Exposure to high sound levels may lead to a variety of hearing abnormalities, including Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL). Pre-professional university music majors may experience frequent exposure to elevated sound levels, and this may have implications on their future career prospects (Jansen, Helleman, Dreschler & de Laat, 2009). Studies…

The distinct music genre known as baby music is based on the premise that infants benefit from music "re-orchestrated for their little ears" ("Baby Einstein Takealong Tunes". (2012). Retrieved December 11, 2012, from http://www.babyeinstein.com/en/products/product_explorer/theme/music/62350/Takealong_Tunes.html). We completed a…

This study is an exploration of several lessons on sound taught to third grade students using one of the Next Generation Science Standards (3-5-ETS1) and arts integration. A counterbalanced, pretest- posttest- distal posttest design experiment was conducted to compare student knowledge and attitudes between the control and experimental conditions.…

Being able to record the work of young musicians is beneficial on a number of levels. From an educational standpoint, listening to recordings of rehearsals and performances can provide students with many different opportunities for critical evaluation and enhanced learning. The growth of digital music distribution in the past decade has sparked a…

Resonance refers to the vibrations of larger amplitude that are produced under the effect of a harmonic driving force. Although resonance is an essential concept behind many events happening in nature, students usually have difficulty in learning and explaining the phenomenon. Various demonstrations are carried out in physics classes to clarify…

A simple pipe whistle can be made using pieces of PVC pipe. The whistle can be used to measure the resonant frequencies of open or closed pipes. A slightly modified version of the device can be used to also investigate the interesting dependence of the sound frequencies produced on the orifice-to-edge distance. The pipe whistle described here…

What follows is a description of a theoretical model designed to calculate the playing frequencies of the musical pitches produced by a trombone. The model is based on quantitative treatments that demonstrate the effects of the flaring bell and cup-shaped mouthpiece sections on these frequencies and can be used to calculate frequencies that…

Five experiments investigated the ability to discriminate between musical timbres based on vibrotactile stimulation alone. Participants made same/different judgments on pairs of complex waveforms presented sequentially to the back through voice coils embedded in a conforming chair. Discrimination between cello, piano, and trombone tones matched…

The purpose of this study was to observe, analyze, and document the range of young children's interactions with sound-producing objects in order to better understand the nature of such interactions. Of particular interest was whether theories of cognitive play, social play, object play, and existing research on musical play could guide…

Ask many elementary school teachers or principals, and they will say that science and music are not the top priority in their classrooms. Teachers need to know "how" they can incorporate the necessary mathematics and reading goals and objectives while still engaging students in the critical and aesthetic thinking developed through…

Create your own speakers for an MP3 player while exploring the science of sound. Review of science notebooks, students' intriguing cabinet designs, and listening to students talk with a musician about the physics of an instrument show that complex concepts are being absorbed and extended with each new iteration. Science that matters to students…

Teachers might ask students to hum the tuning pitch, chant rhythms and scat articulations, or sing melodies from the repertoire to better understand musical inflection and nuance. In addition, singing can develop skills in music reading and audiation. If students sing out loud before playing a line of music, they are able to prehear the pitches…

Singing music at sight is a complex skill, requiring the singer to perform pitch and rhythm simultaneously. Previous research has identified difficulty levels for pitch and rhythm skills individually but not in combination. In this study, the author sought to determine the relationship between pitch and rhythm tasks occurring concurrently. High…

Playing the piano can result in intense muscular activity with the potential to cause injury to the hand and fingers. It was reasoned some time ago that technique had to be made sustainable. This resulted in the exploration of ways to make muscular use more economic in playing because even small energy savings are worthwhile in making technique…

Because people today are accustomed to listening to electronic instruments, school music ensembles need to rise to the challenge of reflecting present-day culture by doing a "contemporary makeover". This is all-important if ensembles are to command student respect and attract new members. With a creative mindset and openness to innovation, one can…