Browsing by Author "Seppälä, Maaria"

Objectives. There are only a few prior studies about brain functions while listening to live and improvised music. Yet, an EEG frequency band called alpha (8-10 Hz) has been shown to be connected to listening of music improvisation, but the connections between alpha and listening to improvised music are largely unknown. The progress of wireless mobile EEG devices makes recording EEG in this kind of tasks now easier. In this study we examine the feasibility of measuring EEG in a situation like this and the connection between alpha power and listening to partly improvised or familiar live music. Methods. In this study, EEG of 14 professional musicians and amateur musicians was recorded while they listened to familiar and unfamiliar pieces of music and partly improvised versions of those pieces performed live by a chamber trio. The subjects rated how improvised and interesting each of the four performances sounded. Data from posterior and midline electrodes were analyzed to define alpha power. Results and conclusions. There were no differences in alpha power between the performances. Listeners rated partly improvised performances more improvisatory, but there was no difference in how interesting the performances were rated. Studying music improvisation may help us to expand the knowledge of creativity. According to this study it is possible to study listeners’ brain functions with EEG during live music improvisation performances also outside the laboratory.