Pii: S0304-3940(99)00766-1

To elucidate the neural substrates of the receptive aspect of music, we measured regional cerebral blood ̄ow (rCBF) with positron emission tomography (PET) and simultaneously recorded the electroencephalogram (EEG) in eight normal volunteers. Compared with the rest condition, listening to music caused a signi®cant increase in EEG beta power spectrum (13±30 Hz) averaged over the posterior two third of the scalp. The averaged beta power spectrum was positively correlated with rCBF in the premotor cortex and adjacent prefrontal cortices bilaterally, the anterior portion of the precuneus and the anterior cingulate cortex in both the rest and the music conditions. Listening to music newly recruited the posterior portion of the precuneus bilaterally. This may re ̄ect the interaction of the music with the cognitive processes, such as music-evoked memory recall or visual imagery. q 1999 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.