Tone deafness - a right brain problem

PEOPLE who are tone deaf (not your bad shower singers but those who truly cannot hear or produce musical tones) are actually processing the sounds differently in their brains, researchers reported. The researchers said they found the problem in the right side of the brain. The study, led by Isabelle Peretz of the University of Montreal, used an EEG to measure brain activity. For the study, eight tone-deaf adults and 10 others were connected to an EEG and asked to listen to a series of musical tones. Half the time, one of the notes was pitched up or down. The study found that the brain of the tone deaf, or amusic volunteers did not respond to small changes in pitch that caused changes among the other volunteers. The researchers said more study was needed to narrow down where in the brain the problem was taking place.