Auditory Working Memory

Abstract

This chapter reviews behavioral and neuroimaging findings on: 1.The comparison between verbal and tonal working memory (WMworking memory (WM))2.The impact of musical training3.The role of sound mimicry for auditory memory4.The influence of long-term memory (LTMlong-term memory (LTM)) on auditory WM performance, i. e., the effect of strategy use on auditory WM. Whereas the core structures, namely Broca's area, the premotor cortex, and the inferior parietal lobule, show a substantial overlap, results in musicians suggest that there are also different subcomponents involved during verbal and tonal WM. If confirmed, these results indicate that musicians develop either independent tonal and phonological loops or unique processing strategies that allow novel interactive use of the WM systems. We furthermore present and discuss data that provide substantial support for the hypothesis that motor-related processes assist auditory WM, and as a result we propose a strong link between sound mimicry and auditory WM.