Arts and Humanities Commons^™

An Ethical Response To The “Gender Trouble” In Choral Music, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

In Dialogue: Response To Graham Mcphail, “Too Much Noise In The Classroom? Towards A Praxis Of Conceptualization”, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Conference Report: The 2018 Symposium On Research In Choral Singing, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Research-To-Resource: Initial Steps In Vocal Technique For Boys Experiencing Difficulty With Phonation During The Adolescent Voice Change, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

This research-to-resource article reports pedagogical implications of several types of research literature. This literature collectively focuses on boys’ adolescent development, with specific attention to psychological and sociological implications on the teaching of vocal technique during the period of voice change. From this foundation, the concept of breath control is identified as a relatively stable process during adolescence, providing teachers and their students a beginning point for conversations about the developing voice and explorations of rudimentary vocal technique. This article describes a step-by-step process for approaching these pedagogical conversations and singing explorations.

Comparison Of Printed Concert Programs At Acda, Asta, And Midwest Clinic National Conferences, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

This short-form manuscript reports a content analysis of all ensemble concert programs distributed at the 2015 national conferences of the American Choral Directors Association, the American String Teachers Association, and the Midwest Clinic. The purpose was to address perceptions that print and design expectations for the concert programs were elaborate and, therefore, beyond the means of schools and organizations with limited financial resources. Programs were analyzed for characteristics such as overall dimensions, number of pages, use of color and photography, letters of administrative or political support, and design intensity. Analysis revealed substantial differences between the aggregate concert programs by conference, …

On Large Ensembles: A Cross-Cultural Content Analysis Of English And Chinese-Language Articles, Patrick K. Freer, Leonard Tan

Music Faculty Publications

This article reports a cross-cultural analysis of journal articles pertaining to large ensembles published in English and Chinese languages from 2007–17. Topics addressed in the articles included issues of equity and access, the value of large ensembles in young people’s lives and to the field of music education, the development of large ensemble music education in Asia, and implications for the field of conductor-teacher preparation. Three conceptually distinct but interrelated themes emerged: power, participation, and pedagogy. “Power” refers to the authority, command, and influence commonly associated with conductors. “Participation” refers to issues of access, recruitment, retention, attrition, and other sociological …

Problem-Based Learning And Structural Redesign In Methods Courses, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

This article describes the process of structural redesign of an undergraduate music education choral methods course. A framework incorporating Problem-based Learning was developed to promote individualized student learning. Ten students participated in the accompanying research study, contributing an array of written and spoken comments as well as drawn images depicting their experiences and perceptions. Visual and textual data were gathered, transcribed, and analyzed according to existing protocols. Students uniformly reported positive outcomes. A list of suggestions for implementation concludes the article.

A Cover Story: Music Educators Journal And Historical-Political Narrativity, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

This article reports results of a comprehensive content analysis of the 644 Music Educators Journal (MEJ) covers published between September 1914 and December 2015. For more than a century, MEJ’s covers conveyed carefully selected visual and textual imagery to all members of the growing association. The results of the content analysis were secondarily analyzed for elements of historical narrativity and political narrativity in music education. Results indicate that imagery related to nationalism and patriotism increased during times of conflict, the representation of people diversified as time progressed, and there is evidence that the first images of Black …

Creating Under Pressure: Effects Of Divided Attention On The Improvised Output Of Skilled Jazz Pianists, Martin Norgaard, Samantha N. Emerson, Kimberly Dawn, James D. Fidlon

Music Faculty Publications

A growing body of research suggests that jazz musicians concatenate stored auditory and motor patterns during improvisation. We hypothesized that this mechanism allows musicians to focus attention more flexibly during improvisation; for example, on interaction with other ensemble members. We tested this idea by analyzing the frequency of repeated melodic patterns in improvisations by artist-level pianists forced to attend to a secondary unrelated counting task. Indeed, we found that compared to their own improvisations performed in a baseline control condition, participants used significantly more repeated patterns when their attention was focused on the secondary task. This main effect was independent …

The Changing Voices Of Male Choristers: An Enigma . . . To Them, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

This paper reports a study designed to identify the understandings and perceptions of boys enrolled at the London Oratory School about the male adolescent voice change, singing, and choral pedagogy. The study took place on the twentieth anniversary of researcher John Cooksey’s 1992—1994 study concerning the vocal development of boys at the London Oratory School. A secondary goal of the study was to determine any long-term impact of Cooksey’s work at the school itself. Twelve boys aged 12-18, representing continuous and non-continuous singers, participated in individual interviews. Interviews focused on boys' knowledge of their changing voices, the perceived effects of …

The Possible Futures Of Mej, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

The academic editor of Music Educators Journal (MEJ) outlines and discusses implications of the decision process involved with the shift away from print to a primarily electronic MEJ. The article ends with considerations for the future of MEJ as a uniquely democratic institution within the National Association for Music Education.

Reclaiming Group Vocal Instruction, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

General music education began as a singing-based endeavor intended to improve singing in society. It later shifted toward an enterprise predicated on choral performance, particularly at secondary levels. The emphasis on choral performance in schools is problematic because it has pushed a large majority of students away from musical activity in school. At the same time, however, high standards of choral performance quality must continue. The question is not “who sings in our choirs?,” but “who no longer sings at all?.” This article is purposed to begin a discussion about an approach to group vocal instruction wherein singing reclaims its …

Towards A Galant Pedagogy: Partimenti And Schemata As Tools In The Pedagogy Of Eighteenth-Century Style Improvisation, Gilad Rabinovitch, Johnandrew Slominski

Music Faculty Publications

This article presents a pedagogical approach for teaching modern-day students how to improvise in eighteenth-century style based on Gjerdingen’s schemata and the tradition of partimenti. We present results from a pedagogical experiment conducted at the Eastman School of Music, in which students’ improvisations were recorded. We offer a qualitative assessment of selected student improvisations in order to demonstrate the merits of this approach for teaching music theory and historical improvisation. We also address the challenges associated with implementing such a pedagogical approach in modern-day theory curricula. We conclude by reflecting on sonata-form improvisations by the authors and discuss the theoretical …

The Changing Paradigm Of Professional Singing, Deanna Joseph

Music Faculty Publications

There are currently thousands of students studying vocal performance in music schools and conservatories across the United States that go on to have careers of all types. The following article is a conversation with nine of the country’s top conductors and singers. These men and women share their thoughts on what is required to be successful as a professional soloist or choral singer in the twenty-first century, whether in opera, oratorio, early music, commercial recording, or other genres.

“Let Us Give The Light To Them”: Bookending The First Century Of Music Educators Journal, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Music Education And The Military: The Special Focus Issue, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Bennett Reimer And Mej: A 58-Year Partnership, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

This article focuses on the contributions made by composer Bennett Reimer to the "Music Educators Journal." It mentions the articles written by Reimer which were published in the June-July 1956 issue, the number of articles published by Reimer in the journal and Reimer's contribution to music education.

Mej At 100: A Journal For “All Interested In Public School Music.”, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

“101 Years And Counting: Mej Inspires New European Journals.”, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

“Years Of Progress” -- Music Educators Journal From 1964 To 1989 (Volumes 51-75), Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Whom Does It Concern? A Reflection On Issues Relating To Quality, Accountability, And Relevance In Music Education's Journals, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

This essay examines components of the critique process used for American music education journals. Issues of criticism and critique are explored from three perspectives: those who oversee, those who contribute to, and those who constitute the audiences for these journals. This analysis concerns both implicit and explicit aspects of critique as they relate to peer review, journal rankings, the rise of digital academic journals, and tenure decisions. These are individually and collectively examined for indicators of quality, accountability, and relevance.

Mej Covers From The First 100 Years: Designing To Unite A Profession, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Self-Perceptions Of Young Men As Choral Singers In Singaporean Secondary Schools, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

The persistence of young men in choral singing activity has been widely studied in North America, with emerging parallel research in Europe (Freer, 2013; Harrison & Welch, 2012). There has been little such research in Asia. This study, of twelve young men enrolled in Singapore’s pre-university schools, collected both written narratives and drawn imagery to explore participants’ musical identities, perceptions of choral singing, and reasons for continued or discontinued participation in choral music. The report details the analytical methods used for understanding the visual imagery (Kress & van Leeuwen, 2006). Four a priori hypotheses were developed based on relevant, existing …

Five From The Folder: Mixed Choir, Deanna Joseph

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Nineteenth-Century Performance Practice: Reassessing Tradition And Revitalizing Interpretation, Deanna Joseph

Music Faculty Publications

Although research into historical performance practice has enjoyed a vast revival over a 50-year period, most of this research has focused on the Baroque era, with little attention paid to the practices of the 19th century. Joseph presents an overview of research into 19th-century performance practices, including orchestral placement, rubato, tempo changes, portamento and vibrato. She shares her experiments in applying these performance practices into contemporary performances.

Religious Music In Public Schools—Mixed Messages From Mej, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Perspectives Of European Boys About Their Voice Change And School Choral Singing: Developing The Possible Selves Of Adolescent Male Singers, Patrick K. Freer

Music Faculty Publications

This article reports analysis of interviews with 85 boys from England, Greece, Ireland and Spain about the voice change, school singing and choral music instruction. Consistent, former, and self-described non-singers were included. Data suggest consistency with much of the existing narrative literature about the experience of voice change. Unique topics included a sense of identity loss during voice change. Issues related to gender and sexuality-based bullying were explored. Boys offered numerous recommendations for teachers, including that teachers focus on vocal technique specific to male changing voices. Boys’ comments suggested a pattern of identity development consistent with the Possible Selves construct. …

Profane Commandments For The Sacred Process: Rehearsing, Deanna Joseph

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Review Of Music In The Nineteenth Century, By Walter Frisch, Marie Sumner Lott

Music Faculty Publications

Reviews of:

Music in the Nineteenth Century, Walter Frisch. (Western Music in Context, vol. 5). New York: W. W. Norton, 2013. ISBN: 978-0-393-92919-5.

Anthology for Music in the Nineteenth Century, Walter Frisch. (Western Music in Context: A Norton History) New York: W. W. Norton, 2013. ISBN: 978-0-393920-178.

Domesticity In Brahms’S String Sextets, Opp. 18 And 36, Marie Sumner Lott

Music Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.