Recent research has explored gender ratios in orchestras but not specifically in brass playing, a historically masculine field. Three studies investigated gender ratios in a variety of brass-playing situations. Public domain and questionnaire data were analysed using descriptive statistics, and a chi-square test found a significant effect of instrument size on gender ratios. The highest percentage

This article explores the multifaceted landscape of music literacy education in South African secondary schools through an anagrammatic lens. Music literacy education is symbolised by the anagrams ‘NAOUIEDCT’ and ‘RCSSEOEUR’, encapsulating resource-related, cultural and pedagogical complexities. This comparison of music literacy education to anagrams creates an interesting analogy that can shed light

In the 21st century, we are increasingly exposed to music created entirely on computers. This article shows how pioneering music teachers approach the challenge of teaching music on the laptop computer in the context of one-to-one musical instrument lessons. Interviews and observations with five laptop teachers in Norwegian secondary schools enabled the authors to explore characteristic challenges

Music teachers in secondary education tend to undervalue the professional competence of creating music, in response to educational models that prioritise the development of musical interpretation skills. The aim of this research is to identify the factors that contribute to this belief among teachers in Spain, by analysing the results of the Professional Competences of the Music Teacher questionnaire

Despite being the fastest growing population in the United States and a part of many music education programs, Asian and Asian American (AAM) music teachers’ voices often are unheard in music education discourses. The purpose of this study was to begin bringing visibility to the experiences of AAM music educators. The research questions explored in this article are: How do AAM music teachers describe

In this article, the impact of three experimental parameters in a harmonic expectancy study are evaluated: stimulus duration (specifically the lead-in time prior to an unexpected event), ecological validity of the stimulus (original recording vs. piano only), and familiarity. This article also presents a novel experimental paradigm for detecting expectancy violations in a real-time listening context

This article explores the potential barriers for emerging composers to constructing and maintaining a career in the field of composition in Scotland, viewed through the lens of both those early in their careers and the experience of others who have worked professionally for many years. Thirty-nine composers responded to a survey that highlighted the role of educational mentoring, the need for monetary

This Participatory Action Research (PAR) investigates the integration of informal music learning in Macau’s educational context, guided by the Model of Generative Change (Ball, 2009). Engaging the participating college students (N = 41), this study explores how learners perceive the formal–informal learning continuum (Folkestad, 2006) through the four stages of informal learning experiences: awakening

Context is one of the key parameters influencing music emotion perception in listeners. The current study systematically investigates the influence of immediate intrinsic musical context on the perception of music-evoked emotions. Four dominantly happy and four dominantly sad Hindustani classical music excerpts were chosen and rated for perceived emotions in two types of listening experiments. In the

Practice may be the single most important activity that musicians can use to improve their performance. Yet practice requires significant effort and can sometimes feel difficult or unenjoyable. For this reason, substantial motivational resources are required to sustain consistent, high-quality practice over long periods. In this study, we used self-determination theory to study the kinds of motivation

Folk psychology posits that music artists’ first albums are considered their best, whereas later albums draw fewer accolades, and that artists’ second albums are considered worse than their first—a phenomenon called the “sophomore slump.” This work is the first large-scale multi-study attempt to test changes in album quality over time and whether a sophomore slump bias exists. Study 1 examined music

This study investigates how a first-time Cypriot mother used music in caring for her infant during the COVID-19 pandemic. Limited research has been done about musical parenting during this time, highlighting the importance of this single case study. For 5 months, the mother-participant engaged in an online musical parenting program, which aimed to increase knowledge regarding the use of music and movement

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which the 3 × 2 achievement goal model describes the goal orientations of university band students in two performance contexts. Students ( N = 183) enrolled in four concert band ensembles at two universities completed a goal orientation questionnaire, once in reference to personal music performance goals and once in reference to music performance

This study investigates the impact of positive or negative performance evaluations on general self-efficacy and subsequent choice of a solo or group performance among professional musicians ( N = 53; women 58.2%, men 36.4%, non-binary 5.5%). Participants completed personality questionnaires, sight-read an unfamiliar musical piece, received computer-generated feedback, and reported post-manipulation

Many musicians live with music performance anxiety (MPA), which may affect their psychological and physiological functioning. Mindfulness, being aware in the present moment without judgment, has been found to help ease anxiety. Mindfulness may also help alleviate the negative effects of MPA, but what is the neurophysiological basis for this effect? Core components of mindfulness, including emotional

The preparation of music teachers represents a key factor within the educational framework. In a world in constant evolution, the need to integrate new training proposals that cater to different environments is of vital importance to strengthen music education. The aim of this study is to analyze the use of mentoring in the context of music teaching through a systematic review using PRISMA. Among the

Preservice music educators’ (PMEs) experiences teaching students with disabilities (SwD) often occurs through general education coursework. Researchers have examined the effect of content-specific course work on PMEs preparation to teach music to SwD but have not examined if differences in course and clinical settings impact their self-reported feelings of self-efficacy. The purpose of this study was

In this research, I aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of using video recordings in the process of formative assessment of taksims performed within the maqams covered in a Turkish music theory course. Taksim entails a performance aligned with the melodic movement features of a given maqam, adhering to its rules, yet allowing for improvised expression without a rhythmic structure. Maqam can be defined

The aims of this quantitative descriptive research were to find out the involvement and training of generalist Early Childhood teachers in active in the school year 2023/2024 in the development of creative musical and sound activities. An online questionnaire was used to obtain socio-demographic data, creative self-concept, as well as the degree of training, importance attached to and use of certain

Guided listening is vital in music education, fostering self-expression, skill development, and academic achievement. Yet, its limited use in Israeli high schools creates a gap between its recognized value and practice. This mixed-method study examines guided listening integration in secular Jewish-Israeli high school music programs based on four philosophical and pedagogical approaches—esthetic, Praxial

The Buddhist Vipassana technique of Kayanupassana Satipatthana is used to develop samadhi (concentration) and sati (awareness) in the practices of Thai classical music (dontri Thai) teachers working in a Thai primary school and the specialist music school in a Thai university. While previous studies have explored the use of mediation as a means of alleviating stress or spiritual progress, the techniques

We present a novel framework for music and emotion research that addresses emotional experiences with music as functional episodes. This framework, called the Episode Model, places the situation and the function of the music for the individual at the centre of the experience and integrates acts of affective self-regulation to our understanding of music as emotional experiences. The model consists of

This study documents the enduring impacts of a workplace music mentoring programme for generalist classroom teachers in early childhood school settings in Australia. The study draws on follow-up in...

The purpose of this exploratory instrumental qualitative case study with nested mixed methods was to examine undergraduate music majors’ perceptions of their sense of belonging within one public university music program. We surveyed undergraduate music majors within a single music program and completed purposeful and targeted follow-up interviews of selected respondents who represented a diverse cross-section

One of the challenges in planning a digital edition is the selection of the encoding system and representation format that the edition will use to encode musical information. This decision affects ...

The Music Self-Perception Inventory-Short (MUSPI-S) is a theoretically based instrument consisting of 28 items with subscales that assess music self-concept globally and in six specific areas. The present study sought to validate a German translation of the MUSPI-S using a sample of 444 secondary school students. In addition to participants’ scores from the German translation of the MUSPI-S, associated

Editing musical texts requires a great deal of artistic, intellectual and commercial investment but, once published, an edition tends to become inert, a form of musical still life. ‘Texting Scarlat...

Traditionally, composers create music individually and autonomously. The egalitarian relationships in inclusive music ensembles, with their blend of conventional and technological music instruments and their focus on collaborative composing processes, however, might challenge professional composers to work differently. This begs the question: Which attitude, knowledge, and skills do composers need

The purpose of this study was to explore how an intergenerational group of music students (ages 16–71) mentored each other in an online jazz improvisation course. This study is framed in Dewey’s no...

Sixteen piano students learned four piano pieces under two different conditions that involved the deprivation of auditory and motor feedback. One condition required study away from the piano, thus implying the removal of auditory and kinaesthetic feedback (mental practice, MP). The other condition involved study on a digital piano that was turned off (motor practice, MoP), hence depriving the participant

When young people leave the musical world of their school environment, a lack of clear routes into adult musical engagement brings a risk of wasted ability, motivation and enjoyment, which arguably undermines the value of music education. This study explored the factors that influence continued musical participation among young British adults who had been actively engaged in school music. Musical participation

Chord detection is the task of assigning chord labels to segments of an input musical piece. The labels are typically drawn from a pre-defined vocabulary in which each symbol comprises at least a r...

Music has been actively studied from the perspectives of emotional expression and body movement, but not during adolescence. The current study addressed music as a forum for adolescent embodied emotion expression. Based on prior research, we hypothesised that adolescents would be able to differentiate between emotions in their music-related expressive body movements based on valence and arousal characteristics

The purpose of this study was to investigate the ways that children engage in collaborative processes with adults and their peers in music sight-reading skill acquisition in a middle school chorus in the Southeastern United States. Intact groups of sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade choruses were assessed on melodic and rhythmic sight-reading using a quasi-experimental pretest/posttest non-equivalent

Rock music and Western classical music seem very different but musicians in the two cultures may have enough self-regulated musical learning behaviors in common for concurrent application in school-based music education. In this paper, I describe the self-reported self-regulated musical learning behaviors of seven successful rock musicians, compare their behaviors to those expected in the Western classical

Collective and individual practices are essential for popular music bands and their members when preparing for public performances. This study addresses the interplay of collective and individual practices in a sample of 82 members of semi-professional and professional popular music bands in Austria and Germany. Utilizing a structured questionnaire, practices were assessed within collective and individual

The purpose of this study was to explore research and publishing preparation, experiences, and expectations of music education faculty members employed at higher education institutions. We developed the Publishing Preparation and Expectations Survey (PPES) to examine music education faculty members’ current areas of research, peer-reviewed journals they read and published in, and their experiences

When children commence instrumental music tuition, learning difficulties can emerge to disrupt predictable learning processes and impact musical development. However, children’s experiences of learning difficulties, including how they present, are managed and can be supported, are rarely examined in music research. This longitudinal, qualitative study used Participatory Action Research and Interpretative

Declining enrolments and low persistence in music education are universal concerns among music educators. Identifying social-cognitive constructs that might be predictive of adolescent student persistence may assist in the development of interventions aimed at promoting persistence in music education in a global context. Using quantitative measures, this study considers the relationships between collaborative

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about dramatic changes in popular music education, underscoring the importance of technology in both practice and transmission. Nevertheless, the celebration of technological integration as a one-stop solution has led to some challenges remaining overlooked and unsolved, resulting in an increasing mismatch between popular music education and the growth of online musical

This study explored Korean music teachers’ use of technology and views on integrating technology into music classrooms. Using a mixed methods approach, the researchers administered a survey to 105 music teachers and conducted semi-structured interviews with five music teachers. The results showed that about one-fourth of survey respondents indicated that they rarely incorporate music technology when

Adjudicated performances have been a component of music education for more than a century, and the policies and structures associated with these events intersect with curriculum, instruction, and teacher evaluation. The purpose of this study was to describe state-organized large group performance evaluation (LGPE) practices for high school bands, choirs, and orchestras across the United States. We

This collaborative autoethnography was developed by recent doctoral students in music from Southern Europe, Eurasia, East Asia, and North America, along with a professor based in Northern Europe. Our primary research question is “What can disruptive autobiographical experiences teach us about the implications of the decolonization movement for redefining “musical excellence” in higher music education

The period 1974–1999 were transition years for government school systems in Australia and New South Wales (NSW), where government agencies issued numerous policies and documents to influence and manage education and resultant classroom pedagogy. During those years, many music syllabi were produced for enactment in NSW, placing multiple demands on teacher accountability. This paper forms part of a larger

This study was of adolescent males about their musical self-perceptions and experiences in one Austrian school’s choral music programme. Participants who sang continuously in the school choir reported experiences consistent with flow theory. In contrast, participants who withdrew said that their school choral experiences lacked challenge levels commensurate with their interests and skills and that

COVID-19 presented many challenges while the shift to online learning also provided unexpected opportunities for music teachers. During the pandemic, two researchers who are teacher educators undertook a composing project with music teacher education students in Scotland and Australia in response to the theme: My Life in Isolation: A World Apart or Same Difference? Turino’s (2008) theory of participatory

The need for effective continuing professional development (CPD) in music education is outlined and literature on CPD for generalist teachers and teaching assistants is reviewed. A small qualitative study is then presented that took advantage of a music-making project led by folk musicians in six special schools in England. This study focused on the generalist teaching staff who actively supported

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in music engagement across immigration generations among different racial/ethnic groups for adults living in the United States. I conducted seco...

The study investigates the multifaceted role of music during homesickness among first-year college students in India. As compared to other mental health outcomes, homesickness is a relatively understudied phenomenon, yet noteworthy due to its direct association with depression and anxiety. Although empirical evidence about music highlights its therapeutic potential for managing stress and anxiety,

This article examines how classical music students understand early twentieth-century recordings in higher music education. A qualitative research method was chosen to investigate the beliefs and self-reported practices of 16 students enrolled in a European conservatoire, whose attitudes were considered through the administration of a semi-structured questionnaire and an interview. Their responses

The latest version of China’s National Compulsory Education Curriculum Programme and Standards 2022 (hereafter CECPS 2022) emphasises the cultivation of students’ collaborative capacities, mentioning ‘ carrying out the core literacy effectively’. From the perspective of music education, this study summarises the requirements for collaborative activities in compulsory courses of the music discipline

Widespread research over four decades has shown that musicians suffer physical and psychological injuries that can begin during childhood and early adulthood. A survey of 268 Australian tertiary music students revealed their perceptions of the importance of health education as part of their education. While students rated health knowledge as highly important, they considered its inclusion in their

Informal music learning, pioneered by Green (2002, 2006, 2017), presents an alternative approach that integrates students’ interests in popular music, bridging the informal and traditional styles of Western music education in schools. We conducted a scoping review adhering to the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines to investigate informal music learning

El Sistema and Sistema-inspired programmes have become increasingly popular community music education and social welfare initiatives that aim to benefit socially and economically disadvantaged youth. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic significantly disrupted many of these programmes. The purpose of this research was to investigate how eight Canadian El Sistema and Sistema-inspired programmes

Music performance anxiety (MPA) affects young musicians, and especially those in higher music education, due to the evaluation and performance demands of this context and their professional and personal expectations, with implications for health and wellbeing. This study investigates the following predictors of anxiety: gender, age, performance experience, health problems, coping strategies and medication

Music students experiencing the potentially debilitating effects of playing-related injury (PRI) often first turn to their music teachers for help. This paper aims to document music instructors’ lived experience and perceptions surrounding PRI and better understand how teachers currently support students’ musculoskeletal health. Using a qualitative description approach, in-depth interviews with 10

The aim of this study is to explore the lived experience of students ( N = 1,282) in general education engaging in collective free improvisation (CFI). Fourteen music teachers implemented a CFI lesson in 69 classes in Flanders (Belgium). Lived experience was measured using a Dutch version of the Flow State Scale for Occupational Tasks. This scale reflects the degree of Sense of Control, Positive Emotional

Separate voice part perception has been shown in polyphonic music. However, it remains unclear whether this segregation of voice parts is specific to polyphony or also occurs in homophonic music. This study compared voice part perceptions in polyphony and homophony using a redundant signals effect (RSE) paradigm. The RSE means that reaction times are shorter for two simultaneously presented signals