Music Education Commons^™

Singing Portuguese Nasal Vowels: Practical Strategies For Managing Nasality In Brazilian Art Songs, André Campelo

Theses and Dissertations--Music

The articulation of Portuguese nasalized vowels poses some articulatory problems accompanied by negative acoustic effects for the performance of Brazilian art songs. The main objective was to find strategies that permit the singer to conciliate an idiomatic pronunciation of these vowels with a well-balanced resonance, a desirable quality in classical singing. In order to devise these strategies, the author examined sources dealing with nasalized vowels from varied perspectives: acoustic properties of vowel nasalization, phonetic and phonological aspects ofBrazilian Portuguese (BP), historical views on nasality in singing, and recent vocal pedagogy research. In addition to the overall loss of sonority, the …

Symphony For Wind Orchestra By Luis Serrano Alarcón: Background, Analysis, And Conductor’S Guide, Donald F. Goodwin

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Born in 1972, Luis Serrano Alarcón has in a very short period of time, established himself as one of Spain’s most prominent composers. His works are constantly being performed, not only in his home country, but throughout the world. While some of his compositions tend to retain the rhythmic, harmonic, and melodic style typical to Spanish music, many of the works sound as if they were borne more from the Viennese symphonic tradition, both during the time of Haydn and Beethoven, but also during the time of Arnold Schoenberg.

As a young boy Alarcón took up piano lessons with a …

Attitudinal Differences Of Choral Music Teachers In Regards To Vocal Change Type, Jill C. Campbell

Theses and Dissertations--Music

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether differences exist in secondary choral music teachers’ understandings and attitudes toward sex-specific vocal change and whether these differences vary by virtue of years of teaching experience. Participants (N = 405) were secondary choral music educators and current members on the National Association for Music Education who were surveyed using a researcher-designed attitudinal questionnaire. The survey instrument consisted of 20 questions related to teacher attitude towards sex-specific vocal change. Responses were recorded in using a 7-point Likert-type scale and included two anecdotal responses. Paired-samples t-tests were conducted and revealed that there …

The Effect Of Implied Performer Age, Implied Performer Gender, And Performance Quality Level On Music Majors’ Evaluations Of Solo Musical Performances, Ann M. Harrington

Theses and Dissertations--Music

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of implied performer age, implied performer gender, and performance quality level on undergraduate music majors’ evaluations of solo alto saxophone performances. Participants (N = 124) were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions: (a) good quality musical performances with images of male performers, (b) good quality musical performances with images of female performers, (c) poor quality musical performances with images of male performers, and (d) poor quality musical performances with images of female performers. All experimental conditions contained high quality images of the faces of both older adults …

The Choral Composer/Conductor Collective: An Ongoing Experiment In Musical Self-Governance, Julian D. Bryson

Theses and Dissertations--Music

C4: The Choral Composer/Conductor Collective and Triad: Boston’s Choral Collective are the first choirs to explore collectivity as a method of ensemble organization. While more traditional ensembles have a single artistic director, C4 and Triad share and rotate leadership responsibilities among the full membership. Artistic and logistical decisions develop through conversation, consensus, and/or voting.

This monograph draws primarily on interviews with thirteen current and former members of the two ensembles as well as the author’s personal experiences with Triad’s inaugural concert cycle to present a narrative description of member characteristics, governance, and operational processes. Interview responses are compared to relevant …

The Adjudicator Speaks: A Study Of Choral Festival Adjudicators’ Practices, Procedures And Preferences, David L. Hensley

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Choral Festivals, whether competitive or non-competitive, involve preparation, performance, and evaluation. The process of preparing for and performing at a choral festival often leaves the conductor and choir members wondering what the adjudicators (judges) will be listening for and on what basis the choir will receive its critique. Few if any music education publications (including methods textbooks, scholarly publications, and journal articles) have addressed this topic, and those that have addressed it have failed to include the adjudicator’s point of view. This dissertation addresses the point of view of the choral festival adjudicator, giving insight into the standards of performance …

A Comprehensive Method For Tuning And Pedaling Timpani, Brandon M. Arvay

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Method books are an integral part of the percussion pedagogy. Because of the vast number of instruments a modern percussionist is expected to play, they often look for progressive, concise, and effective resources that can make learning such a variety of instruments more efficient. Instructional books currently exist for many areas of percussion performance, including snare drum, mallet percussion, timpani, World music, accessories, and marching percussion. Included in these books are information and procedures on music reading, rhythm studies, listening skills, part preparation, and technical approach. Focusing on timpani methods specifically, many of these books include tuning and pedaling exercises …

An Investigation Of The Effectiveness Of Cooperative Learning As A Rehearsal Technique For Improving High School Band Performance, Karen R. Compton

Theses and Dissertations--Music

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of cooperative learning as a rehearsal technique on high school full-band performance compared to traditional rehearsal methods. Two intact high school bands from the same Kentucky Music Educators Association District participated in the study. One band served as the treatment group using cooperative learning rehearsal techniques and the other group served as the control group using traditional rehearsal methods in a quasi-experimental non-equivalent control group design.

The study spanned six weeks in which both schools prepared the same performance piece, Variants by Jack Bullock. The groups were pre-tested using …

The Effects Of A Cooperative Learning Environment On Preservice Elementary Teachers' Interest In And The Application Of Music Into Core Academic Subjects, John Okley Egger

Theses and Dissertations--Music

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of cooperative learning on preservice elementary teachers’ interest in, and the application of music into, core academic subject lesson plans. Participants (N = 59) were preservice elementary teachers enrolled in four class sections of a music method course designed for elementary education majors at a large southern university. All members participating in the study were placed by section for eight weeks in one of two groups-an individualistic learning group or cooperative learning group.

During the first 6 weeks of the study, participants worked on the Music Integration Project. …

What Keeps Us Well? Professional Quality Of Life And Career Sustaining Behaviors Of Music Therapy Professionals, Shane C. Swezey

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Self-care can be seen as not only critical for individual professionals, but also for the growth of the helping professions and the quality of care which clients receive. The purpose of this study was to investigate use of career-sustaining behaviors and the levels of professional quality of life in music therapy professionals. This study investigated research questions regarding use of career sustaining behaviors and levels of professional quality of life, the relationship between these variables, the differences in the use of career sustaining behavior by demographics, and the use of music as a self-care strategy.

An online survey was sent …