Search results

1

Słuch absolutny — symptomem zdolności muzycznych i poznawczych?

100%

Kozłowska-Lewna A.

Aspekty Muzyki

|

2013

|

vol. 3

59-82

EN

The aim of this paper is to present latest studies on absolute pitch conducted over the past ten years. The author respectively discusses: results of the research on the origins of absolute pitch, relationship between absolute pitch and musical skills, dependence of the development of absolute pitch on applied aural training methods, anatomical and neural foundations of this ability, as well as infl uence of absolute pitch on the progress of other cognitive abilities. In conclusion the author submits: the key causes for the development of absolute pitch ability lay in innate predispositions (either genetic or stimulated in the prenatal period) — which manifest themselves in the asymmetry between left and right planum temporale — as well as in skills acquired by early musical practice combined with absolute method of ear training. It appears that using tonal languages is benefi cial for the development of absolute pitch. It has been proven that the ability of absolute pitch correlates with profi ciency in performing musical tasks. Examining brains of people with absolute hearing abilities shows that they have better developed circumferential networks, grey matter, greater thickness of cerebral cortex and improved white matter connectivity, what results in more effi cient networking between various areas of brain, better „small-world” functional networking and memory. Ability of absolute pitch can be understood as a phenomenon of unique perceptual enhancement, useful for the examination of brain plasticity.

2

Absolute pitch in persons with visual impairments

100%

Wiśniewska M.

Aspekty Muzyki

|

2018

|

vol. 8

263-284

EN

This paper focuses on absolute pitch (AP) in the blind. The article is based on the research conducted by Roy Hamilton and Nadine Gaap, as well as the author’s own experience which suggest a higher prevalence of the AP in the blind than in the population at large. Thus, the main purpose of the paper was the study of this phenomenon, as well as an attempt at isolating factors contributing to the development of AP in the blind. The following hypotheses were formulated: H1: There is a larger proportion of AP-endowed blind, as compared with the sighted. H2: The critical period for the rise of AP does not apply to the blind. H3: The AP among the blind is not dependent on continuous music practice. H4: The AP in the blind does not directly depend on the duration of their musical education. H5: The family circumstances and early exposure to music may be factors contributing to the development of AP in the blind. Test for Absolute Pitch prepared by Diana Deutsch and the author’s survey comprising 21 questions were used as research tools. Thirty blind subjects took part in the study. Out of 30 subjects, as many as 14 (46.7%) were identified as endowed with AP. Out of these, 10 did not make any mistake in identifying all the pitches, despite the fact that the participants had a varying degree of musical education and knowledge about music. Four of the above-mentioned hypotheses were confirmed, with only one, that on the critical period in the rise of AP in the blind (H2), was falsified.

PL

Przedmiotem artykułu jest zdolność do absolutnego słyszenia u osób niewidomych. Punktem wyjścia dla podjętych rozważań stały się doniesienia Roya Hamiltona oraz Nadine Gaap, a także własne obserwacje autorki o częstszym — niż w normalnej populacji — występowaniu słuchu absolutnego u niewidomych. Głównym celem pracy stało się zatem zbadanie tego zjawiska, a także próba wskazania czynników mających na nie wpływ. Sformułowano następujące hipotezy badawcze: H1: Wśród niewidomych większy, niż wśród widzących jest procent osób posiadających słuch absolutny. H2: U niewidomych nie obserwuje się okresu krytycznego przy powstawaniu słuchu absolutnego. H3: Zdolność do słyszenia absolutnego u osób niewidomych nie jest zależna od ciągłej praktyki muzycznej. H4: Zdolność do absolutnego słyszenia u osób niewidomych nie zależy w sposób bezpośredni od czasu kształcenia muzycznego. H5: Środowisko rodzinne i obcowanie z muzyką od wczesnego dzieciństwa mogą być czynnikami wpływającymi bezpośrednio na wykształcenie się słuchu absolutnego u niewidomych. Jako narzędzia badawcze wykorzystano test słuchu absolutnego (ang. Test for Absolute Pitch) Diany Deutsch oraz kwestionariusz autorski składający się z 21 pytań. W badaniu wzięło udział 30 niewidomych. Na trzydziestu badanych aż czternastu (46,7%) zostało zakwalifikowanych jako posiadacze słuchu absolutnego, przy czym dziesięciu z nich nie popełniło żadnego błędu w identyfikacji słyszanych wysokości, mimo że w badanej grupie znajdowały się osoby o bardzo zróżnicowanym poziomie muzycznego wykształcenia i wiedzy w tym zakresie. Potwierdzono słuszność czterech sformułowanych wyżej hipotez. Nie potwierdziła się jedynie hipoteza o niewystępowaniu okresu krytycznego w kształtowaniu się zdolności do słyszenia absolutnego u osób niewidomych.

3

On the genesis of absolute pitch

75%

Makomaska S.

Interdisciplinary Studies in Musicology

|

2009

|

issue 8

253-270

PL

The clear majority of people with a professional or amateur contact with music do not possess absolute pitch and get by perfectly well without it, making use of relative musical pitch. Yet many people dream of also fixing in their memory the actual pitches of the notes of the musical scale, which would effectively give them the chance to recognise and reproduce any chromatic pitch (C, C#, D, D#, etc.) without recourse to a reference note. Unfortunately, it almost always proves too late for them to develop absolute pitch. The question of the factors determining the forming of absolute pitch is still the subject of quite heated discussion. Practically from the outset of the interest in the phenomenon of absolute pitch (i.e. from the second half of the nineteenth century) controversial theories arose regarding its origins. In discussion on the subject, there was a clash of two fundamental views, regarding absolute pitch either as an innate ability or, on the contrary, as an ability that could be acquired at any age. With time, there emerged an increasing number of hypotheses accounting for the origin of absolute pitch: from the theory of the limitless possibility of absolute pitch acquisition through the theories of innate factors and of early learning, to the latest theory that links absolute pitch to tonal languages. The present paper shows the results of the research project on the occurrence of absolute pitch among young people in musical education in Poland (1175 pupils, aged 11-29) carried out in the years 2004-2007. The test results (pitch-naming tests) supported by the data from the survey (concerning e.g. musical education, familial aggregation of AP and etc.) are presented in the context of theories which attempt to investigate the source of absolute pitch (especially early musical training theory and genetic factors theory).

4

Investigating the pitch strength of short pur e-tone pulses in middle frequency range through their chroma recognition by absolute-pitch listeners

75%

Rakowski A., Rogowski P.

Interdisciplinary Studies in Musicology

|

2009

|

issue 8

271-278

PL

A method is proposed for estimating the pitch strength of sounds by measuring the proportion of correct recognitions of their musical pitch (chroma) by expert listeners possessing full absolute pitch. Full absolute pitch (AP) is the ability of some musicians to preserve in their long-term auditory memory the pitch templates of the twelve chromatic tones of the contemporary music system (C, C#, D... etc.) based on the frequency A4 = 440 Hz. This ability is preserved across different octaves in most of the musical pitch scale. Five expert AP listeners, in individual, computer-run sessions, were asked to identify and name the pitch chromas of short tone pulses cut out of twelve sinusoidal vibrations corresponding to the chromatic scale C5 - B5 (523.3 - 987.8 Hz). These tone pulses were composed of n cycles. The value of n was 4, 8, and 16, and so the total number of stimuli investigated was 12 x 3 = 36. All these stimuli were presented in random order to the five AP listeners in a single test, which was run twenty-six times in consecutive sessions (the results of the first session were not used in computations). The results show an increase in correct chroma recognition (and consequently of the pitch strength of a pulse), with n rising from 4 to 16. At n = 4 or 8, the results show also a dependence of chroma recognition on the total pulse duration. Thus, for tone pulses with a low number of cycles (at n=4 and 8), the pitch strength diminishes with increasing pitch and is different in neighbouring parts of a withinoctave musical scale. The discovery of these differences may indicate the relatively high precision of the newly-presented method in estimating the pitch strength of musical sounds.

Refine search results

2 Aspekty Muzyki

2 Interdisciplinary Studies in Musicology

1 Kozłowska-Lewna A.

1 Makomaska S.

1 Rakowski A.

1 Rogowski P.

1 Wiśniewska M.

1 2018

1 2013

2 2009

Słuch absolutny — symptomem zdolności muzycznych i poznawczych?

Absolute pitch in persons with visual impairments

On the genesis of absolute pitch

Investigating the pitch strength of short pur e-tone pulses in middle frequency range through their chroma recognition by absolute-pitch listeners