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Updated: Apr 21, 2026

Uncovering Beat Deafness: Detecting Rhythm Disorders with Synchronized Finger Tapping and Perceptual Timing Tasks
Published on: March 16, 2015
Perceiving temporal regularity in music: the role of auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) in probing beat
Henkjan Honing1, Fleur L Bouwer, Gábor P Háden
1Institute for Logic, Language and Computation (ILLC), Amsterdam Brain and Cognition (ABC), University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, honing@uva.nl.
Abstract:
The aim of this chapter is to give an overview of how the perception of a regular beat in music can be studied in humans adults, human newborns, and nonhuman primates using event-related brain potentials (ERPs). Next to a review of the recent literature on the perception of temporal regularity in music, we will discuss in how far ERPs, and especially the component called mismatch negativity (MMN), can be instrumental in probing beat perception. We conclude with a discussion on the pitfalls and prospects of using ERPs to probe the perception of a regular beat, in which we present possible constraints on stimulus design and discuss future perspectives.
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