This study examined the relationships between children's musical ability and various factors of social environment and child characteristics. There was a positive correlation between children's musical aptitude and fathers' encouragement and children's cognitive and creative abilities. Cognitive ability was the only significant predictor of…

Examines relationships between musical information processed by a computer-based sound analysis system and the audiovisual record of a performer's response to musical assignments. Concludes that computer analysis permits identification of performance behavior. Suggests that a database could be designed to provide both diagnostic response to…

Provides a strategy from the book "Strategies for Teaching Middle-Level General Music" that addresses Standard 3C from the National Standards for Music Education in which students improvise melodies in various styles on the keyboard using the G-flat major and E-flat minor scales. Describes the procedure, indicators of success, and…

Rainsticks are African and South American musical instruments that recreate the soothing sounds of rain. They were originally made of bamboo or dried cacti tubes. Inside the tubes are small river pebbles and cactus thorns. The longer the tube, the longer-lasting the "music." This article gives instructions for making both a large and…

Discusses the importance of focusing Internet searches for world music resources. Importance of teaching about music from various cultures; Benefits of identifying a characteristic instrument by name or stylistic terms; Types of music web sites.

This study is an examination of the melodic improvisations of a group of children (N = 62) for 3 years, from ages 7 through 9. Participants improvised as part of a class rondo for Orff instruments, in ABACADA form, in which the B, C, and D sections were 8-measure alto-xylophone improvisations in C pentatonic. Each participant improvised three…

Festival performance is no trivial endeavor. At one midwestern state festival alone, 10,938 events received a rating over a 3-year period (2001-2003). Such an extensive level of participation justifies sustained study. To learn more about variables that may underlie success at solo and small ensemble evaluative festivals, Bergee and Platt (2003)…

Since--and even before--the National Standards for Music Education were published, music educators have tried to balance the expectations associated with the traditional performance curriculum and contemporary models of music education. The Standards-based curriculum challenges directors to consider how student experiences and learning can be…

Various researchers over the past decades have established that verbal behaviour constitutes a substantial portion of total instruction time in music. The use of metaphor in these educational practices and the supporting music literature is rich and frequent. Numerous scholars support the view that metaphor in learning and teaching music touches…

This article explores the use of structure in the encoding and retrieval of music and its relation to level of skill. Twenty-two pianists, classified into four levels of skill, were asked to learn and memorize an assigned composition by J. S. Bach (different for each level). All practice was recorded on cassette tape. At the end of the learning…

Marching band, madrigal choir, orchestra, jazz band, mixed chorus, and the annual musical are just a few of the activities that may be part of a high school's music program. Consequently, if the choir, band, and orchestra directors come together to develop goals that all ensembles can share, this cooperation can enhance the effectiveness of the…

This book provides both new and experienced music educators with much-needed advice drawn from credible research and established approaches, but also includes practical application for the incredible variety of music classrooms that teachers face today. Kevin Mixon adapts research-based theories to fit typical situations that are not always ideal.…

Despite three decades of research, gendered participation in music continues to be problematic. While many aspects of Western society maintain a patriarchal stance in the workplace, it is apparent that girls have made some significant changes in their musical choices. Males, it seems, are maintaining the same preferences for instruments as they…

Facing the ambiguous status of in-school music literacy, this follow-up eight-year study aims to touch on the effects of traditional staff notation (SN) learning on student's intuitive symbolizing behavior and musical perception. Subjects were 47 second-graders attending a religious Jewish school in Israel. One "pre-literate" meeting, in…

This curriculum and instructional plan for Canadian schools is based on a study of the tradition of steelbands of Trinidad. The primary aim of the study was to move toward understanding how Trinidadian people view, experience, explain, and order specific elements of their musical world. The study proposed a curriculum and instructional plan for…