Brain & Matching a Musical Pitch

I read somewhere that research at 23and Me has identified more than 500 genetic markers associated with the brain’s ability to match a musical pitch. 500? What takes 500 genetic markers to simply match a musical sound at the correct pitch?

Abilities to match a musical pitch tend to be a combination of genetics and learning with practice. It is not a simple process. Matching a pitch accurately is involved in learning to sing or whistle a song or tune. Matching a musical pitch involves an intricate coordination of several tasks within the brain. This is a complex process and appears to reflect genetic markers. For example, here are the first two tasks.

 1.     When the brain hears a sound, it first identifies the pitch. Those who study music are trained to do this so it happens almost automatically for musician brains.

 2.     Next, the brain makes a decision about which vocal muscles must work together to reproduce that sound with an accurate match to the pitch.

 
More tomorrow.