Colloquium: Julius Smith and Takako Fujioka

Julius Smith: Physical/Spectral Audio Signal Processing (MUS 420/421) and Related Research
This talk summarizes JOS CCRMA courses devoted to signal processing for (1) real-time virtual musical instruments and audio effects, and (2) spectrum analysis and processing, both in real time and off line.  Sound examples will be played and live demonstrations performed.

Takako Fujioka: Neural correlates for prediction of musical structures and learning-related functional plasticity Music is an important part of human culture for social communication. Music making and listening activities require complex coordination of multi-modal sensorimotor, cognitive and affective functions. From early ages music has been used not only for educational purposes but also for therapeutic purposes for those physically and mentally challenged. The nature of human musical abilities therefore transverses major subjects of cognitive neuroscience. Non-invasive neurophysiological recording techniques such as MEG and scalp EEG, with their excellent temporal resolution, allow us to investigate neural mechanisms for analyzing incoming sounds which unfold over time, predicting what comes next, and coordinating perception and action. In this presentation, I will talk about research studies with both basic and clinically applied focuses, including those freshly made out of our new EEG laboratory at CCRMA, Stanford. In collaboration with graduate students, our data demonstrate neural processing of polyphonic melodies, harmonic relationships, and rhyming of spoken words. Also I will discuss recent MEG data for neural oscillations related to beat and meter processing that connects auditory and motor systems, and stroke rehabilitation with music therapy.