new insights into timbre characterization.

Learning About Your Mental Health From Your Playlist? Investigating the Correlation Between Music Preference and Mental Health of College Students.

The present study explored the correlation between music preference and mental health of college students to make an empirical contribution to research in this field. The self-reported music preference scale and positive mental health scale of college students were adopted to conduct a questionnaire survey in college students. Common method variance was conducted to test any serious common method bias problem. No serious common method bias problem was observed. The results showed that college students’ preference for pop music, Western classical music, and Chinese traditional music has a significant and positive correlation with their mental health. Furthermore, college students’ preference for heavy music has a significant and inverse correlation with their mental health. This research presents a correlational study; therefore, no causality can be inferred.

The Music Practice Motivation Scale: An exploration of secondary instrumental music students’ motivation to practice

This study sought to explore high school band students’ motivation for practicing their instruments using the basic tenets of self-determination theory as a theoretical lens. Exploring levels of self-determination alongside years of musical experience, time reported practicing, grade level, gender, instrument selection, and private lesson study, this study sought to utilize the Music Practice Motivation Scale (MPMS) with a high school instrumental music population. Using multivariate analyses of variance, participants reported higher levels of intrinsic motivational beliefs toward practicing over external motivations. Extrinsically motivated students, however, were more likely to rate stronger agreement with an introjected regulation style indicating the importance of others’ views of practice on their own belief system. Despite potential issues with the fulfillment of the psychological need for autonomy, data suggest a weak correlation between private lesson study and the bolstering of intrinsic motivation. Reliability analysis demonstrated strong support for the inclusion of the MPMS in high school-level classrooms when seeking to determine and guide student self-determination to practice. Strong connections were found to support the fulfillment of psychological needs in the instrumental music classroom through targeted activities that focus on the development of intrinsic motivational beliefs focused on feelings of achievement, knowledge, and affect.

New music system reveals spectral contribution to statistical learning

Knowledge of speech and music depends upon the ability to perceive relationships between sounds in order to form a stable mental representation of statistical structure. Although evidence exists for the learning of musical scale structure from the statistical properties of sound events, little research has been able to observe how specific acoustic features contribute to statistical learning independent of the effects of long-term exposure. Here, using a new musical system, we show that spectral content is an important cue for acquiring musical scale structure. In two experiments, participants completed probe-tone ratings before and after a half-hour period of exposure to melodies in a novel musical scale with a predefined statistical structure. In Experiment 1, participants were randomly assigned to either a no-exposure control group, or to exposure groups who heard pure tone or complex tone sequences. In Experiment 2, participants were randomly assigned to exposure groups who heard complex tones constructed with odd harmonics or even harmonics. Learning outcome was assessed by correlating pre/post-exposure ratings and the statistical structure of tones within the exposure period. Spectral information significantly affected sensitivity to statistical structure: participants were able to learn after exposure to all tested timbres, but did best at learning with timbres with odd harmonics, which were congruent with scale structure. Results show that spectral amplitude distribution is a useful cue for statistical learning, and suggest that musical scale structure might be acquired through exposure to spectral distribution in sounds.

The Relationship between Classroom Teachers' Self-efficacy in Teaching Music with Their Music Teaching Skills and Musical Development

Music education at primary school age is an essential field in the multidimensional development of children. In the first stage of primary education, the classroom teacher is obliged to give music lessons. Therefore, classroom teachers need to be equipped and have proficiency in the field of music. This study aims to examine the relationships between classroom teachers' self-efficacy for teaching music with their musical teaching skills, and musical development. The study was based on the correlational research model. Data were collected through the Self-efficacy in Teaching Music Scale and a questionnaire that aimed to collect information regarding the demographic characteristics of teachers and their competencies in music. The study was conducted with 405 classroom teachers from 51 primary schools located in the central district of Afyonkarahisar in Turkey. The results of the study indicated that the self-efficacy of classroom teachers in teaching music was at an intermediate level. It was found that the self-efficacy levels among classroom teachers who can play an instrument, accurately sing the songs they listen to, make students listen to music in lessons, make them play instruments, form choruses, participate in training sessions on music education, and want to take part in such events were significantly higher.