AW: absolute pitch (Annemarie Seither-Preisler )


Subject: AW: absolute pitch
From:    Annemarie Seither-Preisler  <preisler(at)UNI-MUENSTER.DE>
Date:    Thu, 29 Apr 2004 10:08:23 +0200

This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0033_01C42DD1.E7B80C70 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable It is hard to tell what animals 'see' when they perceive absolute pitch. At least in the case of bats it appears to be clear that absolute pitch cues are used for object texture discrimination. But this is a special case. I think that for most animal species the memorization of a certain number of concrete sounds and their absolute pitches are sufficient for survival. Human language has provided a new situation. The variety of possible communication signals has made it necessary to extract more redundant, abstract features from the signals. Relative pitch is more robust with regard to the concrete sound source (e.g. different speakers) which makes it prone to the processing of more global stimulus features (the melodic contours in speech and =96 last not least =96 in music). =20 Annemarie =20 =20 -----Urspr=FCngliche Nachricht----- Von: AUDITORY Research in Auditory Perception [mailto:AUDITORY(at)LISTS.MCGILL.CA] Im Auftrag von Leon van Noorden Gesendet: Donnerstag, 29. April 2004 09:46 An: AUDITORY(at)LISTS.MCGILL.CA Betreff: Re: absolute pitch =20 Annemarie, I completely agree with you that verbal labeling of the aboslute pitch categories is only one stage in the perception process. These labels depend on what you have learned when you were young. I see it more as a way to access the outcome of the absolute pitch processor. It would be interesting to know what are the labels the animals attach here. What do they imagine when they hear a certain absolut pitch object? Do they "see" a big or small ape? or a "red" or "green" goldfinch? Leon =20 ------=_NextPart_000_0033_01C42DD1.E7B80C70 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <html> <head> <META HTTP-EQUIV=3D"Content-Type" CONTENT=3D"text/html; = charset=3Diso-8859-1"> <meta name=3DGenerator content=3D"Microsoft Word 10 (filtered)"> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ (at)font-face {font-family:Helvetica; panose-1:2 11 6 4 2 2 2 2 2 4;} (at)font-face {font-family:Times; panose-1:2 2 6 3 5 4 5 2 3 4;} (at)font-face {font-family:Tahoma; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {margin:0cm; margin-bottom:.0001pt; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} h1 {margin-top:12.0pt; margin-right:0cm; margin-bottom:3.0pt; margin-left:0cm; font-size:16.0pt; font-family:Arial;} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {color:purple; text-decoration:underline;} p.berschrift3neu, li.berschrift3neu, div.berschrift3neu {margin-top:12.0pt; margin-right:0cm; margin-bottom:0cm; margin-left:0cm; margin-bottom:.0001pt; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:Times; font-weight:bold; font-style:italic;} p.berschrift1neu, li.berschrift1neu, div.berschrift1neu {margin-top:12.0pt; margin-right:0cm; margin-bottom:3.0pt; margin-left:0cm; line-height:200%; font-size:16.0pt; font-family:Helvetica; font-weight:bold;} p.berschrift3neu0, li.berschrift3neu0, div.berschrift3neu0 {margin-top:12.0pt; margin-right:0cm; margin-bottom:0cm; margin-left:0cm; margin-bottom:.0001pt; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:Times; font-weight:bold; font-style:italic;} p.berschrift1neu0, li.berschrift1neu0, div.berschrift1neu0 {margin-top:12.0pt; margin-right:0cm; margin-bottom:3.0pt; margin-left:0cm; line-height:200%; font-size:16.0pt; font-family:Helvetica; font-weight:bold;} span.emailformatvorlage19 {font-family:Arial; color:windowtext;} span.EmailFormatvorlage22 {font-family:Arial; color:navy;} (at)page Section1 {size:595.3pt 841.9pt; margin:70.85pt 70.85pt 2.0cm 70.85pt;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> </head> <body lang=3DDE link=3Dblue vlink=3Dpurple> <div class=3DSection1> <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'text-autospace:none'><font size=3D2 = face=3D"Courier New"><span lang=3DEN-GB style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Courier New"'>It is = hard to tell what animals 'see' when they perceive absolute pitch. At least in = the case of bats it appears to be clear that absolute pitch cues are used for = object texture discrimination. But this is a special case.</span></font></p> <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'text-autospace:none'><font size=3D2 = face=3D"Courier New"><span lang=3DEN-GB style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Courier New"'>I = think that for most animal species the memorization of a certain number of concrete = sounds and their absolute pitches are sufficient for survival. Human language has = provided a new situation. The variety of possible communication signals has made = it necessary to extract more redundant, abstract features from the signals. = Relative pitch is more robust with regard to the concrete sound source (e.g. = different speakers) which makes it prone to the processing of more global stimulus features (the melodic contours in speech and &#8211; last not least = &#8211; in music).</span></font></p> <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'text-autospace:none'><font size=3D2 = face=3D"Courier New"><span lang=3DEN-GB style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Courier = New"'>&nbsp;</span></font></p> <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'text-autospace:none'><font size=3D2 = face=3D"Courier New"><span lang=3DEN-GB style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Courier = New"'>Annemarie</span></font></p> <p class=3DMsoNormal><font size=3D2 color=3Dnavy face=3DArial><span = lang=3DEN-GB style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>&nbsp;</span></fo= nt></p> <p class=3DMsoNormal><font size=3D2 color=3Dnavy face=3DArial><span = lang=3DEN-GB style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>&nbsp;</span></fo= nt></p> <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'margin-left:35.4pt'><font size=3D2 = face=3DTahoma><span style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>-----Urspr=FCngliche = Nachricht-----<br> <b><span style=3D'font-weight:bold'>Von:</span></b> AUDITORY Research in = Auditory Perception [mailto:AUDITORY(at)LISTS.MCGILL.CA] <b><span = style=3D'font-weight:bold'>Im Auftrag von </span></b>Leon van Noorden<br> <b><span style=3D'font-weight:bold'>Gesendet:</span></b> Donnerstag, 29. = April 2004 09:46<br> <b><span style=3D'font-weight:bold'>An:</span></b> = AUDITORY(at)LISTS.MCGILL.CA<br> <b><span style=3D'font-weight:bold'>Betreff:</span></b> Re: absolute = pitch</span></font></p> <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'margin-left:35.4pt'><font size=3D3 face=3D"Times New Roman"><span = style=3D'font-size:12.0pt'>&nbsp;</span></font></p> <div> <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'margin-left:35.4pt'><font size=3D2 = color=3Dblue face=3DArial><span = style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:blue'>Annemarie,</span>= </font></p> </div> <div> <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'margin-left:35.4pt'><font size=3D2 = color=3Dblue face=3DArial><span = style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:blue'>I completely agree with you that verbal labeling of the aboslute pitch = categories is only one stage in the perception process. These labels depend on what = you have learned when you were young. I see it more as a way to access the = outcome of the absolute pitch processor. It would be interesting to know what are = the labels the animals attach here. What do they imagine when they hear a = certain absolut pitch object?</span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'margin-left:35.4pt'><font size=3D2 = color=3Dblue face=3DArial><span = style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:blue'>Do they &quot;see&quot; a big or small ape? or a &quot;red&quot; or = &quot;green&quot; goldfinch?</span></font></p> </div> <div> <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'margin-left:35.4pt'><font size=3D2 = color=3Dblue face=3DArial><span = style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:blue'>Leon</span></font= ></p> </div> <blockquote style=3D'border:none;border-left:solid blue = 1.5pt;padding:0cm 0cm 0cm 4.0pt; margin-left:3.75pt;margin-top:5.0pt;margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:5.0pt'= > <p class=3DMsoNormal style=3D'margin-left:35.4pt'><font size=3D3 face=3D"Times New Roman"><span = style=3D'font-size:12.0pt'>&nbsp;</span></font></p> </blockquote> </div> </body> </html> ------=_NextPart_000_0033_01C42DD1.E7B80C70--


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