Music Education Commons^™

Music Isn’T Just A Special: Amplifying Music's Power In Fostering Social-Emotional Skills In Students, Angelina Davis

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

For this Capstone Project, the researcher investigated how Dream Academy and Little Foot Elementary educators view music's impacts on social-emotional learning and what they thought could be done to improve it. Based on an analysis of the data and the relevant research literature, the researcher used what they have learned to formulate an action that responds to the impact of music on social-emotional learning in a way that inspires, informs, or involves a particular audience. This is an important issue for students and teachers because music education allows educators to teach social-emotional skills. It is argued that music fosters social-emotional …

Sequencing Orchestral Repertoire For Collegiate Orchestras: Addressing The Educational Needs Of Students In Various Stages Of Development, Cheuk Nok Francis Ku

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Sequencing is a fundamental aspect of music education, not only in individual instrumental teaching but also in large-ensemble instruction. Collegiate orchestras, like other educational ensembles, experience turnover of students each academic year, and face unique challenges in repertoire selection due to the diverse skill levels and experience of their members. This document presents a case study of the LSU Symphony Orchestra program spanning from 2021 to 2024, and complements a performance featuring works by Amy Beach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Joseph Haydn, and José Pablo Moncayo. The document also delved into the study of performance practice during the Classical period and …

Choir Teacher Agency And Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy, Kaitlyn Schramm

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Culturally sustaining pedagogy (CSP) (Paris, 2012) is an educational framework that nurtures and sustains students’ cultural competencies and identities. Scholars have recognized the need for practices that sustain and nurture cultural identities and ways of knowing music in the music classroom (Abril, 2009; Bond, 2014; Good Perkins, 2018; Salvador & Culp, 2022; Shaw, 2016). Culturally sustaining teachers reimagine curriculum entirely and place students' cultural assets at the center “as targets of learning to be sustained” (Lee, 2017, p. 262), explored, honored, extended, and critically problematized (Lee, 2017; Paris, 2012; Samy Alim et al., 2020). In choral classrooms, this often involves …

Psychological Well-Being And Music Among Children, Elle Chrampanis

Honors Theses

The purpose of this instrumental case study was to explore how music supports kindergarteners’ well-being in an elementary music classroom through the lens of PERMA, a framework for well-being developed by Martin Seligman. PERMA stands for positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, and accomplishment. An additional goal was to see how applicable this framework was to kindergarteners. Accordingly, a five-week music program was developed and taught at a local elementary school. A typical elementary music curriculum was developed consisting of lessons that included a welcome song, a rhythm activity, a musical storybook, the sequential learning of a song, and a goodbye …

Evaluating The Perceived Preparedness Of Pre-Service Music Educators To Teach Students With Disabilities, Emily Jarvis

Honors Projects

This study evaluated the perceived preparedness of pre-service music educators to teach students with disabilities based on their university’s curriculum. Ten participants responded to a survey that asked questions on their feelings of preparedness in classroom management, teaching students with disabilities, university education, and personal perspectives. Overall, participants indicated they felt comfortable with teaching students with disabilities, but felt unprepared to teach specific components of disability education based on their program studies alone. Suggestions to improve university programs are based on implementing Universal Design Learning (UDL) practices.

Moments Of Meeting: 'Intersubjective Encounters' And ‘Emancipatory’ Experiences Of Individuals With (Intellectual) Disabilities In Inclusive Musical Contexts, Caroline Blumer

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The purpose of this study was to explore an intersubjective framework to better understand the relational aspects of two inclusive musical programs in London, ON. I focused on mutual recognition moments, called moments of meeting (MoM), researching how they are formed and manifested while music is shared, created, or experienced within these two environments. Approaching such programs as potentially intersubjective spaces, this study investigated the impact of MoM and intersubjective experiences on the participation of individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ID) in music making as well as on their perceptions of themselves as subjects. Equally significant, this study looked at emerging …

Lgbtq+ Safe Space And Inclusive Practices: Perspectives Of Collegiate Music Education Majors, Desmond Armentrout

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions and experiences of collegiate music education students’ perceptions and experiences in secondary U.S. music classrooms as they pertain to classroom climate, safe spaces, and academic/inclusive practices for LGBTQ+ students. Six hundred sixty-six emails were sent to music education coordinators and music department chairs inviting undergraduate music education majors to participate in the research study, which resulted in 143 participants. Findings from the study indicated that nearly two-thirds of the participants considered the secondary school music classroom a safe environment, and choice of concert uniform attire and use of personal pronouns …

Effects Of Covid-19 On Elementary And Secondary Music Education, Colette Stefaniak

Student Theses

This paper will highlight several key effects the COVID-19 pandemic had on elementary and secondary music education. The 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic drastically changed music education for both elementary and secondary institutions. Changes made to music curriculums to adapt to an online teaching environment have had both positive and negative effects on post-pandemic music education. This paper will discuss how the 2020 pandemic has created a different learning environment for elementary music classrooms, music ensembles, and private lessons.

Humor In Western European Instrumental Music: How Humor Works, Its Usage Over Time, And Accessible Teaching Strategies, Hunter K. Thompson

Senior Theses

This research’s purpose was to examine the perception of humor, both generally and musically, and to provide an overview of how humor has been incorporated into Western European instrumental music from the Medieval Age to the 20th century. In order to evaluate this, the researcher conducted a listening survey to gauge how well college music majors perceive humor in instrumental music. The survey consisted of eleven total listening excerpts approved by the Music History faculty at the University of South Carolina School of Music. Nine excerpts were coded humorous, and two excerpts were coded non-humorous for control. There was a …

Secondary Traumatic Stress And Women Music Educators: A Phenomenological Study, Abigail Van Klompenberg

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Secondary traumatic stress (STS) is a phenomenon that affects individuals in helping professions, including educators. STS is a trauma disorder and results from one’s exposure to others experiencing trauma or who have experienced trauma. STS can affect physical health, well-being, and professional performance. Due to the profound effects of STS, there is a need for continued research to clarify this phenomenon in educators, specifically music educators. Furthermore, there is a need for research on STS in women due to women’s unique interactions with trauma and the potential for them to develop trauma disorders. At the time of this study, there …

A History Of Educational Concerts Of The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Sean Radermacher

Theses and Dissertations--Music

This project illuminates the history of educational concerts of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) and reveals a legacy of performances for young audiences, today’s educational innovations, and the orchestra’s evolving mission to serve young people. Concerts for young people are an important facet of the history of American orchestras. Today, these concerts and other educational programs are essential to increase the accessibility of orchestral music.

The PSO’s history highlights the close relationship of American orchestras with an educational mission from their early years to the present. After an overview of the origins of permanent orchestras and the national context of …

Applications Of Video Game Music Theory For The Highschool/College Theory Curriculum, Daniel L. Thompson

Honors Theses and Capstones

This paper covers the origins of video game audio and the technical limitations that effected what composers could write. Several audio excerpts have been transcribed with roman numeral analysis. The goal of this project was to determine if musical excerpts from video games could supplement an existing highschool/college theory curriculum. Theory techniques ranging from simple cadences to secondary function chords are present throughout the pieces. The pieces are from a variety of games and composers from 1983 - 2014. Overall, many of the compositions contain excellent examples of theory techniques. These excerpts would best be utilized alongside existing theory material. …

Perspectives Of International Music Teachers In The United States, Pedro Gomes Lobato

Masters Theses

Today’s world is vastly impacted by the effects of immigration and globalization. The cultural diversity in the student population in the United States continues to grow steadily along with the immigrant population. Although there is a large body of research that is concerned with culturally responsive teaching in music education, preservice teacher preparation to address and serve diverse communities, as well as issues of recruitment of diverse educators, there is a gap in the literature when it comes to the perspectives of international music educators in the United States. Researchers have provided information on diverse student populations and resources for …

Two Marching Band Directors’ Insights About Their Bands’ Musical Achievement And Satisfaction In The American Deep South: A Qualitative Analysis, John Klee

Honors Theses

High School marching band is an intricate facet of music education that operates in several varieties across the United States. Depending on the style as well as many external and internal factors of a marching band, marching bands can have goals and definitions of musical achievement that can vary drastically. This qualitative study aims to assist those in the world of marching music education to better understand these distinct types of marching bands on a deeper level. The study gathered detailed perspectives of two directors in juxtaposed marching programs to a view of what drives these bands and directors to …

Creative Practice For Classical String Players With Live Looping, Caleb Yang

Student Theses

In recent years, string pedagogy discussions have highlighted the greater need for creative practice as classical string players. Since the second half of the nineteenth century, string methods have shifted towards a limited scope of improvisatory techniques, parallelling the decline of improvisation in Western classical music performance practices. This thesis explores live looping as a practice tool to facilitate learning concepts and help string players develop musicianship skills including improvisation, participate in non-classical genres, and explore their creative voices. Examining the results of string educators that incorporate live looping into their own teaching reveals the tool’s effectiveness in bridging curricula …

An Examination Of Community Band Members' Ratings Of Skills, Traits, And Behaviors Of Community Band Conductors, Anita-Ann Jerosch

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine community band members’ perceptions of the skills, traits, and behaviors of community band conductors. Community band members rated the importance of a range of such skills, traits, and behaviors in relation to their experience within their band. Adult community band members learn differently from the ways that school-aged students do because they have different life experiences, motivations, and educational needs. Adult learners desire to be part of their own learning, and they need a conductor who has the skills, traits, and behaviors that are important from their perspectives.

The conductor/musician relationship is …

Development In Singers With Perfectionism, Melody F. White

Honors College Theses

According to Stoeber and Childs (2011), perfectionism is “a personality disposition characterized by striving for flawlessness and setting excessively high standards for performance accompanied by tendencies for overly critical evaluations” (p.2) Dispositions such as perfectionism may be prominent in individuals in the performing arts, as it may help or hinder their development. This study explores development in singers with perfectionism and ways of coping. Studies have shown that there are both positive and negative aspects of perfectionism. Positive aspects include goal progress, agreeableness, and higher functioning. Negative aspects include depression, anxiety, stress maladjustment. These negative aspects manifest in musicians through …

Fostering Music Performers In The 21st Century: A Contemporary Professional Perspective Toward A New Curricular Agenda For Graduate Study In Music, Andre Januario

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

What if the core curriculum for graduate students in music performance were designed to prepare students to succeed in the world of the Fourth Industrial Revolution?

This dissertation offers a hypothetical answer: a structured and systematic academic curricular framework for music graduate students of performance of concert music (especially those in terminal degrees, such as doctoral students), along with music instructors, professional music performers, school administrators, and college professors, seeking to prepare such students for achieving and maintaining a music career more in keeping with the current work environment, especially those skills demanded by the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the …

Mindfulness, Flow And Self-Care For Double Bass Musicians, Samuel R. Brown

Music ETDs

In this qualitative multi-case study, three college-age music majors from the local state university were interviewed, observed, and asked to complete reflections in order to answer the following questions: How do mindfulness activities affect collegiate double bass music students’ perceptions of their own playing and practicing? My secondary questions were 1) how do mindfulness activities affect flow experiences among collegiate double bass music students, and 2) how do mindfulness activities affect students’ perception of self-care? The interviews were transcribed, coded using “concept coding” (Miler, Huberman, & Saldaña, 2020), and then grouped into categories, themes, and sub-themes. The themes were time, …

Black Expressions Of Dillard University: How One Historically Black College Pioneered African American Arts, Makenzee Brown

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The proposed public history project, Within These Walls (WTW), will be one component of a larger exhibit produced by Dillard University’s, Library Archives and Special Collections entitled The Star Burns Bright: History of Dillard’s Theatrical and Musical Arts, Faculty and Students. WTW will focus on Dillard’s historic African American faculty, students and alumni who became prominent painters, musicians, writers, actors and directors among them Adella Gautier, Randolph Edmonds, Ted Shine Frederick Hall, Theodore Gilliam, and Brenda Osbey. This exhibit will also highlight the many art programs, across genres, offered at the university between 1935 and 1970. This exhibit will demonstrate …

Exploring Moroccan Music Through Experiential Learning, Tai Knoll

Honors Projects

As a music educator, I value a comprehensive and well-rounded music education that is inclusive and dynamic – an education that introduces students to the global world they live in and fosters compassion and understanding of cultures different from their own. However, I did not fully understand how I could provide that for my students and how to do so in a respectful and appropriate way that did not other or appropriate the culture I was attempting to honor. That desire to learn more about teaching world musics and representation in the classroom drove me to pursue answers through the …

Leveraging Non-Traditional Notation And Technology To Enhance A Fourth Grade Recorder Unit, Stephenie Mokriakow

Theses

This action research project analyzes the traditional methods of teaching recorder to fourth grade students to expand upon these traditional methods and create a unit that leverages technology and non-traditional notation as well as introducing students to traditional music notation. The unit includes lessons that are scaffolded to meet the desired end results. The learning objectives include understanding of basic rhythm patterns and beginning notes on the recorder. The culmination of the lessons will end with a series of songs that the teacher will use to assess students.

Acoustic Measures Of The Singing Voice In Secondary School Students, Elizabeth M. Wallace

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Descriptions of voice quality in vocal and choral music often rely on subjective terminology, which may be perceived differently between individuals. As access to software used in acoustic measurement becomes more widespread and affordable, music educators can potentially combine traditional descriptive terminology with objective acoustic descriptors and data, which may improve both teaching and singing. The secondary school choral music educator has specific challenges, in that they teach students who experience drastic physical and acoustic changes of the voice as they grow from children to adults. The purpose of this study was to objectively analyze various acoustic characteristics of the …

Music Notation-To-Color Synesthesia And Early Stages Of Music Education: A Grounded Theory Study, Eduardo Sola Chagas Lima

Dissertations

Problem

Synesthesia is a neurological condition characterized by over-abundant neural connectivity between commonly highly specialized areas of the brain. The developmental form of the condition often results in automatic and consistent cross-sensory associations between perceived stimuli and commonly unrelated brain regions. This research contemplates the specific form of music notation-to-color synesthesia and its impact on early stages of music education. Synesthetes with this mode of the condition tend to involuntarily yet consistently associate music-notational concepts with colors, thus rendering their assimilation of these concepts unique and individualized. The purpose of this study is to determine the extent of these individualized …

Examining The Fears, Benefits, And Applications Of Teaching Improvisation In General Music, Krystle Boyd

Theses

This project focused on identifying and resolving fears associated with teaching improvisation in the general music classroom. The primary focus was on music educators and providing them with reassurance, reasoning, and plans on how to begin the process of teaching improvisation and follow through so that it is a well-developed initiative that will be built upon and utilized for years to come. This project demonstrated plans for an entire year of 5th grade general music instruction and provided a curriculum map, lesson plans, rubrics, and a manual of explanation for the lessons and activities.

Underground Opera Troupe: Early Opera In The Twenty-First Century, Abigail Josephine Hughes

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Projects

Through this project I sought to examine early opera as well as opera in America today and educate the average person about the value and availability of the genre. In order to do so, I organized and directed a small traveling opera troupe to perform in a variety of locations throughout Columbus, Ohio. The troupe performed at three locations over the course of the fall semester in 2018. With each performance, I worked to educate as many people as possible about opera and its presence in society.

Opera in America is, and always has been, a thriving genre. Both traditional …

Geographic Analysis Of Marching Band Culture (College And High School Ensembles), Steven Deamon

Honors Projects

Each marching band defines “culture” as their ensemble’s decisions on marching style, music choice, band size, instrumentation, and performance obligations. This study aims to categorize marching bands by cultural features, test if marching band characteristics are similar across a region, and explore how these trends in band culture relate to other demographic and socioeconomic trends. Research focused on bands in the Midwest and Southeastern United States and was conducted through video observation. Through analysis, it was found that most marching bands surveyed use a corps step, perform music of artistic merit, have between twenty-one and one hundred marchers, perform with …

Religious Music In Public School Choir: Attitudes, Practices, And Experiences, Landon R. Lamontagne

ETD Archive

A large portion of the choral music canon is sacred or religious in nature because the history of choral singing is in large part due to its importance in the development of the Christian church. Many public school choir teachers include sacred or religious music as a part of their repertoire because of its historic, musical and educational value. The fact that religious songs and sacred texts are often included in public school choir curricula has raised numerous philosophical and legal questions over the past several decades, although research regarding public school choir curriculum and religion is limited. The purpose …

Junior High School Student Preference: Teaching Taiwanese Folk Songs Using Orff Activites Vs Traditional Teaching, Mei-Chi Wu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research explores the development of the Orff approach in Taiwan and its applications in the teaching of singing. The researcher seeks to examine the effects of Orff activities in raising the interest of junior high school students in singing. The literature review includes the historical background of the Orff approach and the examination of potential creative adaptations in the teaching of folk songs. In this research, the following are discussed: music education in Taiwan, the development of the Orff approach in private schools, comparisons and contrasts between the New and the Old Curricula in Taiwan, the nature of folk …

Mindfulness And Musicians: An Overview, Stephen Dubetz

Honors Projects

This overview of mindfulness begins with a basic history of the practice and filters chronologically to the application of mindfulness in the lives of modern musicians. From its origins in ancient India to its acceptance into Western culture and its eventual use in clinical, professional, and educational settings, this paper touches briefly on the story of mindfulness as it developed through time. The main questions addressed within are: What is mindfulness? Where does it come from? What use does it have? What fields of Western professional culture have adopted it so far and to what extent? and How can it …