Abstract
While neural processing of visuospatial patterns has been extensively studied, much remains to be discovered about the hierarchical brain mechanisms underlying recognition of auditory sequences with associated prediction errors. In a series of magnetoencephalography (MEG) studies, we investigated the temporal unfolding over milliseconds of brain activity during recognition of previously memorised and systematically varied melodies. The results showed a hierarchy of processing in networks from the auditory to the ventromedial prefrontal and inferior temporal cortices, hippocampus and medial cingulate gyrus. Both memorised melodies and variations engaged the same pathway but differed in terms of temporal dynamics. When examining older adults, we revealed an age-related functional reorganisation of the brain during recognition of memorised melodies and a strongly reduced prediction error when presenting the variations.
Future perspectives will be discussed in terms of (i) multi-modal integration of neuroscientific techniques (e.g. MEG, iEEG, fMRI), (ii) potential clinical applications, and (iii) further developments of musical memory paradigms based on rhythmic sequences.
Bio
Leonardo Bonetti is an associate professor at the Center for Music in the Brain, Aarhus University and at the Centre for Eudaimonia and Human Flourishing, University of Oxford. In his research, Leonardo combines music with state-of-the-art neuroscientific tools to investigate the brain mechanisms underlying the encoding and recognition of temporal sequences, as well as their potential contribution to clinical applications. For his research, Leonardo received several grants and awards, including the Lundbeck Foundation’s Talent Prize in 2022.