Brams Information

The research centre is located in Montreal and jointly affiliated with the University of Montreal and McGill University. The idea of BRAMS began in August 2003 from the dream of Isabelle Peretz, joined by several Montreal scientists, to create a research centre that would unite their complementary expertise and long-held interest in music cognition. BRAMS was officially launched in 2005 by co-directors Isabelle Peretz (Professor of Psychology at University of Montreal) and Robert Zatorre (Professor at the Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University). The laboratory quickly became a centre of excellence in the study of the biological foundations of music, as hailed by Science in February 2007. BRAMS has one of the most comprehensive and sophisticated technological platforms in the world, thanks to funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) in 2007 of more than $14 million. Since April 2011, BRAMS is part of the CRBLM (Centre for Research on Brain, Language and Music) strategic cluster. In 2018, Isabelle Peretz decided to pass the torch of co-directorship to ensure a bright and long future for BRAMS. The BRAMS facilities were moved to the nearby Pavilion Marie Victorin at the University of Montreal, and Simone Dalla Bella, recruited from University of Montpellier (France), took over as co-director of BRAMS. The BRAMS technological platform and facilities are primarily located at the University of Montreal (90 Ave. Vincent-d'Indy, Outremont) and include five soundproof testing rooms, an fNIRS System (functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy), a TMS System (Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation), five EEG systems (Electroencephalography), a Dome with 80 speakers, and a Motion Capture Lab. A Bösendorfer piano, unique in North America, is currently located at the University of Montreal's Laval Campus. Moreover, state-of-the-art facilities for brain imaging and stimulation are available at the Montreal Neurological Institute. Our interests