Department of Neuroradiology, University of Heidelberg Medical School, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany.
Cereb Cortex. 2014 May;24(5):1127-37. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhs391. Epub 2013 Jan 9.
Absolute pitch (AP) perception is the auditory ability to effortlessly recognize the pitch of any given tone without external reference. To study the neural substrates of this rare phenomenon, we developed a novel behavioral test, which excludes memory-based interval recognition and permits quantification of AP proficiency independently of relative pitch cues. AP- and non-AP-possessing musicians were studied with morphological and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and magnetoencephalography. Gray matter volume of the right Heschl's gyrus (HG) was highly correlated with AP proficiency. Right-hemispheric auditory evoked fields were increased in the AP group. fMRI revealed an AP-dependent network of right planum temporale, secondary somatosensory, and premotor cortices, as well as left-hemispheric "Broca's" area. We propose the right HG as an anatomical marker of AP and suggest that a right-hemispheric network mediates AP "perception," whereas pitch "labeling" takes place in the left hemisphere.
绝对音高（AP）感知是一种听觉能力，能够毫不费力地识别任何给定音高的音调，而无需外部参考。为了研究这种罕见现象的神经基础，我们开发了一种新的行为测试方法，该方法排除了基于记忆的音程识别，并允许在不依赖相对音高线索的情况下独立量化 AP 能力。对具有和不具有 AP 的音乐家进行了形态和功能磁共振成像（fMRI）和脑磁图研究。右颞上回（HG）的灰质体积与 AP 能力高度相关。AP 组的右听觉诱发电场增加。fMRI 显示了一个依赖于 AP 的右颞平面、次级体感和运动前皮质以及左半球“布罗卡区”的网络。我们提出右 HG 是 AP 的解剖学标志物，并认为右半球网络介导 AP“感知”，而音高“标记”则发生在左半球。
