Psych of Music Vocab

Affect

a term that refers to mental states associated with emotion or mood

amplitude modulation

the increases and decreases in intensity/size of a wave

amusia (tone deafness)

Impaired musical functioning. Congenital (present
from birth) or acquired through an environmental factor such as a stroke. Difficulties with pitch perception.

Alexia

(impaired ability to read music),

musical agraphia

(impaired ability to notate music),

musical anomia

(e.g. impaired ability to name works, composers, or styles).

ascending auditory pathway

the set of brain regions between the cochlea in the ear and the auditory cortex in the brain

auditory cortex

the part of the cerebral cortex, situated on the superior temporal gyrus, that responds to auditory information, including music, speech, and environmental sounds

basal ganglia

a group of nuclei in the brain interconnected with the cerebral cortex, thalamus, and brainstem. The basal ganglia are associated with a variety of functions: motor control, cognition, emotions, and learning.

beat

main accent/rhythmic unit in music

bottom up

pertains to the hierarchical organization of the flow of information in the brain, from low-level detail to high-level structures such as objects, categories, or concepts. Also used to refer to psychological phenomena that arise from peripheral (sensory) processes. Often contrasted with top-down or knowledge-driven psychological phenomena.

caudal

rear/tail

cerebral cortex

the outer layer of the brain involved in complex functions such as perception, cognition, and decision-making, attention, language, action

chord

a combination of three or more musical notes played simultaneously, creating harmony.

cochlea

a spiral-shaped, fluid-filled structure in the inner ear that converts sound vibrations into neural signals.

complex tone

a sound composed of multiple frequencies, including fundamental and overtones, resulting in a richer auditory experience.

consonance

a combination of notes that sound pleasant together, often creating a sense of stability in music. Pleasant

critical band

frequency region within which the signals associated with mutliple inputs (tones) can interact

decibel

measure of magnitude of sound intensity. logarithmic unit of measurement that correlates with human perception of loudness

diatonic scale

A seven-note scale consisting of five whole steps and two half steps, forming the basis for major and minor scales.

discrimination task

task that requires determining whether two stimuli are the same or different

dissociation

two skills are dissociated wen a change in one skill is observed without affecting the other

dissonance

sense that pitches played in combo, don’t fit (clash). Unpleasant

domain general

cognitive processes that apply across various tasks and situations, not specific to one area.

dominant

fifth note of the diatonic scale of any key

downbeat

first beat of a measure (bar)

EEG

a method used to record electrical activity in the brain through electrodes placed on the scalp.

empirical

based on observation or experience rather than theory or pure logic.

entrainment

falling into synchrony with

flat

below true pitch; note has to be played a semitone lower

frequency

rate at which something occurs over a period of time (Hz)

frequency modulation

modulation of wave by varying frequency

fundamental frequency

lowest frequency produced by oscillation of the whole of an object, as distinct from the higher harmonics of that frequency; perceived pitch of a sound

gyrus

ridge on surface of cortex

harmonic/partial/overtone

tone that is part of harmonic series above the fundamental frequency of the tone

harmony

combo of notes to produce chords/chord progressions

Heschl’s gyrus

part of superior temporal gyrus that is basically the primary auditory cortex

inter-onset-interval

time between the onsets of two events

interval

difference in pitch between two musical sounds

isochronous

occupying equal time in

just-noticeable difference

smallest difference noticed between two stimuli

key

group of notes based on a particular note and being part of a scale; tonal basis of a piece

major/Ionian

mode in western tonal music

measure

sections, usually equal time, in which the musical composition is divided

meter

grouping of beats in a pattern, defined by accentuation; specified as the number of quarter notes (beats) in one measure; ex: ¾ meter has 3 quarter notes in one measure

minor mode/aeolian mode

another dominant mode in western tonal music

mode

set of musical notes forming a scale from which melodies/harmonies are constructed; defined by the pattern of skips over adjacent notes in scale'

modulation

harmonic movement of a piece of music from one key to another (doesn’t need to be a copy)

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)

imaging tissue'; fMRI can measure small changes in blood oxygenation that are correlated with neural activity in brain;

note

single tone associated with a specific pitch

octave

interval formed between two notes, and one has 2x the frequency of the other

periodicity

quality of something recurring at some fixed time interval

phrase

group of notes forming a distinct unit

pitch

quality of sound governed by its frequency

pitch chroma

identity of a note (C, F, A, …) regardless of octave

pitch height

dimension of a pitch, perceived as low to high

priming

activating parts of associations in memory before carrying out an action/task

rostral

front

selective attnetion

reacting to stimuli selectively (amongst others)

semitone (half step)

smallest interval used in western music, 1/12 of an octave, ½ tone

sharp

above true pitch; one semitone higher than it is

sonogram/spectogram

graphic representation of sound

spectrum

distribution of energy across different frequencies

stream

source of sound

sulcus

cleft on surface of brain

superior temporal gyrus

top part of temporal lobe; encompasses auditory cortex

tactus

pulse of music, rate of beat kinda

tempo

speed at which music plays (bpm)

timbre

character of musical sound; identity

tonality

character of music determined by the KEY it is in

tonic

first note in a scale (naming the key)

transposition

copying music from one key to another (exactly)

valence

a characteristic of emotions that determines their emotional affect

whole, half, quarter, eight, sixteenth notes

durations of note; whole note is 1 measure in 4/4, so 4 quarter notes; 1 quarter note is a beat