A type of lemur which communicates in rhythmic song shows how humans have evolved to create music, according to researchers at The University of Warwick.

Indris, known as “singing lemurs” live in small family groups in the Madagascan rainforest and communicate using songs, similar to birds and humans. They also use rhythmic vocalizations like alarm calls to alert family members of predators.

Researchers found that Indris have “isochrony” in their communication, which is where the time between sounds or notes are equal, creating a steady occurrence of events at regular intervals, resulting in a consistent rhythm or beat—much like in music. For example, in an isochronous pattern, each note or beat would be evenly spaced apart, like the ticking of a clock.

Isochrony as ancestral condition to call and song in a primate

https://nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nyas.15151