Shared Neural Mechanisms for the Prediction of Own and Partner Musical Sequences after Short-term Piano Duet Training.

Predictive mechanisms in the human brain can be investigated using markers for prediction violations like the mismatch negativity (MMN). Short-term piano training increases the MMN for melodic and rhythmic deviations in the training material. This increase occurs only when the material is actually played, not when it is only perceived through listening, suggesting that learning predictions about upcoming musical events are derived from motor involvement.

Tic-reducing effects of music in patients with Tourette's syndrome: Self-reported and objective analysis.

Background: Self-reports by musicians affected with Tourette's syndrome and other sources of anecdotal evidence suggest that tics stop when subjects are involved in musical activity. For the first time, we studied this effect systematically using a questionnaire design to investigate the subjectively assessed impact of musical activity on tic frequency (study 1) and an experimental design to confirm these results (study 2).

Methods: A questionnaire was sent to 29 patients assessing whether listening to music and musical performance would lead to a tic frequency reduction or increase.