Inter‐subject correlation of electroencephalographic and behavioural responses reflects time‐varying engagement with natural music

Abstract

Musical engagement can be conceptualized through various activities, modes of listening and listener states. Recent research has reported that a state of focused engagement can be indexed by the inter‐subject correlation (ISC) of audience responses to a shared naturalistic stimulus. While statistically significant ISC has been reported during music listening, we lack insight into the temporal dynamics of engagement over the course of musical works—such as those composed in the Western classical style—which involve the formulation of expectations that are realized or derailed at subsequent points of arrival. Here, we use the ISC of electroencephalographic (EEG) and continuous behavioural (CB) responses to investigate the time‐varying dynamics of engagement with functional tonal music. From a sample of adult musicians who listened to a complete cello concerto movement, we found that ISC varied throughout the excerpt for both measures. In particular, significant EEG ISC was observed during periods of musical tension that built to climactic highpoints, while significant CB ISC corresponded more to declarative entrances and points of arrival. Moreover, we found that a control stimulus retaining envelope characteristics of the intact music, but little other temporal structure, also elicited significantly correlated EEG and CB responses, though to lesser extents than the original version. In sum, these findings shed light on the temporal dynamics of engagement during music listening and clarify specific aspects of musical engagement that may be indexed by each measure.