Absolute Pitch

Paper Summary:

Extraordinary musical talent is very rare; however a more uncommon talent, even among musicians, is absolute pitch. The paper explains that absolute pitch, also known as perfect pitch, is the ability to accurately identify pitches by name or produce a particular pitch without musical context or reference to another tone. The origins of absolute pitch have not been fully explored, but it is certain that genetic, environmental and biological factors all play a part in the development of this ability. The paper argues that more research should be done to separate the components affecting absolute pitch, as it can give valuable insight to the nature versus nurture debate.

From the Paper:

"Another study used PET scanning to compare the cerebral blood flow of absolute pitch possessors to control musicians without absolute pitch. During pitch labeling tests, absolute pitch possessors demonstrated activation of the left posterior dorsolateral frontal cortex, an area related to learning associations. During interval-judgment tests, control subjects showed activation in the left posterior dorsolateral cortex and right inferior frontal cortex, an area of the brain thought to be used as working memory."

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