CNS 2022 Press Release April 26, 2022 – SAN FRANCISCO – Most neuroscientists who study music have something in common: they play a musical instrument, in many cases from a young age. Their drive to understand how the brain perceives and is shaped by music springs from a deep love of music. This passion has […]
Do Visual Aids Assist Musical Training?
As a professional flutist, Ioanna Zioga has often wondered how people learn music. She herself has experienced many different musical training techniques from various musicians. “Some would draw figures on a whiteboard to visually represent the music; others would sing melodies; others would play the music themselves on the flute in order for me to […]
Playing an Instrument Changes Our Perception of Music
The musical instrument you play, or played as a child, likely has a big impact on how you perceive music every day. In a novel new study looking at beatboxers and guitarists, cognitive neuroscientists found that areas of the brain that control movement were activated in the musicians’ brains but not in non-musicians’ brains. Past […]
CNS 2018 Day 4 In Brief
It was a great 4 days of science in Boston at CNS 2018! The sun was out and it was warming up outside, while inside participants were treated to the last poster session of the meeting and a wonderful set of final symposia. Talks covered what makes musical rhythm special and sleep’s role in memory […]
From Lullabies to Live Concerts: How Music and Rhythm Shape Our Social Brains
CNS 2018 Press Release March 27, 2018 – Boston – A universal sign of motherhood is the lullaby. The world over, mothers sing to their babies, whether Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, their favorite song from the radio, or even random notes. This universality makes the simple lullaby a great window into the human mind. In […]
Pavlov’s Dogz is Back: Catch their Concert at CNS 2017
Calling all cognitive neuroscientists: Some great music is coming to a conference near you. After delighting crowds in New York City at last year’s CNS conference, rock band Pavlov’s Dogz is back for CNS 2017 in San Francisco on Sunday, March 26. Launched at an open-mic night at a small memory conference, Pavlov’s Dogz features […]
Playing An Instrument Enhances Pitch Perception
Actions may speak more melodically than sounds. A new study shows that playing a melody on a musical instrument enhances how those melodies are perceived and remembered, above and beyond just listening to them. “We wanted to understand how the auditory system encodes and responds to musical events that the motor system has learned, says […]
Music on the Mind: Rocking Out for CNS 2016
Cognitive neuroscientists are often masters in multiple fields, such as psychology, neurology, and anatomy. But some go even further by living a double life: scientists by day, rockers by night. “Unlike submitting papers or grant applications, music is immediately satisfying.” -Earl Miller Three bands made up of CNS members – The Amygdaloids, Pavlov’s Dogz, and […]
Evidence from Tone Deafness: Limiting Musical Exposure Can Deteriorate the Auditory System
Often thought of in pop culture as a funny quirk (think: Cameron Diaz singing karaoke in My Best Friend’s Wedding), tone deafness is actually a brain disorder. Whereas most of us derive great pleasure from music, someone who is tone deaf may hear music as a noisy din and may even avoid situations where music […]
Using Disharmonic Melodies to Test OCD Symptoms
We’ve all had moments when something just didn’t seem quite right – perhaps a slightly crooked photo hanging or a book that seems out of place on the shelf. For people with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), these feelings are more frequent and intense. In a new study, researchers have found a new way to test […]
