Bach Speaks: A Cortical “Language-Network” Serves the Processing of Music

TLDR

Brain regions involved in language, such as Broca and Wernicke areas, have been linked to music processing, yet it was unclear whether the language‑specific cortical network is activated by non‑linguistic stimuli. The study aimed to investigate the neural correlates of music processing using fMRI. Participants listened to chord sequences that occasionally contained unexpected musical events while undergoing fMRI. Unexpected musical events activated Broca, Wernicke, superior temporal sulcus, Heschl's gyrus, planum polare, planum temporale, and anterior insula, indicating that the language‑supporting cortical network also processes musical information.

Abstract

The aim of the present study was the investigation of neural correlates of music processing with fMRI. Chord sequences were presented to the participants, infrequently containing unexpected musical events. These events activated the areas of Broca and Wernicke, the superior temporal sulcus, Heschl's gyrus, both planum polare and planum temporale, as well as the anterior superior insular cortices. Some of these brain structures have previously been shown to be involved in music processing, but the cortical network comprising all these structures has up to now been thought to be domain-specific for language processing. To what extent this network might also be activated by the processing of non-linguistic information has remained unknown. The present fMRI-data reveal that the human brain employs this neuronal network also for the processing of musical information, suggesting that the cortical network known to support language processing is less domain-specific than previously believed.