Neurological foundations of sound perception
and musical learning

As an interdisciplinary research facility with researchers from Switzerland and Austria, I lead the "Music and Brain" working group at the Neurological Clinic in Heidelberg with the following main research areas:

• individual sound processing in the brain
• maturity and learning-related development of musical listening skills in children and adults
• structural and functional plasticity of hearing treatment (in cooperation with BrainInnovation, Maastricht and BESA GmbH, Gräfelfing)
• musical and artistic talent
• neurological features of children playing music intensively, music students and professional musicians
• absolute and relative pitch (hearing/perception)
• influence of playing music in children with AD(H)D, dyslexia, Williams-Beuren syndrome and in subjects with tinnitus and sensitivity to noise

Publications and Research Projects

We offer collaborative events at different venues and write papers in collaboration with different authors. Current Research Projects:

• Heidelberg / Graz: Audioplasticity and neuroplasticity of musical learning I + II - a long-term study with children who have intensive music education and children with learning difficulties (ADS, ADHS and LRS), funded by the BMBF within the JeKi research area (focus: music education, AD(H)D, dyslexia).
• Heidelberg / Basel: Auditory neuroplasticity of the adult musical brain - a long-term study with music students from Basel, funded by the DFG & SNF.