In 2023, the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) and National Institute on Aging (NIA), with co-funding support from NIH’s Office of Behavior and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) and National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), funded four music research networks to promote multidisciplinary mechanistic studies of music-based interventions (MBIs) for pain or Alzheimer’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease-related dementias (AD/ADRD). These networks are expected to develop compelling research frameworks that will effectively guide future clinical studies on MBIs in the context of these health conditions; adopt consistent terminology and taxonomy; support interdisciplinary collaborations; and initiate 1-year pilot projects to test novel mechanistic hypotheses.

The purpose of the current FOA is to support 1-year pilot studies to generate the necessary preliminary data to strengthen future NIH applications for later-stage studies on mechanisms through which music may have a positive impact on health in the context of pain or AD/ADRD. These pilot studies will also facilitate multidisciplinary collaborations among neuroscientists, music therapists, musicians, and biomedical, behavioral, or social scientists.

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