CNBH, PDN, University of Cambridge
Part II: Lent Term 2015: ( 1 of 4)
Central Auditory Processing
Roy Patterson
Centre for the Neural Basis of Hearing
Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience
University of Cambridge
email rdp1@cam.ac.uk
Lecture slides on CamTools:
Lecture slides, sounds, videos and background papers on
http://www.pdn.cam.ac.uk/groups/cnbh/teaching/lectures/
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Contents/Progress
Act I: the information in communication sounds
(animal calls, speech, musical notes)
Act II: the perception of communication sounds
(the robustness of perception)
Act III: the processing of communication sounds: How
[Tune7nCPHtone.mov]
(auditory signal processing)
axial
axial
Act IV: the processing of communication sounds: Where
(auditory anatomy, physiology, brain imaging)
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Act I
The form of communication sounds including
speech and musical notes
http://www.pdn.cam.ac.uk/groups/cnbh/teaching/lectures/PSDWshar08.pdf
http://www.pdn.cam.ac.uk/groups/cnbh/teaching/lectures/PGW_SHAR_2010.pdf
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Sounds used to communicate at a distance,
to declare territories and
attract mates, are typically
Pulse
Amplitude
Pulse-Resonance Sounds
Time
The pulse marks the start
of the communication.
The resonance provides
distinctive information
about the shape and size
of resonators in the
sender’s body.
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The pulses are produced in streams, each with a resonance
source-filter
source filter systems : pulse-resonance sounds
The streams have distinctive onsets and offsets, and a stream
with its onset and offset is referred to as a syllable.
http://www.pdn.cam.ac.uk/groups/cnbh/teaching/lectures/PSDWshar08.pdf
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Fish
Frog
400 ms
Macaque
Human
Patterson, Smith, van Dinther and Walters (2008).
Communication ‘syllables’ of four different animals
mammalian vocal apparatus
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nose
lips
filter
chin
tongue
glottal folds
vocal tract
source
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waveform and spectrum of a child’s /a/
pulse rate
resonance shape
envelope shape
fine structure
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What happens as a child grows up into an adult?
At age 3, average height is about 85 cm
When adult, average height is about 170 cm
As we double in height, our vocal tracts double in length
http://www.pdn.cam.ac.uk/groups/cnbh/teaching/lectures/PSDWshar08.pdf
CNBH, PDN, University of Cambridge Patterson, Smith, van Dinther and Walters (2008).
Low
Long
Pitch
VTL
High
Short
Time
Time
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waveform and spectrum of a child’s /a/
pulse rate
resonance rate
position of the envelope
Sf
Ss
position of the fine-structure
Frequency on a logarithmic axis (octaves)
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Decreasing VTL (1/Sf )
The role of Ss and Sf in speaker perception
Increasing GPR
( Ss )
Kawahara and Irino (2004). Principles of speech manipulation system STRAIGHT. In
Speech separation by humans and machines, P. Divenyi (Ed.), Kluwer Academic, 167-179.
Rana catesbeiana
Decreasing VTL (1/Sf )
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Increasing GPR ( Ss )
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The role of Ss and Sf in instrument perception
Instrument
Register
Instrument Family
Ss and Sf
Envelope Shape
http://www.pdn.cam.ac.uk/groups/cnbh/teaching/lectures/PGW_SHAR_2010.pdf
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Acoustic scale in instrument perception
viola
cello
violin
Instruments with same
shape and construction,
sound similar.
Envelope Shape
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The perception of musical notes and
instruments
Instrument
Register
Instrument Family
Ss and Sf
Envelope Shape
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pulses
van Dinther and Patterson (2004)
Waveforms for trumpet and trombone
resonance
Time
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The effect of Ss and Sf on instrument perception
Decreasing Size
(1/Sf )
French Horn
Pitch
(Ss)
Kawahara and Irino (2004). Principles of speech manipulation system STRAIGHT. In
Speech separation by humans and machines, P. Divenyi (Ed.), Kluwer Academic, 167-179.
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The perception of musical notes and
instruments
Instrument
Register
Instrument Family
Ss and Sf
Envelope Shape
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General conclusions:
If we divide the information in the magnitude spectrum into
(a) envelope shape,
(b) position of the envelope, Sf, and
(c) position of the fine structure, Ss,
it provides us with a good way of understanding the
information in communication sounds.
http://www.pdn.cam.ac.uk/groups/cnbh/teaching/lectures/PGW_SHAR_2010.pdf
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What and Who in vocal sounds
I:
The shape of the envelope largely determines vowel
type. It determines the “What” aspect of the
communication, in the sense of “What is being said”
II:
The acoustic scale variables, Ss and Sf , jointly
determine the register of the voice, and whether the
speaker sounds normal or unusual. They jointly
determine much of the “Who” aspect of the
communication in the sense of “Who is speaking”
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Family and Register in musical sounds
I:
The shape of the envelope/resonance largely
determines the sound of the instrument family,
or the family aspect of instrument perception.
II:
The acoustic scale variables, Ss and Sf , jointly
determine the register or size aspect of instrument
perception.
III:
The relationship between the acoustic scale variables, Ss
and Sf determines whether an instrument sounds good,
or thin or muddy.
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End of Act I
Thank you
Patterson, R. D., Smith, D. R. R., van Dinther, R. and Walters, T. C. (2008).
“Size Information in the Production and Perception of Communication Sounds,”
In: Auditory Perception of Sound Sources. Yost, W. A., Popper, A. N., and
Fay, R. R. (Eds). Springer, LLC, New York, 43-75.
http://www.pdn.cam.ac.uk/groups/cnbh/teaching/lectures/PSDWshar08.pdf
Patterson, R. D., Gaudrain, E. and Walters, T. C. (2010). “The perception of
family and register in musical tones,” In: Music Perception. Jones, M.R., Fay,
R.R. and Popper, A.N., (eds). New York, Springer-Verlag. 13-50.
http://www.pdn.cam.ac.uk/groups/cnbh/teaching/lectures/PGW_SHAR_2010.pdf
Patterson, R. D., van Dinther, R. and Irino, T. (2007). “The robustness of bioacoustic communication and the role of normalization,” Proc. 19th
International Congress on Acoustics, Madrid, Sept, ppa-07-011.
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CNBH, PDN, University of Cambridge
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1/VTL (1/Sf )
Position of the envelope
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Position of the fine structure
1/VTL (1/Sf )
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