Identifying a brain network for musical rhythm: A functional neuroimaging meta-analysis and systematic review.

We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 30 functional magnetic resonance imaging studies investigating processing of musical rhythms in neurotypical adults. First, we identified a general network for musical rhythm, encompassing all relevant sensory and motor processes (Beat-based, rest baseline, 12 contrasts) which revealed a large network involving auditory and motor regions. This network included the bilateral superior temporal cortices, supplementary motor area (SMA), putamen, and cerebellum. Second, we identified more precise loci for beat-based musical rhythms (Beat-based, audio-motor control, 8 contrasts) in the bilateral putamen. Third, we identified regions modulated by beat based rhythmic complexity (Complexity, 16 contrasts) which included the bilateral SMA-proper/pre-SMA, cerebellum, inferior parietal regions, and right temporal areas. This meta-analysis suggests that musical rhythm is largely represented in a bilateral cortico-subcortical network. Our findings align with existing theoretical frameworks about auditory-motor coupling to a musical beat and provide a foundation for studying how the neural bases of musical rhythm may overlap with other cognitive domains.

• Publication year

  2022

• Venue

  Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews

• Publication date

  2022-03-01

• Fields of study

  Medicine, Psychology

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104588PMID 35259422PMCID PMC9195154
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar, PubMed

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

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