About author

Dr. Rie Asano

Affiliation

Research Group Neurocognition of Music and Language, Max-Planck-Institute for Empirical Aesthetics, Frankfurt, Germany

Advanced Comprehensive Research Organization, Teikyo University, Tokyo, Japan

Department of Systematic Musicology, Institute of Musicology, Cologne, Germany

Research

Biomusicology & Cognitive Musicology

My currecnt interests are syntax in language, music, and action, relationship between linguistic syntactic processing and musical rhythm, computational neurocognitive modeling, and computational evolutionary neuroscience. In addition, I started to conduct ALE meta-analyses of neuroimaging data.

My PhD project was on “Principled Explanations in Comparative Biomusicology – Toward a Comparative Cognitive Biology of the Human Cognitive Capacities for Music and Language”. In the thesis, I introduced a comparative framework investigating the relationship between language and music from cognitive science and biological perspectives. The main focus of the discussions was syntax in language and music as well as their neurocognitive mechanisms.

After finishing up my Bachelor degree in foreign study and linguistics at the Sophia University in Tokyo, Japan, I completed the Magister (master) degree in musicology, german linguistics and phonetics at the University of Cologne, Germany, where I also did my PhD research.

You can find me on Twitter: @asano_rie
My ORCID profile page: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6901-7885

Membership

Cognitive Science Society

Projects

Language and Music in Cognition at the University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany

Evolinguistics: Integrative Studies of Language Evolution for Co-creative Communication, Japan

Journal papers

Asano, R., Lo, V., & Brown, S. (2022). The neural basis of tonal processing in music: An ALE meta-analysis. Music & Science.

Asano, R., Boeckx, C., & Fujita, K. (2022). Moving beyond domain-specific vs. domain-general options in cognitive neuroscience. Cortex, 154, 259-268. (LinkPreprint)

Hilton, C., Asano, R., & Boeckx, C. (2021). Why musical hierarchies? Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 44, E100. doi:10.1017/S0140525X20001338 (Link / Preprint)

Asano, R., Boeckx, C., & Seifert, U. (2021). Hierarchical control as a shared neurocognitive mechanism for language and music. Cognition, 216, 104847. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2021.104847 (Link / Preprint)

Asano, R. (2021). The evolution of hierarchical structure building capacity for language and music: a bottom-up perspective. Primates. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10329-021-00905-x (PDF)

O’Rourke, T., Martins, P. T., Asano, R., Tachibana, R. O., Okanoya, K., & Boeckx, C. (2021). Capturing the Effects of Domestication on Vocal Learning Complexity. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2021.03.007 (Link)

Asano, R., & Seifert, U. (2018). “Commentary: The Evolution of Musicality: What Can Be Learned from Language Evolution Research?” Frontiers in Neuroscience, 12, 640. doi:10.3389/fnins.2018.00640 (PDF)

Asano, R., & Boeckx, C. (2015). Syntax in language and music: What is the right level of comparison? Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 00942. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00942 (PDF)

PhD Thesis

Asano, R. (2019). Principled Explanations in Comparative Biomusicology – Toward a Comparative Cognitive Biology of the Human Capacities for Music and Language. Dissertation, Universität zu Köln. (PDF)

Proceedings papers

Heimerich, M., Hardekopf, B., Kaiser, K., Bullert, S., Irnich, L., Troidl, K., Severijns, K., Kierdorf, S. & Asano, R. (2016). Investigating cognitive mechanisms of social interaction through musical joint action. In  B. Burger, J. Bamford, & E. Carlso (Eds.), The 9th International Conference of Students of Systematic Musicology (SysMus16), Jyväskylän yliopisto, June 8-10 2016 : programme, abstracts & proceedings. Jyväskylä: Department of Music, University of Jyväskylä & Finnish Centre for Interdisciplinary Music Research (PDF)

Asano, R. (2014). The evolution of language from two comparative views. In L. McCrohon, B. Thompson, T. Verhoef, & H. Yamauchi (Eds.), The Past, Present and Future of Language Evolution Research (pp. 40–49). Tokyo: Evolang 9 Organizing Committee.

Ravignani, A., Gingras, B., Asano, R., Sonnweber, R., Matellán, V., & Fitch, W. T. (2013). The Evolution of Rhythmic Cognition: New Perspectives and Technologies in Comparative Research. In Knauff, M., Pauen, M., Sebanz, N., & Wachsmuth, I. (Eds.), Cooperative Minds: Social Interaction and Group Dynamics. Proceedings of the 35th Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society (1199-1204). Austin, TX: Cognitive Science Society. (PDF)

Asano, R. (2012). Protolanguage, Discrete Infinity and Interfaces: Investigating the Evolution of the Language and Music Faculty within the Minimalist Program. In: Scott-Phillips, T. C., Tamariz, M., Cartmill, E. A., & Hurford, J. R. (Eds.), Evolution of the Language. Proceeding of the 9th International Conference (EVOLANG9) (26-33). New Jersey: World Scientific.

Asano, R. (2012). Concepts for the Comparative Research on Language and Music. In: J. Wewers, & U. Seifert (Eds.), Under Construction: Trans- and Interdisciplinary Routes in Music Research. Proceedings of SysMus11, Cologne 2011. (17-28). Osnabrück: epOs Music.

Invited Talks

Asano, R. (2021). 言語と音楽の関係性:メカニズムと進化の観点から. 音楽と脳研究会. Tokyo, Japan, August 2021 (Online)

Asano, R., & Boeckx, C. (2021). Syntax and Descent (With Modification). Leipzig Lectures on Language – Combinatorics 2021. Leipzig, Germany, July 2021 (Online)

Asano, R. (2020). Comparative Cognitive Biology of the Human Cognitive Capacities for Music and Language. Lecture series at Department of Music, Institute of Arts. São Paulo, Brazil, June 2020 (Online)

Asano, R. (2020). Linking rhythmic syntax and experience of musical time: A mechanistic approach. Workshop: Investigating Musical Time: Syntactic Approaches? Berlin, Germany, February 2020

Asano, R. (2017). Principled explanations in comparative biomusicology. Kyoto Conference on Evolinguistics. Kyoto, Japan, Nevember 2017.

Asano, R. (2016). Syntax in Music and Language: A Comparative Approach and Action-Oriented Perspective. The Lecture Series Systematic Musicology: Perception and Cognition of Music. Dresden, Germany, November 2016.

Asano, R., & Struckmeier, V. (2016). Structure in Music and Language: Why there is no (language-like) Syntactic Structure in Music. Sounds and Structure in Language and Music. Cologne, Germany, June 2016.

Seifert, U., & Asano, R. (2015). Comparative Biomusicology: On comparing music and language as cognitive systems. CCLS lecture. Cologne, Germany, February 2015. (Abstract)

Asano, R. (2013). Biolinguistics and biomusicology: The quest for uniqueness and modularity of the human mind. Comparative Biolinguistics: An Explanatory Workshop. Barcelona, Spain, November 2013.

Conference talks and posters

Toya, G., Asano, R., & Hasimoto, T. (2021). Computational neurocognitive modelling of recursive combinatorial ability. Leipzig Lectures on Language – Combinatorics 2021. End-of-Year Symposium. Leipzig, Germany, October 2021

Asano, R. (2021). Evolution of cognitive control underlying language syntax and musical rhythm. Protolang 7. Düsseldorf, Germany, September 2021

Asano, R. (2021). On the relationship between language and music syntactic processing. The Neurosciences and Music – VII. Aarhus, Denmark, June 2021

Asano, R. (2019). Evolution of cognitive capacities accounting for hierarchical complexity in music. Protolang 6. Lisbon, Portugal, September 2019. (Abstract)

Toya, G., Asano, R., & Hashimoto, T. (2019). Evolution of recursive combination of action representations by rewarding novel tool-making. Protolang 6. Lisbon, Portugal, September 2019.

Asano, R. (2019). Syntax in language and music from a perspective of comparative biomusicology. Evolinguistics Workshop 2019 Hierarchy, intention sharing, and language evolution: Beyond interdisciplinary conceptual barriers. Tokyo, Japan, May 2019. (Abstract)

Asano, R. (2019). Evolution of syntax in music and language from an action-oriented perspective. NII Shonan Meeting Language as goal-directed sequential behavior: computational theories, brain mechanisms, evolutionary roots. Shonan, Japan, May 2019.

Toya, G., Asano, R., & Hashimoto, T. (2018). Building hierarchical structure: Its functional model and evolutionary simulation. The Emergence and Evolution of Social learning, Communication, Language and Culture in Natural and Artificial Agents in The 2018 Conference on Artificial Life. Tokyo, Japan, July 2018.

Asano, R. (2018). Towards a domain-relevant approach to the evolution of language and music. Evolang 12. Torun, Poland, April 2018. (Abstract)

Toya, G., Asano, R., & Hashimoto, T. (2018). Difference of two recursions, “hierarchical embedding” and “self-reference”: From view of adaptive functions and implementations. Evolang 12. Torun, Poland, April 2018. (Abstract)

Toya, G., Asano., R., & Hashimoto, T. (2018). Evolution of Recursive Operation in Different Cognitive Domains: A Simulation Study. Spring School Language, Music, and Cognition. Cologne, Germany, 2018. (Abstract)

Asano, R. (2017). Towards an action-based approach to the evolution of language and music. Protolang 5. Barcelona, Spain, September 2017.

Asano, R., & Seifert, U. (2017). The biological foundations of the language and music capacity: quest for uniqueness? Protolang 5. Barcelona, Spain, September 2017.

Asano, R. (2017). Syntax in music and language: Towards an action-oriented approach. International summer school: Music, language and cognition. Como, Italy, 2017, July 2017. (Abstract)

Maidhof, C., & Asano, R. (2016). The Influence of Meter on Harmonic Syntactic Processing in Music: An ERP Study. 14th International Conference on Music Perception and Cognition. San Francisco, USA, July 2016.

Asano, R., & Shi, E. R. (2016). On a music-ready brain: Neural basis, mechanisms, and their contribution to the language evolution. 11th International Conference on the Evolution of Language. New Orleans, USA, March 2016.

Asano, R. (2016). Towards an action-oriented approach to the evolution of language and music. 11th International Conference on the Evolution of Language. New Orleans, USA, March 2016.

Asano, R. (2015). Musical abilities and language-readiness. Protolang 4. Rome, Italy, September-October 2015.

Asano, R., Boeckx, C. (2015). Syntax in music and language. Going beyond the “shared/distinct” dichotomy. Shared Processing in Language and Music: What Neurocognition and Disorders Reveal.  Amsterdam, Netherlands, March 2015. (Abstract)

Asano, R. (2014). Inquiry of Musical Syntax by Investigating Cognitive Impairments. The Neurosciences and Music – V. Dijon, France, May-June 2014.

Asano, R., & Boeckx, C. (2014). Pitfalls in research on musical syntax and how to avoid them. The Syntax of Mind: An International Conference. Vienna, Austria, April 2014.

Asano, R., & Seifert, U. (2014). The evolution of human cognitive systems: comparative approaches to language and music. 10th International Conference on the Evolution of Language. Vienna, Austria, April 2014.

Asano, R. (2013). Biolinguistics and Biomusicology: Investigating the evolution of human cognitive systems and their ‘humaniqueness’. International Congress of Linguists (19 ICL). Geneva, Switzerland, July 2013. (Abstract)

Asano, R. (2012). Comparing neurocognitive syntactic processing in language and music: Current findings and models. Workshop – Language, Music and Cognition. Cologne, Germany, September 2012.

Asano, R. (2012). Language and Music as Cognitive Systems: Uniquely human computation, but unique, domain-specific interface systems. Workshop – Cognitive Modules and Interfaces. Trieste, Italy, September 2012.

Asano, R. (2012). Protolanguage, Discrete Infinity and Interfaces: Investigating the Evolution of the Language and Music Faculty within the Minimalist Program. 9th International Conference on the Evolution of Language. Kyoto, Japan, March 2012.

Asano, R. (2011). Concepts for the Comparative Research on Language and Music. 4th International Conference of Students of Systematic Musicology. Cologne, Germany, October 2011.