Visiting Scholars Program Awardee 2026 – Dr. AZA Allsop

Posted On:  02-09-2026

Dr. AZA Allsop is an artist, neuroscientist, and psychiatrist whose interdisciplinary research examines music, mindfulness, and psychedelics as socially embedded practices capable of transforming healthcare. His work integrates electrophysiology (EEG, EKG), psychometrics, group-level social interaction data, and machine learning to understand how collective engagement shapes neural dynamics, emotional regulation, and pain-related processes.

As a Principal Investigator, Dr. Allsop has led community-based projects including music-mindfulness practices and drum-circle interventions for anxiety and depression. He is also a recipient of a Renée Fleming NeuroArts Investigator Award for work using live autobiographical music to support individuals living with dementia and their caregivers. Most recently, Dr. Allsop received a U24 pilot grant from the Music4Pain Research Network to investigate mechanisms underlying a drum-circle–based intervention designed to leverage entrainment, social synchrony, and embodied co-regulation in dementia-related pain.

Dr. Allsop will complete Visiting Scholar training in the Music, Creativity, and Wellness Lab at Drexel University under the mentorship of Dr. Joke Bradt. Expected outputs include an optimized clinical protocol, an NIH pilot grant application, and a conceptual paper on collective music-making and pain mechanisms.