Musical Pitch Research Articles

Bilingual Language Experience May Alter Perception of the Tritone Paradox Evidence from Spanish/English Bilingual and English Monolingual Listeners in Texas

ABSTRACT In the tritone paradox, tones separated by a half octave are heard by some as descending and by others as ascending. The phenomenon has been variously interpreted in a psychoacoustic manner or in terms of pitch class templates shaped by early language experience. If early language experience is a critical factor affecting tritone perception, would the paradox be perceived differently depending on whether the language experience was monolingual or bilingual? Monolingual (n=42) and bilingual (n=65) participants were recruited from the same geographic location. Bilinguals were subdivided by onset of bilingualism and – further, for late bilinguals - by first acquired language (Spanish or English). Participants judged whether they heard pairs of synthesized tritones as ascending or descending in pitch. Analysis of peak pitch distribution showed a significant difference between monolinguals and late bilinguals. No differences were noted between English-Spanish and Spanish-English late bilinguals, nor between early and late bilinguals. Additionally, among Spanish-English late bilinguals, significant differences were found in tritone perception between low and high envelope presentation. Our findings suggest that acquisition of two languages, under some conditions, may alter perception of musical pitch relative to acquisition of a single language. The finding of language experience-based differences in tritone perception is more compatible with an account based on pitch class templates shaped by language experience than by existing psychoacoustic accounts. It is not possible to completely rule out a psychoacoustic account, if we assume that individuals with different linguistic backgrounds may differ in the position of the preference region in the frequency axis such models rely on. Also other variables at play in this study cannot be ruled out with certainty. Our findings are consistent with other research suggesting that bilingual language experience is associated with greater perceptual flexibility, in both language and non-language contexts.

Different plasticity patterns of schematic and dynamic expectations in musical pitch prediction

Different plasticity patterns of schematic and dynamic expectations in musical pitch prediction

Musical Color Harmony: Application of the Principles of Musical Harmony to Produce Color Hue Sets

Abstract Aesthetic response to the visual harmony of color combinations is a very personal and widely differing subjective experience. To the contrary, musical harmony - consonance and dissonance - are mathematically defined and certain combinations of notes exhibit near universal aesthetic agreement across the globe. Although numerous metaphysicians, philosophers, scientists, poets, artists, and musicians have speculated on the existence of a relationship between color and music for over 2000 years, the establishment of a correlation between color and musical harmony has been elusive. The author describes a framework, Musical Color Hue Harmony (MCHH), initially developed for video display systems, that correlates musical and color harmonic consonance and dissonance by applying the physics of aural harmonic resonance and theories of musical harmony to produce sets of “harmonious” color hues based on the mathematically defined frequency relationships between two or more musical pitches. The methodology is applicable to any musical tuning system and any color hue wheel configuration. Color attributes of brightness/luminance and saturation/chroma are presently beyond the scope of the framework.

Fuzzy Cluster Pitch Synthesis System for the Violin Sound with Machine Learning

Pitch synthesis with violin sound involves the generation of musical pitches using technology to mimic the distinctive tonal characteristics of a violin. This process typically employs digital signal processing techniques to recreate the timbre, articulation, and nuances of a real violin. Advanced algorithms analyze and model the acoustic properties of a violin sound, allowing for the synthesis of realistic pitch variations and expressive qualities. Whether utilized in electronic music production, virtual instruments, or sound design, pitch synthesis with violin sound aims to emulate the rich and complex sonic palette of the violin, offering musicians and composers versatile tools for creative expression and sonic exploration. In this paper proposed Fuzzy Pitch Clustering Machine Learning (FPC-ML) for the violin Music Pitch Synthesis using Machine Learning. The proposed FPC-ML model uses the Fuzzy Clustering model for the estimation of pitches in the violin music signal. Based on the Fuzzy clustering model membership degree is computed for the proposed FPC-ML for the estimation of the pitch in the violin music. With the estimation of linguistic variables, clustering is performed in the Music signal for the computation of pitches. With the estimated pitches in the violin music, the features are trained in the machine learning model for the classification and estimation of features in the Violin Music. Simulation analysis demonstrated that the proposed FPC-ML model computes the features of the Violin Music Pitch values based on the estimated clustering values synthesis performed for the classification of the Violin Music signal. The proposed FPC-ML technique achieves an accuracy value of 0.98 for the violin signal with an iteration of 20. With the increase in several iterations and epoch, the accuracy of the FPC-ML model is further increased for the synthesis of the Violin Music.

Designing a Deep Learning-Enabled Music Teaching System in Universities Using the Moodle Platform

Music education plays a vital role in fostering creativity, expression, and cognitive development among students in university settings. Moodle is the learning management platform to promotes significant knowledge sharing among the students in the Universities. In this paper, introduce the Federated Deep Learning Moodle Hidden Chain (FDLMHc) with the Moodle platform for music education experiences. The FDLMHc system combines the power of federated learning with the flexibility of Moodle to provide personalized feedback and adaptive learning pathways for students. The FDLMHc model uses the Music signal pitch estimation with the consideration of the different pitches in the signal frequencies. The signal of the music signal is estimated for the different SNR rates of -10dB, 0dB, 10 dB, and 20 dB. The proposed FDLMHc model computes and processes the music signal with the hidden chain process for the estimation of the pitches in the music signal. The estimated hidden chain model is applied over the federated learning network for the classification of the signal in the Music. The findings reveal promising results, demonstrating the system's ability to accurately classify musical elements, such as pitch, rhythm, and dynamics, while providing personalized feedback tailored to individual student needs. The accuracy for the estimation of the Music pitch is estimated as the 95% with a convergence rate of 91% for the estimation of the signal in the Music signal.

Concurrent musical pitch height biases judgment of visual brightness

The integration of music sounds with concurrent visual scenes or objects is a occurrence in our daily lives, attracting the attention of researchers investigating how music influences our perceptions of simultaneous visuals. This study specifically investigates the role of musical pitch height in shaping our judgments of visual brightness during concurrent music–visual events. Participants were presented with pitch-modified versions of a wide range of emotional music pieces alongside various visual stimuli. The results demonstrate that lower-pitched music tends to elicit darker judgments of visual objects than higher-pitched music, when the actual visual brightness level remains constant. These findings suggest the influence of musical pitch height on introducing biases in our evaluations of visual brightness within the context of concurrent music-visual experiences, contributing to the advancement of our theoretical understanding of the complex audiovisual integration involving music in our everyday lives.

The place and role of the civil sector in the inclusive education and development of children with Williams syndrome (also) through music

Williams syndrome (WS) is an extremely rare genetic disorder. Approximately 1 in every 20 000 people has WS. Because of this, most people have never even met a child with WS. WS occupies a unique place among genetic disorders because of the fact that, in addition to a unique mix of difficulties, symptoms and abnormalities, some of their abilities and performance in certain intellectual areas are adequate or average, and in many cases above average. Relatively high level of ability includes good communication skills, outstanding verbal skills, sociability and good musical abilities with highly sensitive hearing, good musical pitch and musicality, and a very positive attitude towards music. As is typically the case for rare disorders, the most important pillar of their advocacy is the civil sphere, where NGOs and foundations support WS children and families. The great affinity and positive relationship with music justifies that a prominent part of development and inclusion are specifically music-related activities, music therapy activities. The main objective of our research is to map NGOs in Europe and beyond whose activities focus on WS patients and their families. The basis for mapping the organizations is to summarize their aims, activities and achievements and to highlight their music-related activities in line with the mission of inclusion. Our main objective is to show that the development and rehabilitation of WS patients through music and musical activities is a significant and integral part of their care within the organized framework and possibilities of the civil sector.

Mandarin-Speaking Amusics' Online Recognition of Tone and Intonation.

Congenital amusia is a neurogenetic disorder of musical pitch processing. Its linguistic consequences have been examined separately for speech intonations and lexical tones. However, in a tonal language such as Chinese, the processing of intonations and lexical tones interacts with each other during online speech perception. Whether and how the musical pitch disorder might affect linguistic pitch processing during online speech perception remains unknown. We investigated this question with intonation (question vs. statement) and lexical tone (rising Tone 2 vs. falling Tone 4) identification tasks using the same set of sentences, comparing behavioral and event-related potential measurements between Mandarin-speaking amusics and matched controls. We specifically focused on the amusics without behavioral lexical tone deficits (the majority, i.e., pure amusics). Results showed that, despite relative to normal performance when tested in word lexical tone test, pure amusics demonstrated inferior recognition than controls during sentence tone and intonation identification. Compared to controls, pure amusics had larger N400 amplitudes in question stimuli during tone task and smaller P600 amplitudes in intonation task. These data indicate that musical pitch disorder affects both tone and intonation processing during sentence processing even for pure amusics, whose lexical tone processing was intact when tested with words.

The influence of signal hue and background music pitch on vigilance

Humans generally display vigilance decrement during sustained cognitive workloads, while visual and auditory stimuli have been shown to elicit arousal, which influences the level of user vigilance. This study explored the effects of hue and background music pitch on user vigilance. Thirty-five participants performed a 10-min Psychomotor Vigilance Test with background music playing. Three hue conditions (red, green, and yellow) and two background music pitch conditions (high and low pitch) were randomly combined in each task, and the reaction time (RT) and number of lapses under different conditions were measured. We found that the overall vigilance performance was the best (shortest RT and fewest lapses) and the worst, and the vigilance decrement was the fastest and the slowest, respectively, with the red and the yellow signal. Moreover, the overall vigilance performance was best with low-pitched background music, while the pitch did not affect vigilance decrement. These findings can be used in situations with repeated color-signal stimulation and music playing (e.g., driving, signal monitoring, and physical training) to improve users’ vigilance performance.

Multiple timescales of context shape the perceptual sensitivity to natural pairings of musical pitch and timbre

Musical pitch and timbre (specifically, spectral shape) covary perceptually: lower pitches are associated with darker timbres (less higher-frequency energy) and higher pitches are associated with brighter timbres (more higher-frequency energy). We examined this relationship at multiple timescales of context: trial-level (rates of performance improvement within a testing block), block-level (differences in performance across blocks), session- level (performance as a function of testing block order), and longer-term experience (musical training / background). Musical pitches were labeled as low (C4) or high (G4) from various instruments (trumpet, oboe, trombone, tuba). Testing blocks paired pitch and timbre together to either respect (Consistent) or violate (Reversed) their covariance. All timescales of context contributed to performance, producing clear patterns across experiments. Pitch labeling was poorer in Reversed blocks, but showed steeper rates of improvement than did Consistent blocks (which were often near/at ceiling levels). These patterns were moderated by which condition was tested first in the experiment and by the introduction of trial-by-trial feedback. Greater musical training was consistently correlated with higher accuracy, but adding feedback extinguished this pattern for Consistent blocks. Thus, context on a host of timescales shapes perceptual sensitivity to the natural covariance between musical pitch and timbre.

Yunwei in Nakhi Ethnic Minority Music: Shift from Gongche Notation and Oral Transmission to Simplified Notation Starting 1970s

During the 1970s, musicians of the Nakhi ethnic minority, one of China’s fifty-six recognized minorities, transitioned from oral transmission and indigenous gongche notation, methods used for thousands of years, to ciphered notation. They intensely debated whether to move away from tradition and which notation could better capture yunwei (akin to authenticity). The article explores the musical meaning of yunwei to Nakhi musicians. Yunwei transcends written notations; it represents a fluid aesthetic understanding of a music piece, rooted in the original interpretation yet open to innovation, and evolves alongside commercial and cultural tourism influences. The ongoing negotiation between international World Heritage institutions, the State, and individual musicians complicates the definition of yunwei. It involves three levels of validation: UNESCO’s recognition of Nakhi as a World Heritage Site, the State’s acknowledgment of musicians as “cultural bearers” within its patronage system, and these recognized “cultural bearers’” assessment of the authenticity of students’ music performances. This analysis invites a reevaluation of notation as a dynamic interface between tradition and modernity, suggesting its value lies in documenting musical pitches and rhythms and in its capacity to engage with the deeper, often intangible aspects of cultural heritage and identity.

Feature Extraction and Musical Personality Analysis of Piano Artistic Performances

Abstract Starting from the basic process of piano music recognition, this paper focuses on the feature extraction process of piano art performance. In the feature extraction of piano art performance, the fundamental frequency characteristics of piano music signals were analyzed by using short-time Fourier transform theory, focusing on the feature extraction of musical pitch, time value, and tonality, and the spectrum analysis of piano music signals and the reconstruction of piano timbre were completed. The piano performance work, “Autumn Moon on the Peaceful Lake,” is used as an example to analyze the musical characteristics and personality. The overall structure of “Autumn Moon on the Peaceful Lake” is a typical three-part structure: the key is the bD palace seven-tone mode, the key is single, and the marking range of performance strength is ppp-pp-p-mf-mf-f-ff. In the three versions played by Yin Chengzong, Lang Lang, and Chen Jie, the average tempo of the performance was 31.5 beats, 26.5 beats, and 26.8 beats, respectively. The performance process of different pianists is a “slow-fast-slow” layout, and other passages are added to the individual free processing to further enhance the charm of the work.

Timbral cues underlie instrument-specific absolute pitch in expert oboists.

While absolute pitch (AP)-the ability to identify musical pitches without external reference-is rare even in professional musicians, anecdotal evidence and case-report data suggest that some musicians without traditional AP can nonetheless better name notes played on their musical instrument of expertise than notes played on instruments less familiar to them. We have called this gain in AP ability "instrument-specific absolute pitch" (ISAP). Here, we report the results of the first two experiments designed to investigate ISAP in professional oboists. In Experiment 1 (n = 40), superiority for identifying the pitch of oboe over piano tones varied along a continuum, with 37.5% of oboists demonstrating significant ISAP. Variance in accuracy across pitches was higher among ISAP-possessors than ISAP-non-possessors, suggestive of internalized timbral idiosyncrasies, and the use of timbral cues was the second-most commonly reported task strategy. For both timbres, both groups performed more accurately for pitches associated with white than black piano keys. In Experiment 2 (n = 12), oboists with ISAP were less accurate in pitch identification when oboe tones were artificially pitch-shifted. The use of timbral idiosyncrasies thus may constitute a widespread mechanism of ISAP. Motor interference, conversely, did not significantly reduce accuracy. This study offers the first evidence of ISAP among highly trained musicians and that reliance on subtle timbral (or intonational) idiosyncrasies may constitute an underlying mechanism of this ability in expert oboists. This provides a path forward for future studies extending the scientific understanding of ISAP to other instrument types, expertise levels, and musical contexts. More generally, this may deepen knowledge of specialized expertise, representing a range of implicit abilities that are not addressed directly in training, but which may develop through practice of a related skill set.

The role of carrier spectral composition in the perception of musical pitch.

Temporal envelope fluctuations of natural sounds convey critical information to speech and music processing. In particular, musical pitch perception is assumed to be primarily underlined by temporal envelope encoding. While increasing evidence demonstrates the importance of carrier fine structure to complex pitch perception, how carrier spectral information affects musical pitch perception is less clear. Here, transposed tones designed to convey identical envelope information across different carriers were used to assess the effects of carrier spectral composition to pitch discrimination and musical-interval and melody identifications. Results showed that pitch discrimination thresholds became lower (better) with increasing carrier frequencies from 1k to 10k Hz, with performance comparable to that of pure sinusoids. Musical interval and melody defined by the periodicity of sine- or harmonic complex envelopes across carriers were identified with greater than 85% accuracy even on a 10k-Hz carrier. Moreover, enhanced interval and melody identification performance was observed with increasing carrier frequency up to 6k Hz. Findings suggest a perceptual enhancement of temporal envelope information with increasing carrier spectral region in musical pitch processing, at least for frequencies up to 6k Hz. For carriers in the extended high-frequency region (8-20k Hz), the use of temporal envelope information to music pitch processing may vary depending on task requirement. Collectively, these results implicate the fidelity of temporal envelope information to musical pitch perception is more pronounced than previously considered, with ecological implications.

Distributional learning of musical pitch despite tone deafness in individuals with congenital amusia

Congenital amusia is an innate and lifelong deficit of music processing. This study investigated whether adult listeners with amusia were still able to learn pitch-related musical chords based on stimulus frequency of statistical distribution, i.e., via distributional learning. Following a pretest-training-posttest design, 18 amusics and 19 typical, musically intact listeners were assigned to bimodal and unimodal conditions that differed in distribution of the stimuli. Participants' task was to discriminate chord minimal pairs, which were transposed to a novel microtonal scale. Accuracy rates for each test session were collected and compared between the two groups using generalized mixed-effects models. Results showed that amusics were less accurate than typical listeners at all comparisons, thus corroborating previous findings. Importantly, amusics-like typical listeners-demonstrated perceptual gains from pretest to posttest in the bimodal condition (but not the unimodal condition). The findings reveal that amusics' distributional learning of music remains largely preserved despite their deficient music processing. Implications of the results for statistical learning and intervention programs to mitigate amusia are discussed.

Language-to-music transfer effects depend on the tone language: Akan vs. East Asian tone languages

Recent research suggests that speaking a tone language confers benefits in processing pitch in nonlinguistic contexts such as music. This research largely compares speakers of nontone European languages (English, French) with speakers of tone languages in East Asia (Mandarin, Cantonese, Vietnamese, Thai). However, tone languages exist on multiple continents—notably, languages indigenous to Africa and the Americas. With one exception (Bradley, Psychomusicology, 26(4), 337–345, 2016), no research has assessed whether these tone languages also confer pitch processing advantages. Two studies presented a melody change detection task, using quasirandom note sequences drawn from Western major scale tone probabilities. Listeners were speakers of Akan, a tone language of Ghana, plus speakers from previously tested populations (nontone language speakers and East Asian tone language speakers). In both cases, East Asian tone language speakers showed the strongest musical pitch processing, but Akan speakers did not exceed nontone speakers, despite comparable or better instrument change detection. Results suggest more nuanced effects of tone languages on pitch processing. Greater numbers of tones, presence of contour tones in a language’s tone inventory, or possibly greater functional load of tone may be more likely to confer pitch processing benefits than mere presence of tone contrasts.

Cortical representation of musical pitch in event-related potentials

Neural coding of auditory stimulus frequency is well-documented; however, the cortical signals and perceptual correlates of pitch have not yet been comprehensively investigated. This study examined the temporal patterns of event-related potentials (ERP) in response to single tones of pitch chroma, with an assumption that these patterns would be more prominent in musically-trained individuals than in non-musically-trained individuals. Participants with and without musical training (N = 20) were presented with seven notes on the C major scale (C4, D4, E4, F4, G4, A4, and B4), and whole-brain activities were recorded. A linear regression analysis between the ERP amplitude and the seven notes showed that the ERP amplitude increased or decreased as the frequency of the pitch increased. Remarkably, these linear correlations were anti-symmetric between the hemispheres. Specifically, we found that ERP amplitudes of the left and right frontotemporal areas decreased and increased, respectively, as the pitch frequency increased. Although linear slopes were significant in both groups, the musically-trained group exhibited marginally steeper slope, and their ERP amplitudes were most discriminant for frequency of tone of pitch at earlier latency than in the non-musically-trained group (~ 460 ms vs ~ 630 ms after stimulus onset). Thus, the ERP amplitudes in frontotemporal areas varied according to the pitch frequency, with the musically-trained participants demonstrating a wider range of amplitudes and inter-hemispheric anti-symmetric patterns. Our findings may provide new insights on cortical processing of musical pitch, revealing anti-symmetric processing of musical pitch between hemispheres, which appears to be more pronounced in musically-trained people.

Sensitivity to Frequency Modulation is Limited Centrally.

Modulations in both amplitude and frequency are prevalent in natural sounds and are critical in defining their properties. Humans are exquisitely sensitive to frequency modulation (FM) at the slow modulation rates and low carrier frequencies that are common in speech and music. This enhanced sensitivity to slow-rate and low-frequency FM has been widely believed to reflect precise, stimulus-driven phase locking to temporal fine structure in the auditory nerve. At faster modulation rates and/or higher carrier frequencies, FM is instead thought to be coded by coarser frequency-to-place mapping, where FM is converted to amplitude modulation (AM) via cochlear filtering. Here, we show that patterns of human FM perception that have classically been explained by limits in peripheral temporal coding are instead better accounted for by constraints in the central processing of fundamental frequency (F0) or pitch. We measured FM detection in male and female humans using harmonic complex tones with an F0 within the range of musical pitch but with resolved harmonic components that were all above the putative limits of temporal phase locking (>8 kHz). Listeners were more sensitive to slow than fast FM rates, even though all components were beyond the limits of phase locking. In contrast, AM sensitivity remained better at faster than slower rates, regardless of carrier frequency. These findings demonstrate that classic trends in human FM sensitivity, previously attributed to auditory nerve phase locking, may instead reflect the constraints of a unitary code that operates at a more central level of processing.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Natural sounds involve dynamic frequency and amplitude fluctuations. Humans are particularly sensitive to frequency modulation (FM) at slow rates and low carrier frequencies, which are prevalent in speech and music. This sensitivity has been ascribed to encoding of stimulus temporal fine structure (TFS) via phase-locked auditory nerve activity. To test this long-standing theory, we measured FM sensitivity using complex tones with a low F0 but only high-frequency harmonics beyond the limits of phase locking. Dissociating the F0 from TFS showed that FM sensitivity is limited not by peripheral encoding of TFS but rather by central processing of F0, or pitch. The results suggest a unitary code for FM detection limited by more central constraints.

Acoustical Theory of Vowel Modification Strategies in Belting

Various authors have argued that belting is to be produced by “speech-like” sounds, with the first and second supraglottic vocal tract resonances (fR1 and fR2) at frequencies of the vowels determined by the lyrics to be sung. Acoustically, the hallmark of belting has been identified as a dominant second harmonic, possibly enhanced by first resonance tuning (fR1≈2fo). It is not clear how both these concepts – (a) phonating with “speech-like,” unmodified vowels; and (b) producing a belting sound with a dominant second harmonic, typically enhanced by fR1 – can be upheld when singing across a singer’s entire musical pitch range. For instance, anecdotal reports from pedagogues suggest that vowels with a low fR1, such as [i] or [u], might have to be modified considerably (by raising fR1) in order to phonate at higher pitches. These issues were systematically addressed in silico with respect to treble singing, using a linear source-filter voice production model. The dominant harmonic of the radiated spectrum was assessed in 12987 simulations, covering a parameter space of 37 fundamental frequencies (fo) across the musical pitch range from C3 to C6; 27 voice source spectral slope settings from −4 to −30 dB/octave; computed for 13 different IPA vowels. The results suggest that, for most unmodified vowels, the stereotypical belting sound characteristics with a dominant second harmonic can only be produced over a pitch range of about a musical fifth, centered at fo≈0.5fR1. In the [ɔ] and [ɑ] vowels, that range is extended to an octave, supported by a low second resonance. Data aggregation – considering the relative prevalence of vowels in American English – suggests that, historically, belting with fR1≈2fo was derived from speech, and that songs with an extended musical pitch range likely demand considerable vowel modification. We thus argue that – on acoustical grounds – the pedagogical commandment for belting with unmodified, “speech-like” vowels can not always be fulfilled.

Music perception in acquired prosopagnosia

BackgroundAcquired prosopagnosia is often associated with other deficits such as dyschromatopsia and topographagnosia, from damage to adjacent perceptual networks. A recent study showed that some subjects with developmental prosopagnosia also have congenital amusia, but problems with music perception have not been described with the acquired variant. ObjectiveOur goal was to determine if music perception was also impaired in subjects with acquired prosopagnosia, and if so, its anatomic correlate. MethodWe studied eight subjects with acquired prosopagnosia, all of whom had extensive neuropsychological and neuroimaging testing. They performed a battery of tests evaluating pitch and rhythm processing, including the Montréal Battery for the Evaluation of Amusia. ResultsAt the group level, subjects with anterior temporal lesions were impaired in pitch perception relative to the control group, but not those with occipitotemporal lesions. Three of eight subjects with acquired prosopagnosia had impaired musical pitch perception while rhythm perception was spared. Two of the three also showed reduced musical memory. These three reported alterations in their emotional experience of music: one reported music anhedonia and aversion, while the remaining two had changes consistent with musicophilia. The lesions of these three subjects affected the right or bilateral temporal poles as well as the right amygdala and insula. None of the three prosopagnosic subjects with lesions limited to the inferior occipitotemporal cortex exhibited impaired pitch perception or musical memory, or reported changes in music appreciation. ConclusionTogether with the results of our previous studies of voice recognition, these findings indicate an anterior ventral syndrome that can include the amnestic variant of prosopagnosia, phonagnosia, and various alterations in music perception, including acquired amusia, reduced musical memory, and subjective reports of altered emotional experience of music.