@article {2023, title = {Intra- and inter-brain coupling and activity dynamics during improvisational music therapy with a person with dementia: an explorative EEG-hyperscanning single case study}, journal = {Frontiers in Psychology: Cognitive Science}, volume = {14:1155732}, year = {2023}, month = {09/2023}, abstract = {Objective: Real-life research into the underlying neural dynamics of improvisational music therapy, used with various clinical populations, is largely lacking. This single case study explored within-session differences in musical features and in within- and between-brain coupling between a Person with Dementia (PwD) and a music therapist during a music therapy session. Methods: Dual-EEG from a music therapist and a PwD (male, 31 years) was recorded. Note density, pulse clarity and synchronicity were extracted from audio-visual data. Three music therapists identified moments of interest and no interest (MOI/MONI) in two drum improvisations. The Integrative Coupling Index, reflecting time-lagged neural synchronization, and musical features were compared between the MOI and MONI. Results: Between-brain coupling of 2 Hz activity was increased during the MOI, showing anteriority of the therapist{\textquoteright}s neural activity. Within-brain coupling for the PwD was stronger from frontal and central areas during the MOI, but within-brain coupling for the therapist was stronger during MONI. Differences in musical features indicated that both acted musically more similar to one another during the MOI. Conclusion: Within-session differences in neural synchronization and musical features highlight the dynamic nature of music therapy. Significance: The findings contribute to a better understanding of social and affective processes in the brain and (interactive) musical behaviors during specific moments in a real-life music therapy session. This may provide insights into the role of such moments for relational-therapeutic processes.}, keywords = {brain coupling, dementia, EEG, improv, Music Therapy}, doi = {doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1155732}, author = {Clemens Maidhof and Viktor M{\"u}ller and Olivier Lartillot and Kat Agres and Jodie Bloska and Rie Asano and Helen Odell-Miller and J{\"o}rg Fachner} } @conference {9998, title = {A dataset and classification model for Malay, Hindi, Tamil and Chinese music}, booktitle = {Workshop on Machine Learning and Music (MML 2020), at the European Conference on Machine Learning and Principles and Practice of Knowledge Discovery in Databases (ECML-PKDD) conference}, year = {2020}, abstract = {In this paper we present a new dataset, with musical excepts from the three main ethnic groups in Singapore: Chinese, Malay and Indian (both Hindi and Tamil). We use this new dataset to train different classification models to distinguish the origin of the music in terms of these ethnic groups. The classification models were optimized by exploring the use of different musical features as the input. Both high level features, i.e., musically meaningful features, as well as low level features, i.e., spectrogram based features, were extracted from the audio files so as to optimize the performance of the different classification models. }, url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2009.04459}, author = {F Nahar and K Agres and B Balamurali and D Herremans} } @proceedings {2019, title = {A Comparative Study of Mental States in 2D and 3D Virtual Environments Using EEG}, year = {2019}, month = {10/2019}, publisher = {IEEE}, address = {Bari, Italy}, abstract = {There is growing evidence that virtual reality (VR) can be used as an optional therapy method for stress relief and treatment of mental disorders such as a variety of anxiety disorders, depression and psychosis. However, more systematic studies to quantify the effects of VR for emotion elicitation and compare the effects of 3D and 2D environment for the same is necessary to design feasible and effective treatments. In this study, we design a cross-over experiment protocol comprising of two emotion eliciting environments relaxation and arousal - that is presented to the participant either in a 2D monitor or a 3D head-mounted (HMD) VR display. The EEG data is collected during the experiment and analyzed offline to classify emotion elicited by low and high arousal environments using SVM classification of band power features. A 10-fold cross validation is performed and classification accuracy for each subject is computed for 3D-VR and 2D-screen display. The average classification accuracies over subjects are obtained as 66.88\% and 59.27\% in 3D-VR and 2D-screen group respectively. The performance difference between 3D-VR and 2D screen is statistically significant (p < 0.05), indicating that 3D-VR generates more distinct EEG patterns associated with emotion elicitation. Further, significant differences in band powers from alpha, theta and beta bands are also observed between both groups. The results presented in this paper support the use of VR as an effective tool to study emotion elicitation and regulation, compared to a 2D screen.}, author = {Pinar Bilgin and Kat Agres and Neethu Robinson and Aung Aung Phyo Wai and Cuntai Guan} } @inbook {2019, title = {The impact of musical structure on enjoyment and absorptive listening states in trance music}, booktitle = {Music and Consciousness 2: Worlds, Practices, Modalities}, volume = {Edited by Ruth Herbert, David Clarke, and Eric Clarke}, year = {2019}, publisher = {Oxford University Press}, organization = {Oxford University Press}, chapter = {14}, address = {Oxford}, keywords = {complexity, consciousness, enjoyment, Information theory, music structure, trance music}, issn = {ISBN: 9780198804352}, url = {https://books.google.com.sg/books?id=DCOQDwAAQBAJ\&pg=PA254\&lpg=PA254\&dq=The+impact+of+musical+structure+on+enjoyment+and+absorptive+listening+states+in+trance+music\&source=bl\&ots=FsWlNXsys-\&sig=ACfU3U0K6dFJD7zbC917zG6HRFXLxVSdvQ\&hl=en\&sa=X\&ved=2ahUKEwjd05}, author = {Kat Agres and Louis Bigo and Dorien Herremans} } @proceedings {2018, title = {Rhythmic Entrainment for Hand Rehabilitation Using the Leap Motion Controller}, year = {2018}, month = {09/2018}, address = {Paris, France.}, abstract = {Millions of individuals around the world suffer from motor impairment or disability, yet effective, engaging, and cost-effective therapeutic solutions are still lacking. In this work, we propose a game for hand rehabilitation that leverages the therapeutic aspects of music for motor rehabilitation, incorporates the power of gamification to improve adherence to medical treatment, and uses the versatility of devices such as the Leap Motion Controller to track users{\textquoteright} movements. The main characteristics of the game as well as future research directions are outlined.}, keywords = {Leap Motion, Motor Rehabilitation, music, Music Therapy, Rhythmic Entrainment}, author = {Beveridge, S. and Cano, E. and Agres, K.} } @article {2017, title = {Harmonic Structure Predicts the Enjoyment of Uplifting Trance Music}, journal = {Frontiers in Psychology}, volume = {7}, year = {2017}, pages = {1999}, abstract = {An empirical investigation of how local harmonic structures (e.g., chord progressions) contribute to the experience and enjoyment of uplifting trance (UT) music is presented. The connection between rhythmic and percussive elements and resulting trance-like states has been highlighted by musicologists, but no research, to our knowledge, has explored whether repeated harmonic elements influence affective responses in listeners of trance music. Two alternative hypotheses are discussed, the first highlighting the direct relationship between repetition/complexity and enjoyment, and the second based on the theoretical inverted-U relationship described by the Wundt curve. We investigate the connection between harmonic structure and subjective enjoyment through interdisciplinary behavioral and computational methods: First we discuss an experiment in which listeners provided enjoyment ratings for computer-generated UT anthems with varying levels of harmonic repetition and complexity. The anthems were generated using a statistical model trained on a corpus of 100 uplifting trance anthems created for this purpose, and harmonic structure was constrained by imposing particular repetition structures (semiotic patterns defining the order of chords in the sequence) on a professional UT music production template. Second, the relationship between harmonic structure and enjoyment is further explored using two computational approaches, one based on average Information Content, and another that measures average tonal tension between chords. The results of the listening experiment indicate that harmonic repetition does in fact contribute to the enjoyment of uplifting trance music. More compelling evidence was found for the second hypothesis discussed above, however some maximally repetitive structures were also preferred. Both computational models provide evidence for a Wundt-type relationship between complexity and enjoyment. By systematically manipulating the structure of chord progressions, we have discovered specific harmonic contexts in which repetitive or complex structure contribute to the enjoyment of uplifting trance music.}, issn = {1664-1078}, doi = {10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01999}, url = {http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01999}, author = {Agres, Kat and Herremans, Dorien and Bigo, Louis and Conklin, Darrell} } @proceedings {2016, title = {The Effect of Repetitive Structure on Enjoyment in Uplifting Trance Music}, year = {2016}, month = {07/2016}, pages = {280-282}, address = {San Francisco}, isbn = {1-876346-65-5}, author = {K. Agres and L. Bigo and D. Herremans and D. Conklin} }