The author reviews several perspectives on the relationship between the composer and the performer of a musical work. Specifically, he examines the boundaries of that relationship, seeking to define the extent to which the performer may creatively interpret a work without violating the composer's intentions or established musical tradition. (SJL)

This article presents an overview on women composers in the United States from the eighteenth century to the present. It also lists women's musical organizations, selected references on women in music, and available recordings of works by American women composers. (SJL)

Discusses the use of computers in music and music education. Topics discussed include the use of computers to assist in music composition and performance; changing employment opportunities for studio musicians; multimedia applications, including high resolution graphics; editing and publishing music; and database projects. (14 references) (LRW)

The centennial year of Edward K. "Duke" Ellington's birth has inspired many American colleges and universities to convene tribute concerts and conferences. However, few schools offer majors in jazz-related studies; those that do often maintain strict separation between jazz and classical music instruction. Many in the jazz-education…

This article describes the Composer-in-the-Schools Project, which successfully launched the Charlotte Civic Orchestra's Education and Outreach Program in a meaningful way by providing a unique opportunity for many young middle school orchestra students. Students who participated in the project, their parents, school administrators, and Charlotte…

The author, another longtime supporter of the school jazz movement, examined the changes in educational literature for the jazz band. (Editor/RK)

This paper illustrates how the sociolinguistic concept of code switching applies to the use of different styles of music. The two bases for the analogy are Labov's definition of code-switching as "moving from one consistent set of co-occurring rules to another," and the finding of sociolinguistics that code switching tends to be part of…

Although the success of black jazz has been limited by its lack of recognition in the white-controlled music industry, its rhetorical development as an expression of black consciousness can be traced from the bebop of the 1940s and early 1950s, through the hard bop and free jazz of the 1960s, to the jazz orientation of the disco circuit in the…

Considers the educational environment necessary for stimulating creative expression in students and the attitudes that will allow such expression. (RK)

Provides a chronology of Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington's career divided into four periods (Sound and Style, Creative Explosion, Beyond Jazz, and The Last Decade). Offers a synopsis of his musical development, listing compositions written during each phase. Includes a list of resources and a sample lesson for "Koko" by Duke Ellington. (CMK)

States that music teachers have a responsibility to introduce their students to music outside of the standard violin repertoire in order to assist them in their careers as musicians. Offers two recital series of sonatas that have been disregarded by performing artists and describes the musical compositions in each of the two series. (CMK)

In this article, a professional composer shares his experiences writing music for a middle school band. Michael Colgrass was commissioned, along with fourteen other composers, by the American Composers Forum BandQuest project to write a short piece for eighth-grade band. They were asked to pay a couple of visits to a nearby school to work with…

Music education programs stand to gain important benefits from the collaborative work of performing musicians with specialist music teachers and classroom teachers. To be effective, performers and composers must have their knowledge and skills for education cultivated within the context of their essential identities as musicians. Given…

This study explores the musical content and human processes of improvisations of children and adults using the phenomenological lenses of time, space and responsivity. Paired improvisational performances of two late-career adult composers and two 7-year-old children were analysed considering a lifespan-related perspective involving the origins of…

To verify the existence of a communication gap between the contemporary music composer and his general listening audience and to assess the scope and causes of the gap, interviews were conducted with a cross-section of composers, performers, conductors, educators, and listeners throughout the nation. During the 9-month study, (September 1968-June…