Week of October 4, 2000

Why can some people name a note as soon as they hear it when others can't tell one from another? In this hour, we'll explore the mysterious ability known as perfect pitch. A cellist with perfect pitch will give a guided tour through the notes and keys. We'll also hear from a psychologist and geneticist who have different ideas about how many people have perfect pitch and why. And a report on Williams Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder which can cause physical and mental problems - and a sensitivity to music and pitch. Guests include: Gordon Grubb, a cellist with the Grossmont Symphony; Dr. Dan Levitin, a record producer and psychology professor at McGill University; Dr. Peter Gregersen, Chief of the Division of Biology and Human Genetics North Shore University Hospital; Dr. Ursula Bellugi, professor and director of the laboratory for cognitive neuroscience at the Salk Institute; Dr. Glen Schellenberg, professor of psychology at the University of Toronto; and Dr. Howard Lenhoff, professor emeritus at the University of California at Irvine. Commentary by John Hockenberry.

We begin the hour with commentary by host Dr. Fred Goodwin, who notes that some people will hear sounds simply as sounds, while other people immediately identify their pitch. He wonders whether people with perfect pitch can hear something distinct about notes that helps them tell them apart. He asks whether everyone begins life with the ability to recognize pitches and also alludes to the controversy over whether perfect pitch can be learned.

Next, Gordon Grubbs, a cellist with the Grossmont Symphony in San Diego, discusses his experience of perfect pitch. He plays and describes several notes, then talks about the differences he hears between keys. He says he hears D-minor as sad, then plays a piece in G-major that he thinks sounds serene. Gordon Grubbs performs with the Grossmont Symphony and the Grossmont Symphony String Quartet. The quartet will be performing on December 3 at the Grossmont College Recital Hall in San Diego. For more information about this performance, call 619-644-7298.

Host Fred Goodwin is then joined by Dr. Daniel Levitin and Dr. Peter Gregersen. Dr. Levitin is a record producer, musician, music journalist and F. Carr Strategic Professor of Psychology at McGill University. Dr. Gregersen is Professor of Medicine and Pathology at New York University School of Medicine and Chief of the Division of Biology and Human Genetics North Shore University Hospital. They agree that perfect pitch, which is sometimes called absolute pitch, is the ability to name and produce notes. But Gregersen believes that perfect pitch is a "distinct ability," that people either have the ability or don't. Levitin, on the other hand, thinks people fall all along a spectrum that spans from always being able to recognize notes to never being able to do so. Dr. Levitin also breaks perfect pitch into several talents, including the ability to sing a popular, song from memory on the note it usually begins in recordings. Dr. Gregersen then discusses his research, which includes the finding that perfect pitch is far more common among Asian music students than in the general population. The interview ends with Dr. Gregersen and Dr. Levitin agreeing that perfect pitch can be a detriment to professional musicians. For more information about his research, log on to Dan Levitin's website or email Dan Levitin. To reach Peter Gregersen, you can write to him at the Division of Biology and Human Genetics, North Shore University Hospital Research Building, 350 Community Drive Manhasset, NY 11030. Or email Dr. Gregersen.

Next, The Infinite Mind's Sharon Lerner reports on Williams Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that causes mental and physical problems. People with Williams have a distinctive look as well as problems judging distances and generally lower IQ (the average is around 60). But they also seem to have a number of unusual talents. Gloria Lenhoff, who has Williams Syndrome, begins this segment saying how much she enjoys music. Then she sings, which she can do in 29 languages, and demonstrates that she has perfect pitch. We then meet Jessica Mavro, a woman with Williams Syndrome who performs an aria from The Marriage of Figaro.

Dr. Ursula Bellugi, director of the Laboratory for Cognitive Neuroscience at the Salk Institute in La Jolla, says she thinks about Williams Syndrome in terms of strengths and weaknesses. According to Bellugi, people with Williams often have a flair for expressive language and an ease with social situations as well as an affinity for music.

We also meet Howard Lenhoff, Gloria's father, who is convinced people Williams Syndrome are more likely to have perfect pitch; Nancy Goldberg, who runs a music camp for people with Williams, and Glenn Schellenberg, who is skeptical of the Williams/music connection. Howard then describes a study he conducted recently in which he tested five people with Williams Syndrome and found that they could identify pitches correctly 97.5 percent of the time. The report ends with Gloria Lenhoff singing a song she will soon perform with Aerosmith while accompanying herself on accordion.