AIRS 2nd Annual Conference: Seattle 2010
Title: Using singing to speak after stroke
Authors: Dawn Merrett (University of Melbourne, Florey Neurosciences Institutes, BRAMS), Isabelle
Peretz (& Université de Montréal), Grame Jackson, & Sarah Wilson
Introduction
Previous research has shown that singing therapy may facilitate language recovery in individuals with
language disorders, such as non-fluent aphasia, after stroke. Despite some evidence for the efficacy of
singing, the mechanism(s) by which it might promote language recovery are still uncertain. To probe these
issues, this project is investigating the influence of intensive singing training on brain organization and on
mood, music, and language outcomes in a group of neurologically-healthy individuals and a group with
non-fluent aphasia.
Method
Participants are given questionnaires to determine their hand preference, music and language background,
medical history, and mood. Additional assessments include estimation of IQ, memory, attention, musical
abilities, and verbal generation. Participants with language impairment also undergo a detailed
investigation of language and speech function to fully characterize their language difficulties. Behavioural
assessments are used to evaluate mood, music, and language abilities and functional Magnetic Resonance
Imaging is used to assess patterns of neural activation both before and after singing training. Thirty hours
of standardized training are delivered using a digital video-based program modeled on the principles of
Melodic Intonation Therapy.
Results
While data collection is ongoing, behavioural results from a pilot participant with non-fluent aphasia
showed objective improvement in phrase repetition ability and in the generation of trained phrases in
response to questions, as well as clinical improvements in mood, attention, and use of verbal
communication in daily life.
Discussion
This project will evaluate the influence of singing training on neural organization, mood, and behaviour.
Broadly, it will provide insight into (1) explanatory mechanisms of singing therapy for language
rehabilitation and (2) the interaction of music and language in the brain.
Bios
Dawn Merrett completed a BSc in Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Lethbridge in 2007,
where she received the gold medal for science. She worked under the supervision of Dr. Gerlinde Metz
with rodent models of motor recovery after spinal cord injury and stroke. Currently, Dawn is enrolled in the
MPsych (Clinical Neuropsychology)/PhD program at the University of Melbourne in Australia, supported
by an Endeavor International Postgraduate Research Scholarship. She is supervised by Sarah Wilson,
Isabelle Peretz, and Graeme Jackson. She is also an Associate of the Royal Conservatory of Music and
previously maintained a private teaching studio for 10 years. She has been heavily involved in music
education and in the promotion of music and the arts in the community, particularly with community
choirs, festivals, and music programs in assisted living facilities. Dawn is now exploring her interest in
music neuroscience and the influence of active music making, especially singing, on brain and behaviour.

 Dr. Isabelle Peretz is a cognitive neuropsychologist and a professor of Psychology at the University of
Montreal. She earned her Ph.D. in experimental psychology at the Université Libre de Bruxelles under José
Morais in 1984. Dr. Peretz’s research focuses on the musical potential of ordinary people, its neural
correlates, its heritability and its specificity relative to language. She has published over 150 scientific
papers on a variety of topics, from perception, memory, and emotions to performance. Dr. Peretz is
renowned for her work on congenital and acquired amusia and on the biological foundations of music
processing. Her research has received continued support from the Canadian Natural Science and
Engineering Council and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research since 1986. In 2004, The Université de
Montréal earned her an endowed Casavant chair in neurocognition of music and in 2006, a Canada
Research Chair in neurocognition of music. In 2005, Dr. Peretz became the founding co-director of the
international laboratory for Brain, Music, and Sound research (BRAMS). In 2009, she was awarded Prix
Justine & Yves Sergent, as well as Prix ACFAS Jacques Rousseau. She is a fellow of the Royal Society of
Canada and of the American Psychological Association.
Professor Graeme Jackson is a co-founder and director of the Brain Research Institute (now part of the
Florey Neuroscience Institutes) and a neurologist at the Austin Hospital, Melbourne. He is a professorial
fellow of the Department of Medicine Austin Health/Northern Health and an adjunct professor in the
Department of Radiology at the University of Melbourne. He is internationally recognized as an expert and
authority in new MR technologies, particularly in the field of animal and human studies of epilepsy.
Graeme holds an honours degree in Psychology and a doctorate in Medicine.
Dr. Sarah Wilson is a clinical neuropsychologist and an associate professor and reader in Psychological
Sciences at the University of Melbourne. She is the only specialist music neuropsychologist in Australia.
She established and directs the Music Neuroscience Laboratory in the Psychological Sciences department,
where her team conducts experiments across a range of auditory and music domains. Sarah has received
numerous awards, successfully obtained competitive funding, and published widely, both within the music
neuroscience field as well as in epilepsy and other clinical populations.