Breaking (musical) boundaries by investigating brain dynamics of event segmentation during real-life music-listening

The perception of musical phrase boundaries is a critical aspect of human musical experience: It allows us to organize, understand, derive pleasure from, and remember music. Identifying boundaries is a prerequisite for segmenting music into meaningful chunks, facilitating efficient processing and storage while providing an enjoyable, fulfilling listening experience through the anticipation of upcoming musical events. Expanding on Sridharan et al.’s Neuron 55 , 521–532 (2007) work on coarse musical boundaries between symphonic movements, we examined finer-grained boundaries. We measured the fMRI responses of 18 musicians and 18 nonmusicians during music listening. Using general linear model, independent component analysis, and Granger causality, we observed heightened auditory integration in anticipation to musical boundaries, and an extensive decrease within the fronto-temporal-parietal network during and immediately following boundaries. Notably, responses were modulated by musicianship. Findings uncover the intricate interplay between musical structure, expertise, and cognitive processing, advancing our knowledge of how the brain makes sense of music.