Relationship between the Perception of English Speech and Musical Ability in Distinguishing Pitch Levels by Native Speakers of English

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the perception of pitch (fundamental frequency) changes in speech and musical ability (ability to distinguish between pitch levels), and between the perception of length changes in speech and musical ability (ability to distinguish between pitch levels). Eighty-one Japanese learners of English were asked to listen to both synthesized speech at controlled pitch levels and piano sounds. The result showed that there was a high correlation between the perception of pitch changes in synthesized speech and the ability to distinguish between high and low pitches in music, with a correlation coefficient of 0.59 (Sasaki, 2008). With Japanese learners of English as a second language, there was a correlation between the perception of pitch changes in English and the ability to distinguish between high and low pitches in music. This study examines whether there is also a correlation between the perception of English speech and the musical ability of native speakers of English. Forty-one native speakers of English were asked to listen to both synthesized speech at controlled pitch and length levels and piano sounds. The result showed that there was no correlation between the perception of pitch changes in speech and the ability to distinguish between high and low pitches in music, with a correlation coefficient of 0.08. There was also no correlation between the perception of length changes in speech and the ability to distinguish between high and low pitches in music, with a correlation coefficient of -0.17. With native speakers of English, there was no correlation between the perception of pitch and length changes in English and ability in music.