Brain Activation During Piano Performance
Peter Fox,* Lawrence Parsons,* and Don Hodges+
*Research Imaging Center, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
+Institute for Music Research, University of Texas at San Antonio
Neural systems underlying musical performance, a uniquely human activity, are minimally understood. Owing to limitations in instrumentation, most neuromusical research involves passive listening tasks, rather than active performance (see Hodges, 1996 for a review). In a prior postitron-emission tomography (PET) study of sight-reading and piano performance by Sergent et al. (1992), reading musical notation and translating them into movements of playing the piano with the right hand, activated cortical areas distinct from, but adjacent to, those underlying language operations. The present study clarified and extended this finding by using PET to study bimanual piano performance from memory. By recording brain activation with both hands equally and concurrently producing music, we examined neural systems in both cerebral hemispheres, rather than in just the left hemisphere, which in the previous study was selectively activated during single-handed performance.
Method
Ten right-handed professional musicians (6 females, 4 males) participated in three neuroimaging conditions of Bach, Scales, and Rest. In Bach, the third movement of the Italian Concerto was performed from memory. This piece requires movements of similar frequency and complexity from each hand, making it an appropriate comparison to Scales. Scales were executed synchronously with both hands at a tempo approximating that of Bach. Bach and Scale conditions were performed on a full-sized Yamaha P-132 electronic piano. Subjects heard the sounds they produced, but were blindfolded for all conditions. PET imaging was performed with a 15-O, water bolus technique. PET and T1-weighted magnetic resonance images (MRI) were spatially normalized, correcting for differences in brain size. Task induced changes in regional blood flow were detected by Change Distribution Analysis. Response coordinates were interpreted in accordance with Talairach and Tournoux and confirmed with group-mean MRI.
Results and Discussion
[Note: because this paper is in the final stages of preparation for publication, the following brief statement will have to suffice
The main conclusions to be drawn from this experiment are that brain activation during piano performance primarily involves motor systems, unequally distributed for Bach and Scales, and that focused attention is clearly demonstrated through strong, focal areas of deactivation.
1The piano was initially made available from the Yamaha Corporation through the auspices of Alamo Music Company in San Antonio. It was later purchased by funding provided by the National Association for Music Merchants who supported this research project.
References
Hodges, D. (1996). Neuromusical research: A review of the literature. In D. Hodges (Ed.) Handbook of music psychology, 2d ed., 197-284. San Antonio: IMR Press.
Sergent, J. , E. Zuck, S. Tenial, and B. MacDonall. (1992). Distributed neural network underlying musical sight reading and keyboard performance. Science 257:106-9.
Subject playing a suspended keyboard while Pet Scan is in process