I hear movements: why motor brain regions are active when we listen to musical rhythms

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Sounds and movements are intimately linked. Who has not experienced the urge to tap to the beat of a marching band, or sway their hips to a samba tune? Even babies spontaneously move their bodies with music before they can crawl or walk, and a cockatoo named Snowball can tap his feet in time with a popular tune. Music has also been harnessed to help people with brain injury move again. Currently, however, there is no explanation for why listening to music compels us to move. To gain insight into this mystery, my research will discover how the brain links sounds and movements. Rhythm is the key driving force in music with which we coordinate our movements. Our novel research will study healthy adults to understand why brain regions controlling movements are active even when we listen to musical rhythms without the conscious intention to move. First, we will demonstrate the link between sounds and movements: hearing rhythmic sounds is what makes us want to move and activates brain regions that control movements, not seeing rhythmic patterns such as a bouncing ball. Second, we will reveal brain regions controlling movements are active because they are simulating movements to help us predict the timing of sounds such as the beat or pulse in music. This may consequently facilitate our desire and ability to move synchronously (i.e. on the beat) with music. Knowledge of what these movement brain regions are doing when we hear musical rhythm will help us better understand how they control movements, and shed light on the commonplace phenomenon of why humans are compelled to move when we hear music. This work will also contribute to a deeper understanding of how our brain integrates sound with movements, which may reveal insights into why music-related rehabilitation therapies can promote recovery of movements after brain injury. The proposed research will further enhance Canada as an international leader in research on music and the brain. Understanding phenomenon such as why we move when we hear music is a fascinating way to understand how our brain functions. This knowledge will help us understand how we process language, music and dance, faculties that engage sounds and movements, and lie at the heart of human culture.