The author suggests that students of early music must have knowledge of those styles' essential improvisatory features so they can make spontaneous and musically appropriate choices when performing music written prior to 1750, knowing that the printed page is an outline to be amplified upon. (KC)

An interview with Hap Palmer, one of the biggest-selling educational recording artists in the U.S., Europe, Japan, Mexico, and Australia. (Author/DB)

Offers an interview with Catherine Comet, music director of the Grand Rapids (Michigan) Symphony. Reviews her childhood and early study in France and her experiences at the Julliard School of Music and on the contest circuit. Explains how she became a professional conductor. Discusses Comet's view of the importance that classical music can have…

Experienced band directors know they need teaching strategies and activities that are not only innovative but also provide creative and engaging breaks in the routine for students. In addition, expectations based on the National Standards suggest new approaches to many of the performance-polishing strategies directors have come to rely on.…

Musicians make music; that is, the performance of music involves applied knowledge or know-how. Can a discursive understanding of what the musician does be attained, and does the attempt to achieve this put at risk the very art it aims to capture? In other words, what can be said of the nature of performance and does what is said turn a living…

Recently, the relationship between music and nonmusical cognitive abilities has been highly debated. It has been documented that formal music training would improve verbal, mathematical or visuospatial performance in children. In the experiments described here, we tested if visual perception and imagery abilities were enhanced in adult musicians…

Background: Educational guidelines and reforms focused on literacy, including No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), have contributed to a music education culture and climate focused on language literacy rather than on the core content literacies inherent in music itself. Purpose: The purpose of this…

This article is a response to Rhoda Bernard's (2005) article, "Making Music, Making Selves". The author first met Dr. Bernard several years ago in the UK, at an international music education research conference at the University of Exeter. Without realising he was in the audience, Dr. Bernard cited his 1995 article "Artist or Teacher?" as an early…

In this article, the authors first address "why" it is beneficial for young people to have the opportunity to be involved in music, and to pursue the development of their musical talent to the fullest. Then, they discuss "how" musically talented young people can be supported in their musical endeavors, drawing on the authors' research to provide…

The challenges of developing potential to achieve high-level performance in music are considerable. Furthermore, research is increasingly emphasizing the multidimensional and dynamic construction of talent, along with an awareness of the central role of psycho-behavioural factors in the realization of potential. Moreover, in order to achieve…

The research project "Investigating Musical Performance: Comparative Studies in Advanced Musical Learning" was devised to investigate how classical, popular, jazz and Scottish traditional musicians deepen and develop their learning about performance in undergraduate, postgraduate and wider music community contexts. The aim of this paper is to…

Professional early childhood educators are often asked for advice about whether or when a young child should learn to play a music instrument. Many educators who do not have a background in music education may not be confident in providing such advice. A range of overseas research has supported learning a music instrument in the early childhood…

Based on the argument that (contrary to critical opinion) the musicians in the various bands associated with Bosstown Sound were indeed talented, cohesive individuals and that the bands' lack of renown was partially a result of ill-treatment by record companies and the press, this paper traces the development of the Bosstown Sound from its…

Discussed the music activities that take place at Williamsburg, the colonial capital of Virginia. (RK)

Author takes us into the recording studio for a look at how performances can be improved and costs held down when school groups make custom recordings. (Editor/RK)