This paper considers the issue of computer-assisted composition in formal music education settings from the perspective of critical theory. The author examines the case of MIDI-based software applications and suggests that the greatest danger from the standpoint of ideology critique is not the potential for circumventing a traditional…

This study examines "L'Histoire du Soldat" from the conductor's perspective. The review of literature examines texts on score study and conducting technique, analyzes writing on the interpretation of Stravinsky's conducting approach and his view on conductors, and provides works on the history and analysis of "L'Histoire du…

Improvisation, the third content standard for the National Standards for Music Education (Music Educators National Conference, 1994), has received less attention from music teachers. This article advocates for more improvisation specifically free improvisation in general music classrooms. The nature of free improvisation, and its evolution in the…

Theoretical approaches to learning in practice-based jazz improvisation contexts include situated learning and ecological perspectives. This article focuses on how interest-driven, self-sustaining jazz learning activities can be matched against the results of a recent Swedish investigation based on extensive qualitative interviews with jazz…

International-mindedness is defined in many different ways in education discourse. Some of the definitions include the ability to be open-minded and respectful of cultures and peoples or having an awareness of the interconnectedness of people not only intellectually but also with growing empathy. Do music educators have any role in helping…

The purpose of this research was to investigate teachers' beliefs about compositional experiences in the elementary music classroom. Elementary music teachers (N = 176) in Michigan completed a researcher-designed questionnaire, which included a combination of forced-choice and open-ended questions regarding how teachers define composition, why…

Ambitious ideals are seldom achieved completely. Realistically, the criterion of success is not so much full accomplishment as satisfactory progress. The author urges music educators to pause now and then to consider their status in this regard. Are they moving ahead to fulfillment of their hopes in ways adequate to their compelling vision? Events…

This article proposes a pedagogical architecture (PA) focused on the development of competencies for music technology in education. This PA used free Web 3.0 technologies, mainly those related to production and musical composition. The pedagogical architecture is geared for teachers and those pursing a teaching degree, working in distance…

Choral directors will always be assessed by the quality of their choral performances. The concepts presented in this article are designed to strengthen and improve choral performance. If choral directors can design an individualized assessment plan and implement some of these ideas during each grading period, grades will be more equitably…

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…

The aim of this study is to develop and validate environmental song-based materials using a scientific approach which follow the stages of research and development. The writer created environmental lyrics and put them on traditional melodies that are familiar to the students. The materials were tried out using preliminary field test, main field…

Rates of music participation are low in developed nations. This may be attributed in part to the failure of school music to engage children sufficiently to motivate them to continue learning and participating in music. We tested the "Harmonix" program of classroom music education, which is currently being designed to maximize engagement…

Given the horn's lengthy history, it is not surprising that many scholars have examined the evolution of the instrument from the natural horn to the modern horn and its expansive repertoire. Numerous dissertations, theses, and treatises illuminate specific elements of the horn's solo repertoire; however, no scholar has produced a…

This dissertation will deal with the issue of incorporating modern piano music into the repertoire of piano students at the undergraduate degree level. For the purposes of this paper, it is assumed the students will be pursuing a major in music at a conservatory or university with piano as their instrument. In no way does this paper serve as an…

Paul Richards is one of those individuals who make a difference and is as far from institutional as one can be. The author met up with him at the Learning Disability Today conference in London to talk more about his work and life. Paul coordinates the service user involvement across Southdown Housing Association, based in Sussex.