Some people can’t imagine a dog barking or a police siren; songs can’t get stuck in their heads; they have no inner voices. Anauralia was proposed in 2021 University of Auckland scientists to describe the little-known condition of a silent mind. Now, the University of Auckland will host a global conference on sounds imagined in the mind, an event intended not just for scientists but also philosophers, musicians, poets and writers.
Anauralia is the phenomenon of an absence of auditory sensory imagery — not hearing anything in one’s inner ear. Image credit: Vat Loai.
“Scientists are fascinated by how the brain makes — or doesn’t make — imaginary sounds such as the inner voice,” said University of Auckland’s Professor Tony Lambert.
“But for writers, musicians and poets, it can be a key part of the creative process, so they have insights to share, too.”
“Charles Dickens said he heard his characters’ voices; Alice Walker, too. Some readers conjure up characters’ voices in their minds.”
For University of Auckland student Sang Hyun Kim, who has a silent mind, the idea that other people are hearing imaginary voices can seem freaky, and he’ll be fascinated to see what research turns up about auditory imagery.
The Mind’s Ear and Inner Voice conference will run from 14-16 April, 2025 in Auckland, New Zealand.
It hopes to include personal accounts from individuals who experience anauralia and hyperauralia, the experience of extremely vivid auditory imagery.
“Some people say they can recreate a symphony in great detail in their minds. Others report weaker auditory imagery, and a small number report none,” the researchers said.
“In New Zealand, it’s estimated close to 1% of people experience anauralia, which is often accompanied by aphantasia, a lack of visual imagination.”
“It seems there’s no downside to a silent mind; on the contrary, recent work suggests there may be an upside, involving improved attention.”
“The notion of a musician experiencing anauralia seems perplexing — how could you perform that role without being able to summon up sounds in your head?”
“I don’t understand this either,” Professor Lambert said.
“The minds of such musicians may contain representations of music without the sensory qualities, akin to the difference between hearing music and music represented as a score.”
“Overall, auditory imagery has attracted far less research attention than visual imagery.”
“Our conference is unique in focusing on these issues from a strongly inter-disciplinary perspective.”
“Are there people who don’t imagine voices, music or other sounds? If so, how common is this? What are the psychological implications of experiencing a silent inner world?”
“We now have good answers to the first two questions. The last question is a much larger one, but I believe we have made strong progress.”
“The research underway in the University of Auckland’s Anauralia Lab includes a neuroimaging study combining high-density EEG, functional magnetic resonance imaging and electromyography of activity in muscles used for speech.”
“The line-up of keynote speakers at the conference from around the world includes experts on hearing voices — auditory verbal hallucinations — and in a field called cognitive literary studies.”
