Music Perception

The possible links between music and language continue to intrigue sci-entists interested in the nature of these two types of knowledge, their evolution, and their instantiation in the brain. Here we consider music and language from a developmental perspective, focusing on the degree to which similar mechanisms of learning and memory might subserve the acquisition of knowledge in these two domains. In particular, it seems possible that while adult musical and linguistic processes are modular-ized to some extent as separate entities, there may be similar develop-mental underpinnings in both domains, suggesting that modularity is emergent rather than present at the beginning of life. Directions for fu-ture research are considered. ON the surface, music and language are wildly different. No listenerwould ever confuse a Beethoven sonata with a political speech. By the time we reach adulthood, we possess vast and distinct arrays of knowl-edge about each of these domains. However, from the perspective of a naïve listener such as an infant, the two systems may not seem quite so different