Absolute Pitch: Effects of Timbre on Note-Naming Ability

Abstract

BackgroundAbsolute pitch (AP) is the ability to identify or produce isolated musical tones. It is evident primarily among individuals who started music lessons in early childhood. Because AP requires memory for specific pitches as well as learned associations with verbal labels (i.e., note names), it represents a unique opportunity to study interactions in memory between linguistic and nonlinguistic information. One untested hypothesis is that the pitch of voices may be difficult for AP possessors to identify. A musician's first instrument may also affect performance and extend the sensitive period for acquiring accurate AP.Methods/Principal FindingsA large sample of AP possessors was recruited on-line. Participants were required to identity test tones presented in four different timbres: piano, pure tone, natural (sung) voice, and synthesized voice. Note-naming accuracy was better for non-vocal (piano and pure tones) than for vocal (natural and synthesized voices) test tones. This difference could not be attributed solely to vibrato (pitch variation), which was more pronounced in the natural voice than in the synthesized voice. Although starting music lessons by age 7 was associated with enhanced note-naming accuracy, equivalent abilities were evident among listeners who started music lessons on piano at a later age.Conclusions/SignificanceBecause the human voice is inextricably linked to language and meaning, it may be processed automatically by voice-specific mechanisms that interfere with note naming among AP possessors. Lessons on piano or other fixed-pitch instruments appear to enhance AP abilities and to extend the sensitive period for exposure to music in order to develop accurate AP.

Absolute pitch among students at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music: A large-scale direct-test study

“…The present study also replicated the strong association between the prevalence of AP and early age of onset of musical training that had previously been obtained in large-scale direct-test studies by Deutsch et al (Deutsch et al, 2006;Deutsch et al, 2009); Lee and Lee (2010); Miyazaki et al (2012); Wilson et al (2012); and Peng et al (2013) as well as in other studies using smaller numbers of subjects or Web or survey procedures (Bachem, 1948;Sergeant, 1969;Miyazaki, 1988;Profita and Bidder, 1988;Baharloo et al, 1998;Baharloo et al, 2000;Gregersen et al, 1999Gregersen et al, , 2001Vanzella and Schellenberg, 2010;Deutsch, 2010, 2011).…”

“…Previous studies, both involving large-scale direct tests (Deutsch et al, 2006;Deutsch et al, 2009;Lee and Lee, 2010;Miyazaki et al, 2012;Wilson et al, 2012;Peng et al, 2013) and also employing smaller numbers of subjects or Web or survey procedures (Bachem, 1948;Sergeant, 1969;Miyazaki, 1988;Profita and Bidder, 1988;Baharloo et al, 1998;Baharloo et al, 2000;Gregersen et al, 1999Gregersen et al, , 2001Vanzella and Schellenberg, 2010;Deutsch, 2010, 2011), have found a strong association between the prevalence of AP and early onset of musical training; this association was also examined here.…”

“…He argued, therefore, that the white key advantage in AP judgments is due to piano practice in early childhood. An alternative explanation was advanced by Hulse (1991, 1993), who pointed out, based on general observation, that white-key pitches occur more frequently than black-key pitches in Western tonal music, and so should be better processed (see also Simpson and Huron, 1994;Marvin and Brinkmann, 2000;Vanzella and Schellenberg, 2010). These two hypotheses were here examined, taking all pitch classes into consideration.…”

“…In general, pitches corresponding to white keys on the keyboard (C, D, E, F, G, A, B) have been identified with greater accuracy and speed than those corresponding to black keys (C#/Db, D#/Eb, F#/Gb, G#/Ab, A#/Bb) (Sergeant, 1969;Carroll, 1975;Miyazaki, 1988Miyazaki, , 1989Miyazaki, , 1990Hulse, 1991, 1993;Simpson and Huron, 1994;Marvin and Brinkman, 2000;Vanzella and Schellenberg, 2010;Athos et al, 2007;Bermudez and Zatorre, 2009;Miyazaki et al, 2012). Two main explanations for this effect have been advanced.…”

Number 13 / Part I. Music. 7. Grounds of Absolute Pitch Development in Yamaha Music School

“…They discovered that the accuracy of absolute pitch is significantly higher on piano sounds (Takeuchi & Hulse, 1993;Vanzella & Schellenberg, 2010;Schlemmer et al, 2005;Hsieh & Saberi, 2009) and also on sounds subjects are familiar with, or belong to the first instrument they studied at an early age (Brammer et al, 1951;Sergeant, 1969).…”