Music & Language Studies

MONRAD-KROHN, G. H. “Dysprosody or Altered ‘Melody of Language’.” Brain 70 (1947): 405-15.

The author, a neurologist, based in Oslo, reviews the case of a 30-year old Norwegian woman who suffered damage to the left frontal region of her brain, as a result of wartime bombing. The resultant syndrome was marked by a disturbance in the natural flow of melody, rhythm and accent in her speech. It appeared that she had acquired a foreign accent in her native language. Interestingly, the patient’s musical abilities were unperturbed.

In respect of her musical faculties nothing abnormal could be found. Her sense of rhythm, as tested by drumming on the table, seemed to be excellent. When the examiner hummed the beginning of any well-known tune, she joined in at once and continued by herself correctly as to time and tune. She was never heard to sing a false note or out of tune. …At request she could sing a fair number of songs quite correctly with a musical voice and correct rhythm. Her sense of melody as evidenced by humming thus did not seem to be impaired in the slightest degree.
Nevertheless the melody of her spoken language was profoundly altered. (411)

Thus, this is one of the earliest indications of a dissociation between musical ability and prosodic aspects of speech. The implication is that prosodic features of speech require an intact left frontal lobe; yet the same brain areas are not essential for singing.