Neural correlates of the often-powerful emotional responses to music are
poorly understood. Here we used positron emission tomography to examine cerebral
blood flow (CBF) changes related to affective responses to music. Ten volunteers
were scanned while listening to six versions of a novel musical passage varying
systematically in degree of dissonance. Reciprocal CBF covariations were observed
in several distinct paralimbic and neocortical regions as a function of dissonance
and of perceived pleasantness/unpleasantness. The findings suggest that music
may recruit neural mechanisms similar to those previously associated with
pleasant/unpleasant emotional states, but different from those underlying
other components of music perception, and other emotions such as fear.
