Abstract
The purpose of this study was to elucidate the role of auditory feedback derived from one keystroke in the control of the rhythmicity and velocity of successive keystrokes during piano playing. We examined the effects of transient auditory perturbations with respect to the pitch, loudness, and timing of one tone on subsequent keystrokes while six pianists played short excerpts from three simple musical pieces having different tempi (“event rates”). Immediately after a delay in tone production, the inter-keystroke interval became shorter. This compensatory action depended on the tempo, being most prominent at the medium tempo. This indicates that temporal information provided by auditory feedback is utilized to regulate the timing of movement elements produced in a sequence. We also found that the keystroke velocity changed after the timing, pitch, or loudness of a tone was altered, although the response differed depending on the type of perturbation. While delaying the timing or altering the pitch led to an increase in the velocity, altering the loudness changed the velocity in an inconsistent manner. Furthermore, perturbing a tone elicited by the right hand also affected the rhythmicity and velocity of keystrokes with the left hand, indicating that bimanual coordination of tone production was maintained. Finally, altering the pitch sometimes resulted in striking an incorrect key, mostly in the slow piece, emphasizing the importance of pitch information for accurate planning and execution of sequential piano keystrokes.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aschersleben G, Gehrke J, Prinz W (2001) Tapping with peripheral nerve block. A role for tactile feedback in the timing of movements. Exp Brain Res 136:331–339
Bauer JJ, Mittal J, Larson CR, Hain TC (2006) Vocal responses to unanticipated perturbations in voice loudness feedback: an automatic mechanism for stabilizing voice amplitude. J Acoust Soc Am 119:2363–2371
Black JW (1951) The effect of delayed sidetone upon vocal intensity and rate. J Speech Hear Disord 16:56–60
D’Ausilio A, Brunetti R, Delogu F, Santonico C, Belardinelli MO (2010) How and when auditory action effects impair motor performance. Exp Brain Res 201:323–330
Diedrichsen J (2007) Optimal task-dependent changes of bimanual feedback control and adaptation. Curr Biol 17:1675–1679
Dietz V (2002) Proprioception and locomotor disorders. Nat Rev Neurosci. 3:781–790
Drost UC, Rieger M, Brass M, Gunter TC, Prinz W (2005) Action-effect coupling in pianists. Psychol Res 69:233–241
Finney SA (1997) Auditory feedback and musical keyboard performance. Music Percept 15:153–174
Finney SA, Warren WH (2002) Delayed auditory feedback and rhythmic tapping: evidence for a critical interval shift. Percept Psychophys. 64:896–908
Flach R (2005) The transition from synchronization to continuation tapping. Hum Mov Sci 24:465–483
Gates A, Bradshaw J, Nettleton N (1974) Effect of different delayed auditory feedback intervals on a music performance task. Percept Psychophys 14:21–25
Goebl W, Palmer C (2008) Tactile feedback and timing accuracy in piano performance. Exp Brain Res 186:471–479
Gordon AM, Soechting JF (1995) Use of tactile afferent information in sequential finger movements. Exp Brain Res 107:281–292
Hashimoto Y, Sakai KL (2003) Brain activations during conscious self-monitoring of speech production with delayed auditory feedback: an fMRI study. Hum Brain Mapp 20:22–28
Howell P (1990) Changes in voice level caused by several forms of altered feedback in fluent speakers and stutterers. Lang Speech 33:325–338
Howell P (2004) Assessment of some contemporary theories of stuttering that apply to spontaneous speech. Contemp Issues Commun Sci Disord 31:122–139
Howell P, Archer A (1984) Susceptibility to the effects of delayed auditory feedback. Percept Psychophys 36:296–302
Howell P, Powell DJ (1987) Delayed auditory feedback with delayed sounds varying in duration. Percept Psychophys 42:166–172
Katahira K, Abla D, Masuda S, Okanoya K (2008) Feedback-based error monitoring processes during musical performance: an ERP study. Neurosci Res 61:120–128
Larson CR, Sun J, Hain TC (2007) Effects of simultaneous perturbations of voice pitch and loudness feedback on voice F0 and amplitude control. J Acoust Soc Am 121:2862–2872
LaRue J, Bard C, Fleury M, Teasdale N, Paillard J, Forget R, Lamarre Y (1995) Is proprioception important for the timing of motor activities? Can J Physiol Pharmacol 73:255–261
Maidhof C, Vavatzanidis N, Prinz W, Rieger M, Koelsch S (2009) Processing expectancy violations during music performance and perception: an ERP study. J Cogn Neurosci (in press)
Munhall KG, MacDonald EN, Byrne SK, Johnsrude I (2009) Talkers alter vowel production in response to real-time formant perturbation even when instructed not to compensate. J Acoust Soc Am 125:384–390
Mutha PK, Sainburg RL (2009) Shared bimanual tasks elicit bimanual reflexes during movement. J Neurophysiol 102(6):3142–3155
Neuhoff JG (1998) Perceptual bias for rising tones. Nature 395:123–124
Pfordresher PQ (2003) Auditory feedback in music performance: evidence for a dissociation of sequencing and timing. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform 29:949–964
Pfordresher PQ (2005) Auditory feedback in music performance: the role of melodic structure and musical skill. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform 31:1331–1345
Pfordresher PQ (2006) Coordination of perception and action in music performance. Adv in Cog Psychol 2:183–198
Pfordresher PQ, Benitez B (2007) Temporal coordination between actions and sound during sequence production. Hum Mov Sci 26:742–756
Pfordresher PQ, Palmer C (2002) Effects of delayed auditory feedback on timing of music performance. Psychol Res 66:71–79
Purcell DW, Munhall KG (2006) Compensation following real-time manipulation of formants in isolated vowels. J Acoust Soc Am 119:2288–2297
Rabin E, Gordon AM (2004) Tactile feedback contributes to consistency of finger movements during typing. Exp Brain Res 155:362–369
Repp BH (1999) Effects of auditory feedback deprivation on expressive piano performance. Music Percept 16:409–438
Ruiz MH, Jabusch HC, Altenmüller E (2009) Detecting wrong notes in advance: neuronal correlates of error monitoring in pianists. Cereb Cortex 19:2625–2639
Sainburg RL, Wang J (2002) Interlimb transfer of visuomotor rotations: independence of direction and final position information. Exp Brain Res 145:437–447
Scheidt RA, Ghez C (2007) Separate adaptive mechanisms for controlling trajectory and final position in reaching. J Neurophysiol 98:3600–3613
Shaffer LH (1989) Cognition and affect in musical performance. Contemp Music Rev 4:381–389
Wing AM (1977) Perturbations of auditory feedback delay and the timing of movement. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform 3:175–186
Wing AM, Kristofferson AB (1973) Response delay and the timing of discrete motor responses. Percept Psychophys 14:5–12
Yates AJ (1963) Delayed auditory feedback. Psychol Bull 60:213–232
Zehr EP, Duysens J (2004) Regulation of arm and leg movement during human locomotion. Neuroscientist 10:347–361
Acknowledgments
We thank Dr. Martha Flanders for a careful reading of this manuscript and for her helpful suggestions during the course of this study. We also thank Drs. Michael Silverman and Noriko Kawai for their help of finding participants in this study. The work was supported by National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Grants NS-50256 and NS-15018.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Furuya, S., Soechting, J.F. Role of auditory feedback in the control of successive keystrokes during piano playing. Exp Brain Res 204, 223–237 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-010-2307-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-010-2307-2