Effect of music experience on perception of tempo change

• Published in: The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 2016-10, Vol.140 (4), p.3381-3381
• Main Authors: Yamashita, Mayuko, Yanagida, Masuzo, Umata, Ichiro, Kato, Tsuneo, Yamamoto, Seiichi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0001-4966; 1520-8524
• DOI: 10.1121/1.4970815

Tempo is one of the basic factors in music expression and perception. Although there have been studies on the perception of tempo change, little is known about how the type of music experience affects the sensitivity to this change. We analyze the effects of music experience on the perception of tempo change to contribute to music education. Our analysis focuses on sensitivity to tempo change. Participants were classified into three groups according to their musical experience: (A) inexperienced in any musical instrument, (B) players majoring in the piano, and (C) amateur players belonging to brass bands. We performed experiments in which monotone piano sequences that gradually change tempo from the initial inter-onset interval (IOI) to the target IOI were used. We manipulated three tempo change patterns, namely, (I) linear, (II) exponential, and (III) the average of (I) and (II). We compared the point of tempo change perception among the three groups with the assumption that the sensitivity would be higher in (B) and (C) than in (A). The results, however, showed that the sensitivity was lowest in (B), except for one player who often plays with other players. These results suggest that ensemble experience may affect sensitivity to tempo change.