Modification of dichotic listening (DL) performance by musico-linguistic abilities and age.

To increase our understanding of the phonemic processing skills of musical and non-musical subjects, the Dichotic Listening task was performed in children and adults with varying degrees of musical aptitude. The roles of maturation and musical training were also investigated. The results showed superior left ear monitoring skills among the adults who practised music regularly. This may indicate altered hemispheric functioning. Other musically talented subjects did not have the ability to control left ear functioning in an equal manner, for instance, the performance of musical children and their non-musical controls in the forced-left / left ear condition did not differ. Thus, regular music practice may have a modulatory effect on the brain's linguistic organization and therefore, the beneficial effects of music on other cognitive skills should not be underestimated.