Transitions in the Early Musical Careers of Able Young Musicians: Choosing Instruments and Teachers

Abstract

Forty-two students at a specialist school for able musicians and 20 of their parents were interviewed about the circumstances that led to these young people's commencing instrumental study, changing teachers, and taking up new instruments prior to the point where they were recognized as ready for specialist music education. The results showed that parents' sustained support and intervention were vital to developing excellence, and that the student's first teacher's personal characteristics had a marked effect on future levels of development. Students showed a high level of mobility between both instruments and teachers. The principal driving force for these transitions lay with the parent or the child rather than the teacher, who rarely suggested a transition. The implications of these results for understanding the process of high- level development are discussed.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Bamberger, J. (1986). Cognitive issues in the development of musically gifted children. In R. J. Sternberg & J. E. Davidson (Eds.), Conceptions of giftedness (pp. 388–413). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Brand, M. (1985). Development and validation of the home musical environment scale for use at the early elementary level. Psychology of Music, 18 (1), 40–48.

Ericsson, K. A. , & Crutcher, R.J. (1990). The nature of exceptional performance. In P. B. Laltes , D. L. Fcatherman , & R. M. Lerner (Eds.), Life-span development and behavior (Vol. 10) (pp. 187–217). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Ericsson, K. A. , Tesch-Romer, C. , & Krampe, R. T. (1990). The role of practice and motivation in the acquisition of expert-level performance in real life: an empirical evaluation of a theoretical framework. In M.J. A. Howe (Ed.), Encouraging the development of exceptional abilities and talents (pp. 109–130). Leicester: The British Psychological Society.

Hayes, J. R. (1981). The complete problem solver. Philadelphia: The Franklin Institute Press.

Howe, M. J. A. , & Sloboda, J. A. (1991a). Young musician's accounts of significant influences in their early lives: 1. The family and musical background. British Journal of Music Education, 8, 39–52.

Howe, M. J. A. , & Sloboda, J. A. (1991b). Young musician's accounts of significant influences in their early lives: 2. Teachers, practicing, and performing. British Journal of Music Education, 8, 53–63.

Newmark, J. , & Lederman, R.J. (1987). Practice doesn't necessarily make perfect: Incidence of overuse syndromes in amateur instrumentalists. Medical Problems of Performing Artists, 2, 142–144.

Shuter-Dyson, R. , & Gabriel, C. (1981). The psychology of musical ability. (2nd ed.). London: Methuen.

10.

Sloboda, J. A. , & Howe, M.J. A. (1990). Reasons for choosing specialist music schooling: An interview study. Journal of the Music Masters and Mistresses' Association, 24, 17–20.

11.

Sloboda, J. A. , & Howe, M. J. A. (1991). Biographical precursors of musical excellence: An interview study. Psychology of Music, 19 (1), 3–21.

12.

Sosniak, L. A. (1985). Learning to be a concert pianist. In B. S. Bloom (Ed.), Developing talent in young people (pp. 19–67). New York: Ballantine.

13.

Sosniak, L. A. (1990). The tortoise, the hare, and the development of talent. In M. J. A. Howe (Ed.), Encouraging the development of exceptional abilities and talents (pp. 149–164). Leicester: The British Psychological Society.