Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and Brain

📢 Open positions at the Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body & Brain in Finland!

We are recruiting 5-9 postdoc and 2-6 doctoral researchers to join our large, international research community
Postdocs: https://bit.ly/4gADdbx
Doctoral: https://bit.ly/4g10xPz

2-6 Doctoral Researchers, CoE in Music, Mind, Body and Brain The Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Music, Mind, Body and Brain at [the Department of Music, Art and Culture studies](https://www.jyu.fi/en/humsoc/mutku) of the University of Jyväskylä is currently seeking to recruit 2-6 Doctoral Researchers for a 3-year position. The contract begins on 4.1.2027. Th...

Next up in our researcher introductions, we have Tiia-Liina Raittila.

"I am Tiia-Liina Raittila, a music therapist and a doctoral researcher in the Center of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body, and Brain.

My academic background is originally in educational sciences. I have previously worked in several projects in i.e. early development of mathematical skills, critical reading skills and adolescents’ educational paths, dropping out of school and well-being. Six years ago I started studying music therapy, found my passion and here we are.

In my dissertation, I examine various phenomena and factors related to therapeutic change occurring in music therapy processes. The target group consists of working-age adults with depression-related disorders, more specifically depression, anxiety, work-related stress, and/or burnout. We already know from previous studies that music therapy is an effective treatment for depression, but we don't fully understand the mechanisms underlying therapeutic change.

I love live music and go to different kinds of concerts and gigs regularly, and I calm down when wandering in nature watching birds.

My dream is to work both as a researcher and a clinician in the future. I believe these two complement each other perfectly, since I find the close connection between clinical work and research extremely important.

P.S. Recruitment for our study is still open. If you think participating in our study might be a good fit for you or someone you know, or if you’re just generally interested in the study, you can find more information at www.jyu.fi/imtdep.

A new research article entitled “Development of semantic verbal fluency in children aged 2 to 5 and its relationship with participating in music activities” by Ritva Torppa, Valerie Looi, Pentti Henttonen and Seija Pekkala has been published in PLOS ONE.

https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0350326

This is the first time when both the quantity (the number of correct words belonging to a given semantic category) and quality (the number of semantic clusters, subcategories and switches between subcategories) of semantic verbal fluency performance has been studied in normally-hearing (typically developing) children from age 2 years onwards. Importantly, we also showed that the more children participated in informal music activities (e.g., singing, listening to music) at home, the better was their performance.

A successful and inspiring 5th Joint Seminar on Music, Sport and Health!

A sincere thank you to all presenters, keynote speaker Professor Peter Terry, attendees, organisers, and collaborators who contributed to making this year's seminar such a success.

The seminar highlighted exciting research and collaboration at the intersection of music, sport, health, and wellbeing. Throughout the day, participants shared innovative research, engaged in stimulating discussions, and explored new opportunities for collaboration across disciplines.

We look forward to continuing these conversations and collaborations in the near future!

Our latest research on music and sport performance has been featured by Finnish national broadcaster Yle. Read the article: https://yle.fi/a/74-20223829

“Tutkimus vahvistaa: Itse valittu musiikki pidentää jaksamista kovatehoisessa liikunnassa” / “Research confirms: Self-selected music improves endurance during high-intensity exercise” 🇫🇮🎧

Out now in Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback: Can a 6-week self-compassion program change brain activity and reduce stress in university students?

Portable EEG showed reduced alpha/beta power during meditation tasks - interpreted as lower cortical arousal and greater neural efficiency.

A self‑compassion break produced the lowest brain activity across all bands, suggesting distinct mechanisms from mindfulness meditation.

Read more in Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10484-026-09783-9

🥳 Funding success 🥳

Tango Across Generations is an interdisciplinary research and community arts project that explores the potential of Argentine tango as a tool for enhancing social, emotional, and physical wellbeing across generations.

The project brings together youth (ages 15–25) and older adults
(60+) in Jyväskylä through a unique year-long research program of fun and engaging dance workshops, culminating in shared creative processes and community events to support inter-generational bonding.

This is enabled by the Suomen Kulttuurirahasto / Finnish Cultural Foundation, Central Finland Regional Fund

In our researcher introductions, next up is Marianne Taipale who defended her doctoral thesis in May.

I am Marianne Taipale – a music researcher, music therapist, and musician. After a decade in Jyväskylä – completing degrees in musicianship, musicology, and music therapy – I have just reached the most exciting milestone of my journey, my doctoral defense.

Since 2022, I have worked in the MMBB, and my research is also part of the MUSICONNECT project. In these projects I have had a unique chance to combine my passions for music, writing, and playing keyboards! My studies focus on music listening for alleviating anxiety in the environments of music therapy and daily life.

My doctoral dissertation builds knowledge between the fields of music therapy and music psychology and demonstrates how music listening and anxiety appear on a continuum between health and illness. The findings show that while music is an excellent tool for managing anxiety, self-care can sometimes fail or even worsen well-being. With the guidance of a music therapist, music listening can be transformed into a healthier tool for self-care.

Now, after my defense, my aim is to continue research related to music use and mental health.

Fun fact: Between research and gigs, I can be spotted driving a 1970 Citroen 2CV or a small truck – with the most legendary driving music! 🎧🚗💨

Let’s connect:
Instagram:
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/marianne-taipale

Ever tried listening to two rhythms at once?🥁🎶

Turns out, your brain might be better at it than you think.
In our new study, we show for the first time that people can extract and evaluate timing information from multiple, non‑metrically related sound streams simultaneously.

This sheds light on how we make sense of complex sound environments — like music, conversations, or bustling public spaces — and highlights just how flexible and powerful our auditory system really is.👂🏽✨

Read more: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/20592043261435532

Why does it matter how music-based research is conducted with preterm infants in the neonatal intensive care unit?

In this newly published perspective article, Dr. Kaisamari Kostilainen highlights the importance of using age-appropriate methods with preterm infants, taking into account their developmental stage and individual capacities to receive and process stimuli.

Read more in Frontiers in Psychology:
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1730120