Beyond Frequency

Beyond Frequency: The Spatiotemporal Architecture of Musical Vibration and Human Neurophysiology

A conceptual research model for audio-tactile music, low-frequency energy, and human response

J.Michelle

Abstract

Music is simultaneously an acoustic signal, a patterned temporal event, and—at sufficient intensities and through appropriate coupling—a source of bodily vibration. Frequency is necessary but insufficient for characterizing that exposure. This paper proposes the spatiotemporal architecture of musical vibration as an NSI research construct describing how frequency spectrum, amplitude, waveform, envelope, transient structure, rhythm, phase relationships, duration, spatial distribution, and physical coupling jointly shape the vibrational event that reaches the organism.

Human evidence shows that congruent music-derived vibrotactile stimulation can increase musical engagement, arousal, and groove; simultaneous audio-tactile stimulation can alter neural phase locking; and very-low-frequency sound can increase spontaneous movement. The field remains young and heterogeneous, so these findings should not be converted into broad therapeutic claims (Siedenburg et al., 2024; Jagt et al., 2024).

The model does not propose that frequencies contain fixed emotional meanings or that bass is inherently therapeutic. It predicts that response depends on stimulus architecture, delivery pathway, coupling, multisensory integration, temporal organization, learning, autobiographical association, context, and current physiological state.

Music as a Physical Event

Music is usually described through melody, harmony, rhythm, tempo, timbre, dynamics, and form. Instruments and loudspeakers also generate mechanical oscillations. Under some conditions, portions of a musical signal can therefore be heard and physically felt.

Cameron et al. (2022) found that adding very-low-frequency sound below or near conscious detection thresholds increased audience movement at a live concert. Siedenburg et al. (2024) found that congruent music-derived vibrotactile stimulation increased musical engagement. These findings support multisensory effects without establishing clinical benefit.

Beyond Frequency

Two stimuli can share a nominal fundamental frequency while differing in amplitude, envelope, transients, rhythmic organization, phase relationships, duration, spatial distribution, or physical coupling. They are therefore not the same physical exposure.

The proposed term spatiotemporal architecture of musical vibration refers to this larger organization of vibrational energy across space and time. It is an NSI research construct, not an established neuroscientific taxonomy.

A 2023 scoping review of 63 publications on tactile displays for auditory augmentation characterized the field as exploratory and highlighted substantial variation in devices, mappings, body locations, and evaluation methods (Paisa et al., 2023).

Audio-Tactile Integration

In a 2024 human study, simultaneous vibrotactile stimulation increased neural phase locking to the fundamental frequency of a speech stimulus, although the effect did not extend uniformly to harmonic frequencies (Jagt et al., 2024). This supports measurable audio-tactile interaction under specific conditions.

The finding should not be generalized into a claim that all vibration enhances hearing, cognition, or mood.

Bass, Arousal, and Movement

Bass combines low-frequency acoustic energy, rhythmic timing, sensorimotor relevance, and—in some environments—bodily vibration. Congruent vibrotactile augmentation can increase musical engagement and arousal, while very-low-frequency sound can increase spontaneous movement.

The statement bass boosts mood is too broad. A more defensible hypothesis is that low-frequency emphasis can alter arousal, groove, movement, and engagement, while emotional valence depends on music, listener, context, congruence, prior learning, and autobiographical meaning.

Rhythm and Temporal Architecture

A pulsed low-frequency stimulus and a continuous low-frequency stimulus can contain overlapping spectral energy while providing different temporal information. Human EEG work indicates that beat-related neural organization is not identical across auditory and tactile modalities (Lenoir et al., 2025).

A Testable Model

The proposed sequence is: stimulus architecture → physical transmission and coupling → sensory detection → multisensory and sensorimotor integration → perception, arousal, movement, memory, and emotion → behavioral or physiological outcome.

The model is intentionally non-deterministic. It generates falsifiable questions about envelope, pulsation, spatial mapping, congruence, coupling, familiarity, and sensory pathway while holding other dimensions constant.

Clinical Boundaries

Vibroacoustic and music-based interventions are being studied for pain, stress, and other outcomes, but the evidence base is heterogeneous. Perceptual engagement, physiological change, and clinical benefit are separate outcomes.

This paper therefore does not propose that a specific frequency treats trauma, anxiety, depression, pain, or another condition.

Research Priorities

Future studies should report spectral content, amplitude or intensity, waveform, envelope, transients, rhythm or pulsation, duration, delivery method, body contact location, spatial mapping, coupling, and whether the signal was audible, tactile, or both.

Studies should distinguish familiar from unfamiliar music, acoustic from tactile delivery, continuous from pulsed vibration, congruent from incongruent stimulation, and perceptual from physiological and clinical outcomes.

Conclusion

Frequency matters. It is simply not the whole stimulus.

Current human evidence shows that vibrotactile input can alter musical engagement, movement, and specific neural responses. Instead of asking only what frequency was used, vibroacoustic research should ask what spatiotemporal architecture of vibration the organism actually received.

That question creates a testable path toward understanding how physical stimulus structure, multisensory processing, movement, learning, memory, and context interact to shape human neurophysiology and experience.

Evidence and Citation Boundary

Human studies support bounded audio-tactile, movement, engagement, and neural effects. The spatiotemporal architecture of musical vibration is an NSI research construct; specific frequencies are not presented as fixed emotional codes or established treatments.

Core evidence base: (Cameron, 2022; Siedenburg, 2024; Jagt, 2024; Paisa, 2023).

References

Cameron, D. J., Dotov, D., Flaten, E., Bosnyak, D., Hove, M. J., & Trainor, L. J. (2022). Undetectable very-low frequency sound increases dancing at a live concert. Current Biology, 32(21), R1222–R1223. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2022.09.035

Siedenburg, K., Bürgel, M., Özgür, E., Scheicht, C., & Töpken, S. (2024). Vibrotactile enhancement of musical engagement. Scientific Reports, 14, 7764. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-57961-8

Jagt, M., Ganis, F., & Serafin, S. (2024). Enhanced neural phase locking through audio-tactile stimulation. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 18, 1425398. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2024.1425398

Paisa, R., Nilsson, N. C., & Serafin, S. (2023). Tactile displays for auditory augmentation—A scoping review. Frontiers in Computer Science, 5, 1085539. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomp.2023.1085539