BRAMS is a unique centre dedicated to research excellence in the study of music and auditory cognition with a focus on neuroscience. The research centre is located in Montreal and jointly affiliated with the University of Montreal and McGill University.

The idea of BRAMS began in August 2003 from the dream of Isabelle Peretz, joined by several Montreal scientists, to create a research centre that would unite their complementary expertise and long-held interest in music cognition. BRAMS was officially launched in 2005 by co-directors Isabelle Peretz (Professor of Psychology at University of Montreal) and Robert Zatorre (Professor at the Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University). The laboratory quickly became a centre of excellence in the study of the biological foundations of music, as hailed by Science in February 2007. BRAMS has one of the most comprehensive and sophisticated technological platforms in the world, thanks to funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) in 2007 of more than $14 million. Since April 2011, BRAMS is part of the CRBLM (Centre for Research on Brain, Language and Music) strategic cluster.

In 2018, Isabelle Peretz decided to pass the torch of co-directorship to ensure a bright and long future for BRAMS. The BRAMS facilities were moved to the nearby Pavilion Marie Victorin at the University of Montreal, and Simone Dalla Bella, recruited from University of Montpellier (France), took over as co-director of BRAMS.

The BRAMS technological platform and facilities are primarily located at the University of Montreal (90 Ave. Vincent-d’Indy, Outremont) and include five soundproof testing rooms, an fNIRS System (functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy), a TMS System (Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation), five EEG systems (Electroencephalography), a Dome with 80 speakers, and a Motion Capture Lab. A Bösendorfer piano, unique in North America, is currently located at the University of Montreal’s Laval Campus. Moreover, state-of-the-art facilities for brain imaging and stimulation are available at the Montreal Neurological Institute.

Our interests

The main interests of BRAMS include answering the following questions: Why is the brain musical? How does the structure and function of the nervous system allow us to remember, play, listen and respond to music? How are these functions related to other cognitive domains such as language? How do these functions change during development, and how do they breakdown in disease? How can music be exploited for rehabilitation or re-learning of impaired functions in patient populations?

Today, BRAMS is home to more than 70 internationally renowned faculty members, from four Montreal Universities and from abroad, dedicated to music and auditory cognitive neuroscience. Twelve of them currently hold a Canada Research Chair: Miriam Beauchamp, Jonathan Bolduc, Simone Falk, Karim Jerbi, Pierre Jolicoeur, Caroline Palmer, Isabelle Peretz, Mathieu Roy, Debra Titone, Robert Zatorre, Benjamin Zendel and Simone Dalla Bella. Robert Zatorre and Marc Pell hold a James McGill Research Chair. Isabelle Peretz and Simone Dalla Bella hold a Casavant Chair in neuropsychology and music cognition. Such a concentration of experts in the neuroscience of music and auditory cognition is unique in North America. BRAMS members’ research covers the spectrum from perception of music, speech, and voice to memory and motor performance, with a common interest in the neural substrates of human auditory cognition and music in particular. Between 100 and 150 trainees per year have access to BRAMS technological platform for research.

Research units

• Centre de Recherche sur le Cerveau, le Langage et la Musique
• Plateforme du Laboratoire international de recherche sur le cerveau, la musique et le son

Universities

• Université Concordia/Concordia University
• Université McGill/McGill University

Partner organizations

• Fondation canadienne pour l'innovation (FCI)/Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI)
• Fonds de recherche du Québec - Nature et technologies
• MITACS
• CRBLM
• Université de Montréal
• McGill University

Location on the University campus

• 05-11-0215 Le BRAMS fait chanter les cerveaux depuis 10 ans
• 24-03-2014 La musique aide au développement du langage
• Portait de chercheur - Caroline Traube - Le mariage du génie et de la musique
• Chaîne YouTube du BRAMS
• 16-02-2015 La musique peut réduire le stress, veut démontrer Nathalie Gosselin
• 12-11-2012 Musique, émotions et cerveau au Centre des sciences
• Adhérez à notre liste de diffusion!
• Test en ligne
• 25-03-2024 De nouveaux arrivants apprennent le français à l’aide de chansons à Montréal

At Université de Montreal

• Simone Dalla Bella - Codirecteur

External

• Robert J Zatorre - Codirecteur

At Université de Montreal

External

• Johanne David - Agente administrative
• Mihaela Felezeu - Agente de recherche
• Luis Alexander Nieva Chavez - Agent de recherche