Perception of the major/minor distinction: V. Preferences among infants

Abstract

Six-month-old infants expressed musical preferences by choosing one of two directional targets to look at, one of which produced a major chord and the other a minor chord. Over repeated testing in this way, no reliable preference for either harmony was expressed. However, a comparable choice between consonant and dissonant chords produced reliable preference for consonant harmonies. © 1991, Psychonomic Society, Inc.. All rights reserved.