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Advances in Speech and Music Technology pp 261–273Cite as

Effects of Musical Training on Auditory Spatial Processing Abilities: A Psychoacoustical and Perceptual Study

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Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 1320))

Abstract

The present study aimed to determine the effect of musical training on binaural and spatial processing abilities in participants aged 18–30y. A test battery consisting of the binaural processing (interaural time: ITD and interaural level difference:ILD thresholds) and spatial processing (virtual acoustic space identification test: VASI & speech spatial and qualities in Kannada: SSQ-K questionnaire) measures were carried out on two groups of listeners (Group I: Musicians N = 15, Group II: Non-Musicians N = 15). The stimuli used in all the psychoacoustic tests were 250 ms white noise bursts, while for SSQ-K participants gave subjective ratings for 14 questions. The stimuli were routed via headphones using MATLAB (binaural processing) and paradigm interfaces (VASI). Statistical analyses using MANOVA and Mann–Whitney U showed musicians performed significantly better (p < 0.05) than their age-matched non-musician counterparts in all the tests. The findings of the study highlight the positive outcomes of musical training in fine-refinement of binaural and spatial processing skills.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Audiology, All India Institute of Speech and Hearing, Naimisham Campus, Manasagangothri, Mysore, 570006, India

    Bhoomika & Kavassery Venkateswaran Nisha

Authors
  1. Bhoomika
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  2. Kavassery Venkateswaran Nisha
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Correspondence to Kavassery Venkateswaran Nisha .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Computer Science and Engineering, National Institute of Technology Silchar, Cachar, Assam, India

    Anupam Biswas

  2. Department of Media and Culture Studies, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands

    Emile Wennekes

  3. Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering, National University of Kaohsiung, Kaohsiung, Taiwan

    Tzung-Pei Hong

  4. Multimedia Department, Polish-Japanese Academy of Information Technology, Warsaw, Poland

    Alicja Wieczorkowska

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Bhoomika, Nisha, K.V. (2021). Effects of Musical Training on Auditory Spatial Processing Abilities: A Psychoacoustical and Perceptual Study. In: Biswas, A., Wennekes, E., Hong, TP., Wieczorkowska, A. (eds) Advances in Speech and Music Technology. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 1320. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-6881-1_22

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