A Johns Hopkins brain scientist is finding a neurological basis for a notion that many people believe intuitively — that music is as much a form of language as Spanish or French.
Charles Limb is one of just a handful of researchers worldwide studying what's going on in the brains of jazz musicians who compose on the fly.
Some findings related to traditional language areas of the brain are what Limb expected to discover, though one key and recent result has surprised even him. But he's hoping that what he's learning may apply to creative activity and problem-solving of all sorts — whether writing a novel, designing a better mousetrap or devising a mathematical proof.
Twice in recent weeks, Limb has talked publicly about his newest findings: once to his fellow scientists attending a conference of the Association for Research in Otolaryngology in downtown Baltimore, and the second time to a group of artists, cultural leaders and lawmakers at the Maryland Arts Day celebration in Annapolis.
"The brain on arts is different than the everyday brain," Limb says.
"I'm using music as a starting point to ask, 'How do we create something new?' That's a really basic question of human existence. Creative activity is linked to basic mechanisms of problem-solving, innovation, evolution and survival. If we could unlock the key to creativity, think about what that could mean for civilization."
Limb has been a serious musician all his life. His main instrument is the saxophone, though he also plays piano and bass. When he attended college at Harvard University he directed a jazz band. He's a member of the Peabody Conservatory faculty, where he works with students interested in music cognition.
But when Limb was in college and trying to commit to a career, he arrived at a crossroads.
"I couldn't figure out what to do," he says.
"I had a deep love of music, but I also had abilities in science. I finally decided that to pursue a professional career in music would be self-indulgent because I wasn't good enough to transform the art. Then I realized that the reasons I liked music are very much the same reasons I was attracted to medicine. Both deal with the essential stuff of life. Medicine is almost the physical embodiment of music."
Read more: http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/arts/bs-ae-limb-brain-music-20130304,0,4883088.story
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