Listening to music activates the creative areas of the brain
Last reviewed: 16.10.2021
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Finnish scientists have developed an innovative method that allows studying the brain processing of various aspects of music, such as rhythm, tonality and timbre (sound color) in real time.
The study is innovative and shows how the global neural connections in the brain, including the areas responsible for motor activities, emotions and creativity, are activated while listening to music. The new method helps to better understand the complex dynamics of the connections that arise in the brain and how music affects the person as a whole.
The study was published in the journal NeuroImage.
Using a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), a group of scientists, led by Dr. Vinu Alluri from the University of Jyväskylä (Finland), recorded the reactions of the brain of people who listened to works of modern Argentine tango. Using sophisticated computer algorithms, they analyzed the musical content of tango: rhythm, tonality and timbre components. Then the researchers compared the responses of the brain to the musical sound and revealed many interesting things.
Scientists have found that listening to music activates not only the auditory area of the brain, but also large-scale neural networks. They also found that the processing of musical impulses occurs with the participation of motor zones of the brain, confirming the hypothesis that music and movements are closely intertwined. The processing of the rhythm and tonality of music took place with the participation of the limbic regions of the brain, which are known to be associated with emotions. The processing of the timbre was associated with the activation of the so-called "default mode," which is supposed to be related to intelligence and creativity.
"The results of our research show for the first time how music activates the emotional, motor and creative areas of the brain," says Professor Petri Toiviainen of the University of Jyväskylä.
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