Director, MIMM
About the McMaster Institute for Music and the Mind (MIMM)
The McMaster Institute for Music and the Mind (MIMM) fosters collaboration among dozens of scientists, researchers and musicians. Together, we explore fundamental questions about the neurological impact and benefits of music, dance and the arts.
Our interdisciplinary group of researchers includes psychologists, neuroscientists, music theorists, musicians, dancers, media artists, mathematicians, kinesiologists, health scientists and engineers.
We share a passion for finding answers to questions about the physical structure, evolution, neural processing, performance, and perceptions. Specific questions concern how the auditory and motor systems interact to produce music, how performers synchronize with each other, how people encode and recognize music, and how groups in society are defined by the music they play.
Critically, the developmental neuroscience perspective informs the research community on how music induces emotional reactions, how musical experience and training affect brain development, and how musical training/exposure affects language, cognitive, and social abilities in both children and adults.
Laurel Trainor
Director