40Hz – Music & Neuroscience Research

Music, Listening and Neuroscience Research

Following the completion of Phase 1, the 40Hz project enters a new stage of research in 2026 and launches an open call for artists working with sound, music and listening as experimental and perceptual practices.

40Hz is an interdisciplinary research platform developed at Casa degli Artisti in Milan, exploring the impact of sound frequencies, with particular attention to sub-frequencies around 40 Hz, on perception, cognition and psychophysical wellbeing. The project operates at the intersection of musical composition, live listening environments and neuroscientific observation, applying rigorous scientific protocols within real, ecological contexts.

Phase 1, developed throughout 2025, validated the methodological framework of the project. Through artistic residencies, live performances and public listening sessions, more than 250 paired psychological questionnaires and multichannel EEG recordings were collected. Preliminary results showed consistent and measurable effects on perceived wellbeing, confirming the readiness of the project to move toward a more comparative and causal research phase.

The Open Call 2026 invites artists to take part in Phase 2 of the project, which will focus on comparative analysis between different frequencies, the introduction of placebo conditions, precise acoustic measurements, dose–response evaluation and extended EEG data collection. Selected artists will be hosted in residence at Casa degli Artisti and will develop original works conceived for immersive and attentive listening conditions, in dialogue with a team of neuroscientists, researchers and producers.

40Hz is conceived as an open and shared research process. The Open Call is a curatorial and methodological tool designed to identify artistic practices capable of engaging deeply with listening, time and sound perception, while contributing to a structured scientific investigation.

Artists selected through the Open Call 2026 will participate in a research-oriented production process, public restitutions in qualified listening spaces, and the generation of data that will contribute to the next phase of analysis and publication.