Director

Dr. Thaut received his Master’s and PhD in Music from Michigan State University, with a cognate minor in movement science. He holds a special diploma in music from the Mozarteum University in Salzburg/Austria and a German Diplom in Psychology/Education from the University of Muenster. Prior to his appointment at the University of Toronto, he was a Professor of Music and Professor of Neuroscience as well as Director of the Center for Biomedical Research in Music. He also served as Director of the School of the Arts at Colorado State University from 2001-2009. He has held many visiting positions internationally including at the University of Michigan Dept. of Movement Science, Düsseldorf University Medical School, National Institute for Neuroscience Research IRCCS Santa Lucia/Rome, Heidelberg University of Applied Sciences, and Kurashiki Sakuyo Music University in Japan to name a few.

Dr. Thaut is an international leader in the basic and clinical neuroscience of music and has internationally recognized research in relation to the applications of auditory neuroscience, specifically for music and rhythm, to brain rehabilitation. He has over 250 scientific publications and is the co-editor of the Oxford Handbook of Music Psychology, senior editor of the Oxford Handbook of Music and the Brain, and the Oxford Handbook of Neurologic Music Therapy which was second in the annual British Medical Association book award in the category “Best New Book in Neurology 2015”.  He is President Emeritus of the International Society for Clinical Neuromusicology, Vice President of the International Society for Music and Medicine, Presidium Member of the World Federation of Neurorehabilitation, an Overseas Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine/ UK, and a Board Member of the International Academy of Neurologic Music Therapy.  

His research team in collaboration with medical science and clinician groups worldwide developed the field of Neurological Music Therapy, which is a medically recognized  evidence based system of music-based interventions applied to a broad range of neurologic disorders, practiced by certified clinicians in over 60 countries worldwide, and endorsed by the World Federation of Neurorehabilitation.

As a former professional violinist in the classic and folk genre, Dr. Thaut has recorded several LPs/CDs and has toured extensively throughout Europe.  

Michael H. Thaut, PhD
Canadian Research Chair Tier I
Professor of Music
Professor of Neuroscience (Cross-Appointment)
Professor Rehabilitation (Cross-Appointment)
Collaborator Scientist, CAMH Neuroimaging Centre
CV | michael.thaut@utoronto.ca

Research Associate/Staff Scientist

Dr. Yuko Koshimori completed her 3-year postdoctoral fellowship in November 2019 at MaHRC and is now a research associate at MaHRC and CAMH. She completed her PhD at the Institute of Medical Science at the University of Toronto. Yuko has received funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research, Parkinson Canada and others. Her research focuses on uncovering the neural correlates of rhythm and music and investigating the neural mechanisms of NMT using neuroimaging techniques such as PET and MRI. Yuko has been appointed as Senior Research Associate in 2023.

Yuko Koshimori, PhD
Research Associate
yuko.koshimori@utoronto.ca
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Research Coordinator

Veronica Vuong is the Research Coordinator at MaHRC and a PhD Candidate at the Institute of Medical Science, Faculty of Medicine and Collaborative Program in Neuroscience, University of Toronto. A pianist and an alumna of the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto, she previously completed her MA in Music and Health Sciences and BMusEd with Honours. Currently, Veronica’s research focuses on the neural correlates of musical memory in older adults with mild cognitive impairment using electroencephalography (EEG) at the Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Health Sciences. Veronica is the recipient of several grants and doctoral awards for her research, such as NSERC and the Alzheimer Society. She was also one of two doctoral students selected nation-wide to receive an award from the Canadian Federation of University Women and was awarded and selected as the single trainee from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, across five research sites for outstanding achievement in clinical dementia research by the Toronto Dementia Research Alliance. Additionally, she has published in several peer-reviewed journals, with two papers selected as Editor’s Choice, including one as first author. Veronica actively presents research at conferences such as the Cognitive Neuroscience Society, Society for Neuroscience, the World Congress of Neurorehabilitation, and American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine.

Veronica Vuong, PhD Candidate
Research Coordinator
veronica.vuong@utoronto.ca
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Research Assistants

Damian Manzone, PhD

Amin Mostofinejad, MSci