Journal of Research in Music Education

If singers, without prior prompting, mimicked a conductor’s nonverbal behavior and if this mimicry changed their vocal sound in less than a second, then such a phenomenon could interest vocal music teachers as a time-efficient pedagogical strategy. We tested this claim (“What they see, you will get”), which appears in choral methods literature, by measuring visual and acoustic responses to one nonverbal conductor behavior in a particular singing context. Specifically, we sought to determine whether singers (N = 114) performing the first phrase of Mozart’s motet, “Ave Verum Corpus,” would mimic a conductor’s rounded lip posture on two /u/ vowels. We also wondered whether conductor lip rounding affected these singers’ tone quality. Visual measures (within-subjects photo comparisons and photo grid analyses) indicated that more than 90% of participants displayed more lip rounding on both /u/ vowels in the experimental condition as compared with baseline. Formant frequency profiles indicated that more than 90% of singers lowered all four examined formant frequencies each time the conductor rounded his lips. We discussed these converging visual and acoustic data in terms of the study’s limitations, potential pedagogical implications of mimicry by vocal performers, and directions for future research.

Previous researchers have found that both adults and children demonstrate better memory for novel music from their own music culture than from an unfamiliar music culture. It was the purpose of this study to determine whether this “enculturation effect” could be mediated through an extended intensive instructional unit in another culture’s music. Fifth-grade students in four intact general music classrooms (two each at two elementary schools in a large U.S. city) took part in an 8-week curriculum exclusively concentrated on Turkish music. Two additional fifth-grade classes at the same schools served as controls and did not receive the Turkish curriculum. Prior to and following the 8-week unit, all classes completed a music memory test that included Western and Turkish music examples. Comparison of pretest and posttest scores revealed that all participants (N = 110) were significantly more successful overall on the second test administration. Consistent with previous findings, participants were significantly less successful remembering items from the unfamiliar music culture, a result that was consistent across test administrations and between instruction and control groups. It appears that the effect of enculturation on music memory is well established early in life and resistant to modification even through extended instructional approaches.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of race/ethnicity and school community setting for early field experience practica and student teaching on music student teachers’ self-reported cross-cultural competence. Participants (N = 337) from 36 colleges and universities across the United States completed a survey designed to examine the extent of cross-cultural competence as specified by three constructs: (a) factors fostering readiness to teach in culturally diverse educational environments, (b) factors constraining readiness to teach in culturally diverse educational environments, and (c) educational experiences during teacher preparation relative to multicultural education and multicultural music education. The “Foster,” “Constrain,” and “Teacher Preparation” dimension subscales served as the dependent variables. Results indicated no significant main effect of school community setting on participants’ cross-cultural competence; however, a significant main effect of race/ethnicity (p < .05) was observed for the Constrain subscale of the survey.

The purpose of this ethnographic study was to explore the perceived values and benefits associated with participation in a highly successful community-based girls’ choral ensemble. The benefits of membership in the Seattle Girls’ Choir organization were explored, with particular attention to the expressed values and observed behaviors of choristers. Regular choir rehearsals, musicianship classes, festival and summer camp experiences, concert performances, faculty, staff and board meetings, and other community events were documented carefully and examined during a yearlong period of fieldwork. Semistructured interviews with choristers, faculty members, parents, and staff members were used to elicit participant perspectives on the girls’ choir experience and the perceived values and benefits of participation. Emergent themes included music, personal, social, and external benefits, which were examined in an effort to augment an ever-growing understanding of modern music-making and the value of music engagement in the lives of participants.

The purpose of this study was to explore whether conductor facial expression affected the expressivity ratings assigned to music excerpts by high school band students. Three actors were videotaped while portraying approving, neutral, and disapproving facial expressions. Each video was duplicated twice and then synchronized with one of three professional wind ensemble recordings. Participants (N = 133) viewed nine 1-min videos of varying facial expressions, actors, and excerpts and rated each ensemble’s expressivity on a 10-point rating scale. Results of a one-way repeated measures ANOVA indicated that conductor facial expression significantly affected ratings of ensemble expressivity (p < .001, partial η² = .15). Post hoc comparisons revealed that participants’ ensemble expressivity ratings were significantly higher for excerpts featuring approving facial expressions than for either neutral or disapproving expressions. Participants’ mean ratings were lowest for neutral facial expression excerpts, indicating that an absence of facial affect influenced evaluations of ensemble expressivity most negatively.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the institutional history and documentary evidence of the North American Band Directors’ Coordinating Committee (NABDCC) during the first decade of its existence, from 1960 through 1970. The NABDCC constituted a forum of national band, music industry, and related associations, including the American Bandmasters Association, College Band Directors National Association, and the National Association of Music Merchants, for examining mutual concerns critically and for fostering discussion with experts outside of the wind profession. The research questions addressed the development of the NABDCC, important events in its history, and the specific issues in music education examined by the committee. Important issues in instrumental music that were discussed by the NABDCC included the role of the band in the school curriculum, music advocacy, federal and state legislation, standards-based education, and the inclusion of new musical styles and ensembles. Various themes across these issues emerged from the study, including the difficulties of collaboration within a multifaceted representation of specific interests and the oscillating relationship between music educators and the music industry. The results of this study contribute to enhanced understanding of 1960s instrumental music education, with implications for the present.

The purpose of this study was to examine and compare self-estimates, peer estimates, and actual time preservice teachers spent talking in rehearsal. Participants (N = 32) conducted a short choral rehearsal and estimated their teacher talk (expressed as a percentage of total rehearsal time). Their peers also reported estimates, and the researchers took data on actual time. Later, participants observed themselves on video and used stopwatches to compute teacher talk percentages on the same session. Participants then conducted a second rehearsal and again estimated their teacher talk percentage. Results indicated that by the second rehearsal, participants reduced their teacher talk by about half, and their estimates became closer to actual time. Significant differences were discovered between all estimates from the first rehearsal and the second rehearsal. Self-analysis through videotapes appears to be a useful tool for reducing teacher talk and increasing estimation accuracy.

The purpose of this study was to determine how evaluations of four intact performances of a Chopin étude (Op. 25, No. 9, Butterfly), differing in quality, related to evaluations of each performance’s sections. We presented each performance as five excerpts: (a) opening phrase, (b) first half, (c) second half, (d) coda, and (e) intact. We then presented 10 of the 20 excerpts a second time to assess listener reliability. Results revealed an interaction between performer and ratings: Ratings of intact performances were significantly higher than were ratings of component sections for the two best performances. For the other two performances, however, ratings of intact excerpts were significantly lower than ratings of component sections. Nonsignificant factors were sections and listener background. Data indicate that ratings of longer sections (first and second halves) were more closely tied to intact performance ratings than were shorter sections (opening phrase and coda). Correlational data revealed that piano majors were marginally more reliable than nonpiano majors.