Modern band programs have spread throughout the United States to create learner-centered and culturally affirming school music experiences for children. The four key concepts of modern band, (1) approximation and scaffolding, (2) decision-making, (3) iconic notation, and (4) culturally sustaining (music education), are congruent with many…

Recognizing that music teachers may struggle to implement songwriting activities in a classroom, and that iconic notation provides an opportunity to increase access to school music for all students, the purpose of this article is to share one model of songwriting activities in a music technology class using chord diagrams, beat grids, and keyboard…

The purpose of this study was (1) to examine the impact that small ensemble free improvisation experiences had on dispositional empathy development when compared with other forms of collective music making; and (2) to examine the relationship between co-performing musicians' empathy levels and their performance achievement in small ensembles using…

This article presents an experiment with a group of secondary school music students in Spain. We used music score sheets enriched with Quick Response codes as a resource for the practice required to play a musical instrument. The first group (n = 56) was compared with another group (n = 56) that used traditional resources (textbooks and compact…

In this paper, co-musicking in teaching is discussed on the basis of findings from a study on pop band and piano teaching. We understand co-musicking as collaboration between music-makers, including pupils. For this study, we chose to focus on the actions that teachers and student teachers take during pupils' performance of a piece of music in a…

By starting with a foundation of sound before sight, we can help our students learn notation organically in a way that honors the natural process. This article describes five organic approaches to learning notation in beginning band: (1) iconic notation, (2) point and play, (3) student lead-sheet, (4) modeling, and (5) kid dictation. While…

The Guitar is a very popular instrument that is commonly used by many musicians. This study focused on the factors that made the guitar more appealing to the youth in comparison to other instruments. A semi structured, open ended questionnaire was used to collect the data essential for this study. 50 male and 50 female college students were…

Early in my teaching career, my goals were to teach students to play their instruments beautifully and to help them correctly and independently interpret music notation. However, many of my students were missing the internal musicianship skills that enable high-level music-making. As we teach instrument technique and notation, we sometimes…

Reading music notation with fluency is a complex skill requiring well-founded instruction by the music teacher and diligent practice on the part of the learner. The task is complicated by the fact that there are multiple ways to notate a given rhythm. Beginning music students typically have their first encounter with enrhythmic notation when they…

The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the practice strategies that collegiate music majors chose to employ in preparing for a jazz improvisation performance, and the relationships among selected practice behaviours and achievement in instrumental jazz improvisation. Participants for the study (N = 62) were enrolled as music majors…

The purpose of this study was to investigate preservice music teacher concerns as stated in written reflections before and after video feedback. Nineteen preservice music teachers enrolled in instrumental methods courses wrote free-response reflections of peer- and field-teaching episodes. Statements were coded utilizing the Fuller and Bown…

The purpose of this study was to analyze SATB (soprano, alto, tenor, bass) vocal jazz octavos (N = 150) from three publishers in an effort to (a) identify the most prolific arrangers/composers, (b) cite improvisation opportunities, (c) document publisher improvisation markings, (d) indicate repeated titles, (e) identify most popular styles, and…

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of varied accent/articulation marks on listeners' perceptions of forcefulness of attack and length of sustain in trombone articulations. Musicians (N = 68) were asked to listen to a series of seven short musical excerpts in which a predefined set of pitches would be accented. Participants rated…

As world percussion has grown in popularity in American colleges and universities, two main problems have emerged. The first problem is that no known source exists detailing how percussion instructors have incorporated world percussion into their collegiate teaching. A review of the literature has highlighted four main approaches to incorporating…

The guitar is an extremely versatile instrument. It can produce complex chords and arpeggiated textures as readily as single-note melodies. In the twentieth century alone, it has appeared in a wide range of genres; classical, jazz, blues, rock, and bossa nova compose a partial list. The guitar is also a difficult instrument. Inconsistencies across…