Re: Effect of duration on pitch perception

[Martin Braun <nombraun@xxxxxxxxx>]

Ward R. Drennan asked:

> > Does anyone know of published data that shows the effect of tone duration
> > on the ability to discriminate pitch (mostly pure tones, but could be any
> > complex stimuli)? We're looking for some minimum duration required to
> > achieve maximal sensitivity to pitch.

There is a big difference between pure and complex tones, here. Pitch of the
latter is discriminated much faster. For example, a pitch of a complex tone
with a fundamental f0 = 100 Hz is perceived more than four times as fast as
the pitch of a pure-tone of 100 Hz (Patterson et al., 1983). The probable
reason is that cochlear and neural latencies decrease with frequency, which
means that harmonics provide earlier periodicity information for the pitch
detector than the fundamental.

[By the way, these results should have been the ultimate death for all place
and pattern theories of pitch, because these theories necessarily imply that
f0 pitch should be discriminated slower than pure-tone pitch, due to the
additional neural processing. Well, it's just one of the many examples in
hearing research, where progress has been impeded for decades by massive
self-amputation.]

Patterson, R.D., Peters, R.W., Milroy, R., 1983. Threshold duration for
melodic pitch. In: R. Klinke, W. Hartmann (Eds.), Hearing - Physiological
bases and Psychophysics, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, pp. 321-25.

Martin

----------------------------

Martin Braun
Neuroscience of Music
S-671 95 Klässbol
Sweden
web site: http://w1.570.telia.com/~u57011259/index.htm