[lyka_candelario]

The Auditory Cortex is actually part of the cerebral cortex found in the temporal lobe which is a sensory area associated with the organ for hearing. It is also called the auditory center or auditory area. It performs a function in the auditory system which can be both basic and advanced. Its exact location is on the posterior half of the superior area of the temporal plane just within the lateral fissure.

It has an afferent function due to the fact that auditory perception comes from the cortical area where it is received and processed. The neurons in the Auditory Cortex are arranged in accordance to their frequency of sound. Just as the cochlea is organized associated with sound frequency, so are the neurons in the Auditory Cortex, where each end responds to either low or high frequencies. It involves tasks including the identification and segregation of auditory components and finding its source location.

There are three separate parts of the Auditory Cortex. These are the primary, secondary, and tertiary ones. The primary cortex is responsible for the identification of musical elements such as loudness and pitch.

The Amygdalae are located in the medial temporal lobes of the brain where they are shaped like almonds as sets of neurons. They form part of the limbic system having the major role in processing emotions. This means they acts as storage in the formation of memories related to emotional events. The amygdala is also said to be linked to pleasure and fear responses.

Those who are suffering from depression, autism, anxiety, post traumatic stress disorder, and certain phobias are thought to be the result of abnormal functioning of the amygdala.

Since the superficial portion of the amygdala is known for being sensitive to social signals, such as music, it is possible that both the amygdala and auditory cortex share a special connection when music is used to trigger emotions. Related to the findings above and having their own experiment conducted, Professor Tim Griffiths from the Newcastle University finds new light to their study of discovering the link between these two organs. He stated, “This might be a new inroad into emotional disorders and disorders like tinnitus and migraine in which there seems to be heightened perception of the unpleasant aspects of sound.”