New research from the Sydney Music, Mind and Body Lab at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music has found that even the smallest of human touches in music can shape and enhance our imaginations. Mental imagery while listening to music often contains elaborate imagined narratives, sensory experiences such as pictures, smells, or movement, and abstract emotions, all simulated in the listeners' mind and shaped by the sounds they are listening to.
In the study, researchers asked 100 participants to imagine a journey while listening to repetitive drumming with or without random and subtle timing and loudness shifts - known as micro-variations - or in silence. Those who listened to drumming with micro-variations imagined travelling farther and for longer periods of time, and described more vivid and lifelike scenes in their imaginations.
The evoked imaginings were stronger when listening to music with micro-variation compared to music without them or to silence.
"What excites me is that these little details in music are something we can all feel, even if we don't always notice them consciously," said lead researcher Ceren Ayyildiz .
PhD candidate Ceren Ayyildiz from the Sydney Music, Mind and Body Lab at Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Photo: Stefanie Zingsheim/University of Sydney
"It's not just technical perfection but the human 'touch' that makes music feel more alive and sparks the imagination," Ayyildiz said.
"The findings suggest that the tiny changes that are often characteristic of human live performance can meaningfully shape how music can spark imagination with various applications that influence everyday life - from creative work to therapy, or strategy games like chess."
"Even tiny fluctuations can make music more meaningful," said Ayyildiz. "It's a reminder that the human feel still matters."
Micro-variations in music
The study, published in Scientific Reports , used detailed computer simulations to recreate the sound of drums. Researchers then simulated drum strikes that were either perfectly identical or included tiny, natural variations in loudness and timing - the kind that happen when a human plays, even without trying to be expressive. These acoustic models gave researchers precise control over how the drum was hit and how it sounded.
Mechanical Example
This sound clip demonstrates rhythm stripped of human nuance - each strike identical, revealing the stark sonic landscape of machine-perfect timing when the beat lands.
Researchers then analysed listeners' mental imagery responses using Bayesian multilevel modelling to isolate the effects of these micro-variations.
The results show that small, random fluctuations - often introduced unconsciously by performers and independent of intentionally expressive variations - enhance how vividly listeners imagine. In addition, participants with the ability to be deeply immersed in music were found to be more likely to experience strong, vivid imaginary scenes.
Micro-variation example
Here, tiny fluctuations in timing and loudness introduce a human touch that breathes life into the rhythm - the kind of nuance shown to spark richer mental imagery.
Importantly, the imagination of those who had higher levels of musical training and the higher ability to deeply immerse themselves profited even more from micro-variations in the background drumming.
"One possible explanation for this finding is that listeners may perceive drumming with tiny random changes - a core component of human music performance - as more natural and organic by listeners," said Ayyildiz. "Previous studies suggest that the inherently human quality of these variations evokes a sense of authenticity and pleasantness absent from mechanical performances."
The findings suggest that the tiny changes that are often characteristic of human live performance can meaningfully shape how music can spark imagination, with implications reaching far beyond the concert hall.
Shaping imagination in the clinic and beyond
The results not only highlight the importance of subtle variations in performance, but also open avenues for understanding imagination in everyday life and clinical practice.
"Mental imagery already plays an important role in many Cognitive Therapies. Deliberately tailoring background music - for example through subtle changes in timing and loudness -could be used to either stimulate or dampen imagination depending on the specific therapeutic target," said senior author Dr Steffen A. Herff, leader of the Sydney Music, Mind and Body Lab .
This deliberate shaping of micro-variations is something music makers have long experimented with, often intuitively.
For audio engineers and producers, the findings offer fresh insight into how subtle decisions in music production can influence important aspects of human cognition such as imagination.
"The relationship between micro-rhythmic variations and imagination, illusion, and connection are at the core of the art of drumming, and this study is a lovely example of this central aspect of rhythmic expression and communication."
Dr Simon Barker, jazz drummer and senior lecturer in Drum Set at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
"Micro-variations are already used in studio production as key aesthetic drivers in many forms of electronic dance music and hip hop," said Dr Paul McDermott , a lecturer at Sydney Conservatorium of Music and one of Australia's leading electro-pop producers.
"Now we know they can also affect how listeners imagine and engage with music."
For performers, especially drummers, the results highlight the power of nuance.
"This study demonstrates how the tiny details in rhythmic timing and expression can greatly alter our perceptions of music," said Dr Simon Barker , a jazz drummer and senior lecturer in Drum Set at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
"The relationship between micro-rhythmic variations and imagination, illusion, and connection are at the core of the art of drumming, and this study is a lovely example of this central aspect of rhythmic expression and communication."
This study joins a series of recent investigations into music and imagination, including work exploring its role in social interactions and loneliness .
Dr Paul McDermott (Paul Mac) from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music is one of the leading figures in Australian electronic music.
Music and cognitive research
The research was co-authored by Dr Steffen A. Herff, leader of the Sydney, Music, Mind and Body Lab and Ceren Ayyildiz's PhD supervisor. Dr Herff is a Horizon Fellow at the University of Sydney and leads a team investigating how music interacts with memory, imagination and emotion.
The Lab's work explores how musical experiences shape our inner worlds - from how we imagine stories and scenarios to how music supports social connection and mental wellbeing.
The study also included Andrew J. Milne, Associate Professor of Music Cognition and Computation in the School of Humanities and Communication Arts, Western Sydney University, as well as the lead of the Music Science Lab at the MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development. His research focuses on the cognitive and mathematical foundations of music and how these impact creativity, learning, and wellbeing.
It also included Professor Muireann Irish, a leading cognitive neuroscientist in the Brain and Mind Centre at University of Sydney, whose research focuses on memory, imagination and the brain's capacity to mentally simulate experiences.
DECLARATION
The authors declare no competing interests. This project was supported by the Australian Government through the Australian Research Council (ARC) under the Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA, DE2201100961), by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF) under the SPARK grant scheme (CRSK-1_196567 / 1) and by the University of Sydney, through the Sydney Horizon Fellowship.
