Exceptional preservation of memory for tunes and lyrics: case studies of amusia, profound deafness, and Alzheimer's disease

Ashley D Vanstone, Lola L Cuddy, Jacalyn M Duffin, Elizabeth Alexander

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

32 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

Four elderly persons with neurologic impairments of differing etiology and differing cognitive profiles presented unexpected patterns of memory for tunes and song lyrics. Impairments included profound deafness, right-hemisphere stroke, and dementia of the Alzheimer's type. Patterns for the impaired individuals differed according to the disorder, but each person had some scores within the range for 90 healthy seniors. We suggest implications for models of brain organization for musical memory.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)291-294
Number of pages4
JournalAnnals of the New York Academy of Sciences
Volume1169
Issue number1
Early online date24 Jul 2009
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 31 Jul 2009

Keywords

  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Alzheimer Disease/physiopathology
  • Auditory Perceptual Disorders/physiopathology
  • Deafness/physiopathology
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Memory
  • Music

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