Despite historic and ongoing support for the inclusion of improvisation in the elementary general music curriculum, music educators consistently report challenges with implementation of improvisational activities in their classes. This study was designed to examine (a) the extent to which improvisational activities were occurring in the…

What does it mean to teach musical expression to child performers? Is it teaching how to interpret a piece of music "correctly," or is there more involved? In this case study, we explored the beliefs and practices of five teachers who specialized in teaching children to perform in a variety of musical performance areas, including violin,…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of music practice instruction on middle school band students' ability to articulate and incorporate practice strategies. Participants were middle school band students at a large suburban middle school (N = 105). Using a pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design, participants were divided…

Through the lens of hospitality, we explored the meanings that members constructed about their experiences within a blended formal/informal college music ensemble. The focus in this ensemble was not on competition and musical excellence but on independent musicianship and praxis. The bandleader had his roots in tradition but his heart in socially…

The purposes of the present study were to identify the teacher behaviors that preceded learners' active participation in solving musical and technical problems and describe learners' roles in the problem-solving process. I applied an original model of problem solving to describe the behaviors of teachers and students in 161 rehearsal frames…

The purpose of this study was to examine collaborative composing in high school string chamber music ensembles. Research questions included the following: (a) How do high school string instrumentalists in chamber music ensembles use verbal and musical forms of communication to collaboratively compose a piece of music? (b) How do selected variables…

This article presents a history of mediated pedagogy in the Suzuki Method, the first widespread approach to learning an instrument in which sound recordings were central. Media are conceptualized as socially constituted: philosophical ideas, pedagogic practices, and cultural values that together form a contingent and changing technological…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether students' practice efficiency, flow during practicing, and self-efficacy for self-regulation varied as a function of their practice tendencies, their tendencies toward self-evaluation, their self-regulatory tendencies to be self-reflective when practicing, tendencies to exhibit grit in their…

The purpose of this study was to examine teaching effectiveness in an elementary music setting using student achievement as a dependent measure. Because Orff Schulwerk instruction is one of the most prevalent pedagogies in elementary music education, this study examined the rehearsal strategies of recognized Orff Schulwerk teachers as they worked…

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to learn about the ways that instrumental music teachers in Chicago navigated the urban landscape. The design of the study most closely resembles Creswell and Plano Clark's (2007) two-part Triangulation Convergence Mixed Methods Design, with the addition of an initial exploratory focus group component.…

This study was designed to examine the use and perception of selected teaching behaviors of high school band directors. Videotaped rehearsals of six band directors' top-performing ensembles were analyzed for conductor magnitude, sequential pattern components, and instructional pacing. Directors and students rated video excerpts of their…

The purpose of this study was to examine teachers' practices and beliefs related to the teaching of stringed instrument tuning in elementary and middle school group classes. The aspects examined included the following: (a) teachers' beliefs about teaching tuning in their string classes, (b) activities teachers used when teaching tuning in string…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of tonic drone accompaniments on the intonation of collegiate wind instrumentalists. Participants (N = 68) played an excerpt of the melody "Long, Long Ago" in three conditions: a mono drone (tonic note only), dyad drone (tonic plus fifth), and a control condition (no drone). Results…

Examines the effects of finger placement markers (FPMs) and harmonic accompaniment (context) on the left-hand technique, intonation performance skills, and overall musical performance skills of sixth-grade beginning string students. Considers how a tactile/visual reference and an aural reference can influence the development of string-intonation…

In this study, we explored the ways in which listening tools within technology-mediated environments can facilitate children's self-regulation of instrumental music learning between lessons. This interpretive multiple case study utilized a software application assigned for 22 weeks to a piano teacher and four students (ages 8-10). Data sources…