Review: <i>Sweet Anticipation: Music and the Psychology of Expectation</i>, by David Huron

Stevens, Catherine J.; Byron, Tim

doi:10.1525/mp.2007.24.5.511

Cited by 12 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…However, it is interesting to note that often artists seem to implicitly exploit the aesthetic pleasure arising from the reduction of sensory uncertainty in their compositions. Musicians, for example, continuously and deliberately violate our predictions during the evolution of a musical piece, thus letting us experience aesthetic pleasure whenever we are able to insightfully restore predictability and solve sensory uncertainty by updating our predictions (Huron, 2006; Kraehenbuehl & Meyer, 1957; Sarasso, Neppi-Modona, et al, 2020). Visual artists also create subtle violations of our expectations in the style and content of their pieces, possibly as a means to elicit the transition from prediction violations to reinstated predictability (Kesner, 2014; Van de Cruys & Wagemans, 2011).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nice and easy: Mismatch negativity responses reveal a significant correlation between aesthetic appreciation and perceptual learning.

Sarasso

Neppi-Mòdona

Rosaia

et al. 2022

Journal of Experimental Psychology: General

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Neurocomputational models of cognition have framed aesthetic appreciation within the domain of knowledge acquisition and learning, suggesting that aesthetic appreciation might be considered as a hedonic feedback on successful perceptual learning dynamics. Such hypothesis, however, has never been empirically demonstrated yet. In order to investigate the relationship between aesthetic appreciation and learning, we measured the EEG mismatch negativity (MMN) response to more or less appreciated musical intervals, which is considered as a reliable index of perceptual learning. To this end, we measured the MMN to frequency (Hz) standard and frequency deviant musical intervals (Experiment 1) while participants were asked to judge their beauty. For each single stimulus, we also computed an information-theoretic index of perceptual learning (Bayesian surprise). We found that more appreciated musical intervals were associated with a larger MMN responses, which, in turn, correlated with trial-by-trial fluctuations in Bayesian surprise (Experiment 1). Coherently with previous results, Bayesian surprise was also found to correlate with slower RTs in a detection task of the same stimuli, evidencing that motor behavior is inhibited in presence of surprising sensory states triggering perceptual learning (Experiment 2). Our results provide empirical evidence of the existence of a positive correlation between aesthetic appreciation and EEG indexes of perceptual learning. We argue that the sense of beauty might have evolved to signal the nervous system new sensory knowledge acquisition and motivate the individual to search for informationally profitable stimuli.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nice and easy: Mismatch negativity responses reveal a significant correlation between aesthetic appreciation and perceptual learning.

Sarasso

Neppi-Mòdona

Rosaia

et al. 2022

Journal of Experimental Psychology: General

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“…In terms of musical pleasure, research has shown that people tend to prefer music in major mode, given the positive psychological character generally associated with it (Blood & Zatorre, 2001; Dobrota & Ervegovac 2015; McConnell & Shore, 2011). One influential theory is that listeners experience a sense of reward or pleasure when they are able to anticipate and predict the harmonic structure of a musical piece (Huron, 2006; Koelsch, 2014; Pando-Naude et al, 2021; Pearce, 2005). According to this theory, the major-minor dichotomy is particularly important because it creates expectations about how a piece of music will unfold.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This tendency might be explained by the fact that minor-mode music is less common than major-mode music. Indeed, Huron (2006) 46 found that when musicians were asked to think about a random chord, 94% of them imagined a major mode chord. Hence, the major mode appears to be the most "expected" mode, and the minor mode could elicit a higher brain response as an infrequent, deviant stimulus 62,93 .…”

Section: Effect Of Musical Expertise On Major-minor Perceptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Major-Minor mode Dichotomy in Music Perception: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on its Behavioural, Physiological, and Clinical Correlates

Carraturo

Pando‐Naude

Costa

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Since ancient Greece, major and minor modes in Western tonal music have been identified as the primary responsible musical feature for eliciting emotional states. The underlying correlates of the major-minor mode dichotomy in music perception have been extensively investigated through decades of psychological and neuroscientific research. This comprehensive systematic review aims to synthesise the literature on musical mode perception and its behavioural and physiological correlates. The qualitative synthesis resulted in 70 studies, showing great diversity in how the major-minor dichotomy has been empirically approached. Most studies were conducted on adults, considered participants' expertise, employed real-life musical stimuli, performed behavioural evaluations, and were published from 2010 onwards. Based on our findings, a framework to describe a Major-Minor Mode(l) of music perception and its behavioural and physiological correlates is proposed, incorporating individual factors such as age, expertise, cultural background, and emotional disorders. Limitations, implications, and suggestions for future research are discussed, including putative clinical applications of major-minor perception and best practices regarding stimulation paradigms for musical mode investigation.

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“…Alternatively, previous research has indicated that familiarity (Marvin & Brinkman, 2000;Takeuchi & Hulse, 1991) and years of exposure to a particular instrument (e.g., Brammer, 1951;Miyazaki, 1989Miyazaki, , 1990Schlemmer et al, 2005) can influence pitch-labeling ability. Specifically, it has been suggested that the key-color effect on speed and accuracy on pitch identification may be linked with greater familiarity and exposure to Western tonal music (Huron, 2006;Takeuchi & Hulse, 1991), where white-key pitches occur more frequently than pitches corresponding to the black keys (see also Ben-Haim et al, 2014;Simpson & Huron, 1994). It is also possible that early music training (Baharloo et al, 1998;Brown et al, 2002;Crozier, 1997;Deutsch et al, 2006;Levitin & Zatorre, 2003;Miyazaki, 1990;Russo et al, 2003; for review, see Deutsch, 2013) and years of exposure to a particular instrument (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perception and identification of tones in different timbres: Using pupil diameter to investigate absolute pitch ability

Vanzella

Janzen

Oliveira

et al. 2022

Psychology of Music

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Absolute pitch (AP) is the ability to effortlessly identify or produce pitches without reference. However, behavioral research has shown that pitch perception and identification in certain timbres are more difficult for AP possessors. In this study, we investigate whether pitch identification and labeling in different timbres (piano and voice) would require different amounts of cognitive resource allocation. We measured accuracy, response time, and pupillary responses of 18 musicians with varying degrees of AP while performing a pitch identification test. We also examined whether behavioral and psychophysiological responses were related to aspects of musical experience, such as the age of onset of musical training, daily hours of practice, and years of musical training. Behavioral results revealed significantly longer response time for vocal tones compared to piano tones. However, there was no difference in accuracy when comparing pitch labeling in piano and vocal tones. On the psychophysiological level, pupillary responses were significantly different across timbre conditions, with larger pupil dilation for vocal tones than piano tones. We also observed an effect of key color (whether the tones corresponded to diatonic or chromatic tones in a C major scale) on pupil dilation, with greater dilation for pitches corresponding to black keys compared to white keys. These findings expand the current knowledge regarding how pitches in different timbres are processed by musicians with varying degrees of AP and open new avenues for the investigation of potentially different cognitive mechanisms involved in the processing of the human voice and musical timbres by AP possessors.

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Review: Sweet Anticipation: Music and the Psychology of Expectation, by David Huron

Cited by 12 publications

References 10 publications

Nice and easy: Mismatch negativity responses reveal a significant correlation between aesthetic appreciation and perceptual learning.

Nice and easy: Mismatch negativity responses reveal a significant correlation between aesthetic appreciation and perceptual learning.

The Major-Minor mode Dichotomy in Music Perception: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on its Behavioural, Physiological, and Clinical Correlates

Perception and identification of tones in different timbres: Using pupil diameter to investigate absolute pitch ability

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