LEFT EAR ADVANTAGE IN PITCH PERCEPTION OF COMPLEX TONES WITHOUT ENERGY AT THE FUNDAMENTAL-FREQUENCY

Normal right-handed subjects were required to make pitch comparisons o f complex tones in which the fundamental frequency was either present or absent. In both conditions, tones were presented monaurally. An inc rease in left-ear superiority was observed in the response time measur ements when the fundamental was absent. These findings support the not ion that the right hemisphere possesses a special mechanism for pitch computation.