Welcome to the Music and Neuroscience Lab! The lab is run by Dr. Grahn, a cognitive neuroscientist who studies music. Dr. Grahn is an Associate Professor in the Brain and Mind Institute and the Department of Psychology at Western University, in London, Ontario.

Before that, she was at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit in Cambridge, England, and an Associate Lecturer in Biological Psychology with the Open University. 

(And a little tip: Grahn rhymes with "on", not "an").

We currently have a postdoctoral position open!

Research Interests

  • Why do we move to music? 
  • How is musical rhythm processed in the brain? How do brain responses to musical rhythm differ from similar types of movement and timing? 
  • How and why do other animals' brain responses to music differ from ours? 
  • Can musical rhythm have therapeutic benefit? (more information). 

Other areas in which I have expertise include:
  • the use of real-time fMRI scanning to examine if people can change their own brain activity (neurofeedback)
  • the effects of training on cognitive function (brain training, musical training)
  • how listening to different types of music affects memory

  • Want to participate in ongoing cognitive neuroscience research at Western? Check out: OurBrainsCAN

Research Opportunities

If you are interested in research opportunities in the Music and Neuroscience lab, please get in touch. Students may want to read about important traits I look for in both undergrads and grads.  

Undergraduate students should send Dr. Grahn a CV, transcript, writing sample, as well as a short description of why they are interested in this area of research and the time commitment they are able to make.

Graduate Students may want to look at the BrainsCAN Graduate Studentship Program open to Master's and PhD students (including international graduate students).

All grads may be interested in the Collaborative Specialization in Music Cognition.

Post-docs. We currently have a postdoctoral position open.
Postdocs may want to look at the Banting Fellowships, Marie Curie fellowships (Europeans), CIHR Fellowships, NSERC Fellowships, or other lists of fellowships. This list, too.

International students interested in doing a placement in the lab should send similar materials as undergraduate students (as above), and should look at Western's procedures.

News

- Here are our recent publications
November 2021
  • Congratulations to Dr. Grahn on winning the NSERC EWR Steacie Memorial Fellowships for her contributions to psychology and neuroscience. Read more here and here.
October 2021
  • Congratulations to Justin Hopper for successfully defending his Master's thesis!
September 2021
  • Congratulations to Avital Sternin who successfully defended her PhD! Good luck with you next adventure!
  • Welcome Ana Luisa Pinho, our new BrainsCAN Postoctoral Fellow. She will be investigating the role of the cerebellum in music cognition.
May 2021: April 2021: January 2021:
  • Welcome, new PhD student Riya Sidhu! And also to Marina Emerick, a first-year Master's student, who arrived in London this month, after a semester of remote work in Brazil.
November 2021: October 2020: September 2020:
  • Congratulations to Lab Members Prisca Hsu and Michael Wang whose papers were winners for this years Undergraduate Awards as regional winner and Highly Commended Entrant (respectively).​
  • Congratulations to Dr. Grahn on being named a member of the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists.
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Call for Postdocs! Interested applicants can see here for more information. 
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 Jessica Grahn                                                        jgrahn@uwo.ca
 Brain and Mind Institute
 Department of Psychology
 Western Interdisciplinary Research Building, 5118
 Western University
 London, ON, CANADA