https://doi.org/10.1177/1029864917695654 Musicae Scientiae 1–18 © The Author(s) 2017 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1029864917695654 journals.sagepub.com/home/msx Interference in memory for pitch-only and rhythm-only sequences Steffen A. Herff The MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development, Western Sydney University, Australia Kirk N. Olsen The MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development, Western Sydney University, Australia Department of Psychology, Macquarie University, Australia Jon Prince School of Psychology and Exercise Science, Murdoch University, Australia Roger T. Dean The MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development, Western Sydney University, Australia Abstract In human memory, the ability to recognize a previously encountered stimulus often undergoes cumulative interference when the number of intervening items between its first and second presentation increases. Although this is a common effect in many domains, melodies composed in tuning systems familiar to participants (e.g., Western tonal music) do not seem to suffer such cumulative decrements in recognition performance. Interestingly, melodies in unfamiliar tuning systems do show cumulative decrements. This finding has been predicted by a novel Regenerative Multiple Representations (RMR) conjecture. The present study further explores this phenomenon and the conjecture by investigating pitch-only (isochronous rhythm) and rhythm-only (monotone pitch) sequences of melodies in an unfamiliar tuning system that previously showed cumulative disruptive effects. Experiment 1 replicated previous studies reporting significant interference effects from the number of intervening items when melodies use uncommon rhythms and are composed in an unfamiliar tuning system. Furthermore, as predicted by the RMR conjecture, when rhythmic information was neutralized (Experiment 2), the cumulative interference related to the number of intervening items was retained. This was also the case when the original pitch information of each melody was neutralized, leaving variation only in the rhythmic information (Experiment 3). Results are discussed in the context of the RMR conjecture: given converse results, the conjecture would have been falsified. However, it currently remains plausible and appears to be a useful tool for precise predictions about the link between prior experience, perception, and formation of new memories. Corresponding author: Steffen A. Herff, The MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW 2751, Australia. Email: s.herff@westernsydney.edu.au 695654MSX 0 0 10.1177/1029864917695654Musicae ScientiaeHerff et al. research-article 2017 Article