12 Weeks
Level 5 (Proof of a Bachelor's Degree Required)
3-Credit Tuition
$2,817Non-Credit Tuition
$2,615Are you prepared to enroll in this graduate course?
Take the self-assessment quiz to check your readiness for this material.Psychoacoustics in Music Production examines human auditory processing from the eardrum to the auditory cortex. You will learn how speech and music signals are transformed from physical activity in the environment, to sensations in the cochlea, to psychological perceptions in the brain. You will also explore the relationship between a sound and its perception in terms of the underlying mechanisms and limitations of our hearing system. In addition to analyzing the auditory system, you will learn about spatial localization, critical bands and masking, temporal resolution, pitch, timbre, and loudness perception, speech and music perception, and noise-induced hearing loss. Throughout the course, you will learn practical applications for how this information serves the audio arts, especially engineering and mixing.
By the end of the course, you will be able to:
- Explain the hearing and auditory nervous system, in addition to the physics of sound
- Illustrate how the brain processes pitch, loudness, timbre, and timing
- Explain the process by which the human auditory system organizes sound into meaningful elements
- Understand the impact of noise-induced hearing loss
- Synthesize learnings about the human auditory system to understand why people hear what they hear
- Evaluate research in psychoacoustics
- Apply learning about the human auditory system to enhance production and engineering projects
Syllabus
Lesson 1: Hearing and the Auditory Nervous System
- Psychoacoustics and the Scientific Method
- Overview of the Brain and Central Nervous System
- The Human Ear
- Neural Activity and Coding
- Assignment 1: Understanding and Summarizing Scientific Figures
Lesson 2: Physics of Sound and Signal Detection Theory
- Measuring Auditory Activity in the Brain
- Sound Detection and Discrimination
- The Physics of Sound
- The Harmonic Series and Wave Types
- Scientific Research (Part I): Finding Information
- Assignment 2: Skimming a Research Paper
Lesson 3: Critical Bands, Tuning Curves, and Dissonance
- Tonotopicity and Traveling Waves
- Auditory Filters and Critical Bandwidth
- Sensory Dissonance: Beating and Roughness
- Second-Order Beats and Combination Tones
- Assignment 3: Critical Thinking: Separating Sense from Nonsense
Lesson 4: Binaural Listening and Spatial Localization
- Measuring Spatial Localization
- Interaural Level Differences (ILDs)
- Interaural Time (ITDs) and Phase Differences (IPDs)
- Localizing Complex Tones
- Head-Related Transfer Function and the Role of the Pinnae
- Assignment 4: Diving Deeper: Follow-Up Research
Lesson 5: Pitch Perception
- F0 and Virtual Pitch Perception
- Spectral (Place) Theory of Pitch Perception
- Temporal (Rate) Theory of Pitch Perception
- Analytic vs. Synthetic Listening
- Absolute Pitch Perception and Tone Deafness
- Assignment 5: Interpreting Figures and Tables
Lesson 6: Loudness Perception
- Relating Logarithmic Intensity to Linear Numbers
- Equal Loudness Contours
- Factors Influencing Loudness Perception
- Intensity Coding
- Scientific Research (Part II): Reporting Research in APA Format
- Assignment 6: The Loudness Wars: What's Your Argument?
Lesson 7: Timbre Perception
- Temporal Envelope, Fine Structure, and Timbre Perception
- Timbre Templates and Spectrograms
- Timbre Space: Representing Timbre Psychologically
- Timbral Dimensions and Cues
- Assignment 7: Experimental Design Proposal
Lesson 8: Temporal Processing
- Forward and Backward Masking
- Auditory Memory
- The Internal Clock
- Beat Perception
- Assignment 8: Experimental Design Abstract
Lesson 9: Auditory Scene Analysis
- Auditory Scene Analysis
- Gestalt Principles Applied to Auditory Organization
- The Role of Attention
- Coding and Recognizing Auditory Dimensions
- Assignment 9: Interpreting Figures and Boxes
Lesson 10: Noise-Induced Hearing Loss
- The Loudness Wars and Normal Hearing
- Audiograms and Outer Hair Cells
- Noise Exposure and Hearing Loss
- Tinnitus and Hyperacusis
- Assignment 10: Synthesizing Information
Lesson 11: Speech and Music Perception
- The Human Voice Mechanism
- How Voices Move Us
- Dogs and Human Speech Perception
- The Musician’s Brain
- Assignment 11: Scientific Thinking
Lesson 12: Psychoacoustics in the Studio
- Psychoacoustics and Audio Quality
- Compression and Audio Perception
- Loudness, Intensity, and Arousal
- Audio Features of Groove Perception
Requirements
Ready to submit an unofficial copy of your transcript?
Submit TranscriptPrerequisites and Course-Specific Requirements
Prerequisite Courses, Knowledge, and/or Skills
- Completion of Critical Listening 1, Acoustics, and Audio Fundamentals for Recording or equivalent knowledge and experience is required.
- Take the Psychoacoustics in Music Production self-assessment to determine your level.
Textbook(s)
- Psychology of Music: From Sound to Significance (2nd Edition) by S.L. Tan, P. Pfordresher, & R. Harré (Routledge, 2017)
- Additional required readings include book chapters and research reviews, which will be provided as links and/or PDF files as part of lesson content.
Student Deals
After enrolling, be sure to check out our Student Deals page for various offers on software, hardware, and more. Please contact support@online.berklee.edu with any questions.
General Course Requirements
Below are the minimum requirements to access the course environment and participate in Live Classes. Please make sure to also check the Prerequisites and Course-Specific Requirements section above, and ensure your computer meets or exceeds the minimum system requirements for all software needed for your course.
Mac Users
PC Users
All Users
- Latest version of Google Chrome
- Zoom meeting software
- Webcam
- Speakers or headphones
- External or internal microphone
- Broadband Internet connection
Instructors
Author & Instructor
Susan Rogers holds a Doctorate in Psychology from McGill University (2010), where she studied music cognition and psychoacoustics under researchers Daniel Levitin and Stephen McAdams. Her research focuses on auditory memory, the perception of musical signals, and the influence of musical training on auditory development. For two decades prior to her science career, Susan was one of the world's few women known for her work as a record producer, engineer, mixer, and audio electronics technician. Career highlights include five years (1983-1987) as staff engineer for Prince, producing hit singles for diverse artists such as Barenaked Ladies, David Byrne, Robben Ford, Jeff Black, and Rusted Root, mixing hit singles for an equally eclectic list including Tricky, Michael Penn, Toad the Wet Sprocket, and Tevin Campbell, and engineering for a host more.
Susan is a professor at Berklee College of Music in the departments of Music Production & Engineering and Liberal Arts, and is the director of the Berklee Music Perception and Cognition Laboratory. In 2012, she was awarded the Distinguished Faculty Award, Professional Writing and Music Technology Division.
In tandem with business partner and former student Matthew McArthur (Berklee '10), Susan launched Boston's first not-for-profit recording studio, The Record Company, to offer low-cost recording facilities to area musicians and free music technology instruction to area teens. Read Less
What's Next?
When taken for credit, Psychoacoustics in Music Production can be applied towards the completion of these related programs:
Related Certificate Programs
Related Degree Majors
Questions?
Contact our Academic Advisors by phone at 1-866-BERKLEE (U.S.), 1-617-747-2146 (INT'L), or by email at advisors@online.berklee.edu.
