scholarly journals The Clarinet as Extension of the Voice and Expressive Conduit of Musical Styles in Diverse Ensembles

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Lucy Rainey
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Art Music ◽  
Original Research ◽  
Leadership Roles ◽  
Musical Identity ◽  
Tone Quality ◽  
Western Art ◽  
The Voice ◽  
Musical Styles

<p>Original research into the links between vocal and clarinet tone reveals how clarinettists act as expressive conduits of musical styles in diverse ensembles. This research is relevant to musicologists and anthropologists as well as clarinettists and composers, who wish to gain an understanding of the vocal links in clarinet playing, and how clarinettists function in socio-musical contexts. Research is mainly based on Musicology and Music Education (vocal-clarinet links), and also refers to sources in Anthropology (musical identity), and Ethnomusicology (music in ensembles) in order to find some insightful connections. Ethnographic fieldwork is based on four professional freelance clarinettists in four different ensembles in Wellington, New Zealand. Their function in western art and contemporary art music, jazz and klezmer music is explored, to discover how these clarinettists extend, mirror, partner, or replace the voice in these musical contexts. Additional work undertaken on bodymind integration is designed to complement the musical identity work in the thesis and to enhance the musicianship and physical wellbeing of clarinettists. The section on clarinet design illustrates how different combinations of instruments and mouthpieces can vary the tone quality of the clarinet and enhance individual playing styles. The research shows that due to the versatility and flexibility of the instrument, clarinettists are able to transcend gender, ethnic, and ensemble boundaries, to take on leadership roles and to act as expressive conduits of musical styles in and between diverse ensembles. The outcome of the research highlights the intersection between the physiological relationship between the voice and the clarinet and scholarship on musical identity.</p>

scholarly journals The Clarinet as Extension of the Voice and Expressive Conduit of Musical Styles in Diverse Ensembles

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Lucy Rainey
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Art Music ◽  
Original Research ◽  
Leadership Roles ◽  
Musical Identity ◽  
Tone Quality ◽  
Western Art ◽  
The Voice ◽  
Musical Styles

<p>Original research into the links between vocal and clarinet tone reveals how clarinettists act as expressive conduits of musical styles in diverse ensembles. This research is relevant to musicologists and anthropologists as well as clarinettists and composers, who wish to gain an understanding of the vocal links in clarinet playing, and how clarinettists function in socio-musical contexts. Research is mainly based on Musicology and Music Education (vocal-clarinet links), and also refers to sources in Anthropology (musical identity), and Ethnomusicology (music in ensembles) in order to find some insightful connections. Ethnographic fieldwork is based on four professional freelance clarinettists in four different ensembles in Wellington, New Zealand. Their function in western art and contemporary art music, jazz and klezmer music is explored, to discover how these clarinettists extend, mirror, partner, or replace the voice in these musical contexts. Additional work undertaken on bodymind integration is designed to complement the musical identity work in the thesis and to enhance the musicianship and physical wellbeing of clarinettists. The section on clarinet design illustrates how different combinations of instruments and mouthpieces can vary the tone quality of the clarinet and enhance individual playing styles. The research shows that due to the versatility and flexibility of the instrument, clarinettists are able to transcend gender, ethnic, and ensemble boundaries, to take on leadership roles and to act as expressive conduits of musical styles in and between diverse ensembles. The outcome of the research highlights the intersection between the physiological relationship between the voice and the clarinet and scholarship on musical identity.</p>

Early Country Music

2020 ◽  
pp. 19-42
Author(s):  
Stephanie Vander Wel
Keyword(s):  
Middle Class ◽  
Art Music ◽  
Country Music ◽  
Western Art ◽  
Western Art Music ◽  
Musical Styles

Chapter 1 explores the theatrical context of 1930s country music on radio, specifically daily and weekly shows, including the National Barn Dance, on Chicago’s WLS. Similar to vaudeville, radio programmed the diverse strands of vernacular expression with music (including Western art music) that pointed to the high and popular aesthetics of the middle-class mainstream. With an emphasis on reception, this chapter demonstrates that listeners debated the merits of early country music as well as other musical styles and genres with a class-based understanding of aesthetics. The syncretic nature and theatrical characters of early country music (such as the singing mountaineer, the crooning cowboy, and the rustic buffoon) fit radio’s attempts to negotiate the crossing and blurring of the serious and the popular, the urban and the rural, and the sentimental and the parodic. Thus, through the technology of radio, early country music first secured a place in the American consciousness by rubbing against other styles and genres that transgressed cultural and musical divides.

Disrupting the status quo: Educating pre-service music teachers through culturally relevant pedagogy

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 469-485 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colleen B. Maybin
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Culturally Relevant Pedagogy ◽  
Culturally Relevant ◽  
Art Music ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Western Art ◽  
The Status ◽  
Western Art Music ◽  
Service Music ◽  
Relevant Pedagogy

Scholars theorizing in the area of social justice and music education argue that music has the potential to prepare students to engage in a society that cultivates personal freedom and democratic participation. The continued reliance on values and practices of Western art music within music teacher education has resulted in a disconnect between this discourse and professional practice. The status quo perpetuates conditions that limit accessibility, privilege western art music and maintain whiteness as ‘normal’. In this article, I suggest that this disconnection can be addressed by introducing culturally relevant pedagogy within music education training programmes. Culturally relevant pedagogy, focusing on reflexive practice and place-based education, requires pre-service music educators to think deeply about experiences of marginalized music education students and critically examine the values and beliefs they hold. Embedding the values of culturally relevant pedagogy within music education training creates space for music from different cultural contexts including popular music.

Musicians’ Earplugs: Do They Affect Performance or Listeners’ Perceptions?

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 188-195
Author(s):  
Karen S. Thomas ◽  
Raychl Smith ◽  
Sandra Teglas ◽  
Donald A. Hodges
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Music Perception ◽  
Dynamic Control ◽  
Sound Quality ◽  
Education Students ◽  
Pitch Accuracy ◽  
Tone Quality ◽  
Faculty Teachers

BACKGROUND: Does wearing musicians’ earplugs while performing affect the quality of the performance? Can listeners perceive a difference in sound when musicians are performing with or without earplugs? The risk of hearing loss is a concern for musicians, but some are reluctant to wear hearing protection due to factors such as an inability to hear their own instrument properly and the possibility of decreased sound quality for listeners. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of musicians’ earplugs on instrumental pitch accuracy and the perception of tone quality, intonation, and dynamic contrast, as perceived by musicians and listeners. METHODS: Ten university studio faculty teachers were recorded performing single pitches and lyrical and technical passages, first without earplugs and then immediately after with earplugs. A sample of 8 studio faculty teachers and 88 undergraduate music education students completed a researcher-created music perception test of tone quality, intonation, and dynamic contrast. RESULTS: Objective analyses of the single pitch recordings made by faculty with and without earplugs indicate that pitch accuracy did not favor either condition consistently. Results from the perception test indicate that although both faculty and student listeners perceived some differences, the most frequent perception was that the audio pair was equal, and there was no clear difference between performing with and without earplugs in terms of tone quality, intonation, or dynamic contrast. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that musicians should feel confident that wearing musicians’ earplugs while performing does not adversely affect pitch accuracy or listeners’ perceptions of their timbre and dynamic control.

‘Teach you to rock’? Popular music in the university music department

Popular Music ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alf Björnberg
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Popular Music ◽  
Art Music ◽  
Music Teaching ◽  
Western Art ◽  
Music Department ◽  
Musical Practices ◽  
Traditional Institutions ◽  
Learning Principles ◽  
The University

During the last decades in most Western countries music education on all levels has undergone significant changes. In response to changes in the musical field in society at large, various popular music styles, previously almost totally neglected in institutional forms of music teaching based on Western art music, have been given increasing significance in the curricula of music education. This development has not, however, taken place without controversies. In most popular music genres the theoretical framework, learning principles and aims of musical practices differ in significant respects from those of the regulated activities of traditional institutions of music education, and the successful integration of popular genres into such institutions requires that these differences be acknowledged and resolved rather than ignored.

Lifeblood: Funding popular music education in Wales

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olivia Gable ◽  
James Hannam
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Popular Music ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
Art Music ◽  
Western Art ◽  
Potential Impact ◽  
Western Art Music ◽  
Informal Settings

This study investigates the funding of popular music education (PME) in Wales at a time when the Welsh government is examining its current Music Service provision. Our research considers the potential impact of this move on PME in Wales, alongside analysis of the availability of state-funded PME across the four UK nations. Music curricula and funding have historically favoured western art music (WEAM), with PME often happening in more informal settings. However, this situation has changed in recent years, with both state and private funders now providing more support for PME in Wales. Our research includes interviews with both funders and grantees offering PME activities across the country, finding that the terminology used to describe PME varies widely between organizations. We also observe that Welsh organizations face challenges in both applying for and receiving funding.

Nurturing Vulnerability to Develop Pedagogical Change Through MOOC Participation and Public Blogging

2020 ◽  
pp. 589-617
Author(s):  
James Humberstone ◽  
Catherine Zhao ◽  
Danny Liu
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Art Music ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
Pedagogical Change ◽  
Western Art ◽  
Massive Open Online Course ◽  
Worldview Transformation ◽  
The University

Despite several decades of ground-breaking achievements in music education research and practice, the discipline’s status continues to stagnate, especially among our children and our governments. To address this stagnation, in 2016 the University of Sydney launched an internationally available Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) titled “The Place of Music in 21st-Century Education.” The intent of offering this course was to provoke critical thinking among music educators in order to break the cultural cycle that centers curricular music education around teachers’ (most likely Western art music) experience, and ask them to grapple with social and technological changes in education more broadly. To address concerns with authenticity in learning and the MOOC model, the MOOC integrated social media use into every main assessment. Participants—over 1,600 educators, students, artists, and the general public—were asked to publicly blog their responses to provocations on these topics and then to read each other’s posts and respond. In this study, we analyze funneled (Clow, 2013) data from the blogs and MOOC interactions. We find evidence for critical thinking and worldview transformation from a number of participants, and conclude that the experience of engaging publicly via social media engendered a vulnerability that may have made those new to the field and experienced professionals alike more open to change. The blogging-feedback loop prompted the formation of a social structure reminiscent of a community of practice or affinity space.

scholarly journals Creating a career as a woman composer: Implications for music in higher education

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 237-253 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dawn Bennett ◽  
Sally Macarthur ◽  
Cat Hope ◽  
Talisha Goh ◽  
Sophie Hennekam
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Women Composers ◽  
Art Music ◽  
Pedagogical Practices ◽  
Music Curriculum ◽  
Western Art ◽  
Curricular Design ◽  
Marginalised Groups ◽  
And Gender

Recent decades have seen gender and feminist research emerge as major fields of enquiry in musicology and to a far lesser extent, music education. While these fields have increased awareness of the issues confronting women and other marginalised groups, the pedagogical practices and curricular design that might support aspiring women composers are in urgent need of attention. This article reports from an international survey of women composers (n=225), who in western art music continue to experience a masculine bias that has its roots in the past. The findings in the survey were focused on income, work and learning, relationships and networks, and gender. Numerous composers surveyed noted the under-representation of music composed by women in their higher education curricula. They also described their unpreparedness for a career in music. The article explores the issue of gender in music composition and makes practical recommendations for a more gender balanced music curriculum in higher education.

The Kodály Concept of Music Education

Tempo ◽  
1970 ◽  
pp. 15-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geoffrey Winters
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
College Level ◽  
Recent Issue ◽  
Text Book ◽  
Nursery Rhyme ◽  
School Music ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Kodaly Concept ◽  
The Voice

The recent issue in this country of a 36-page textbook entitled The Kodály Concept of Music Education by Helga Szabó, accompanied by a set of three LP records, prompts me to examine the place such a scheme might have in the schools of this country. Kodály's ‘Choral Method’ has of course been available in this country for some years, and is now in the process of being reissued with new and improved texts for English speaking children by Geoffry Russell Smith. Mme Szabó's clear and vivid exposition will help to increase appreciation of its value. The book and records trace the use of the method from pre-school music activities to music college level, and the emphasis throughout is squarely placed on the development of aural ability through the use of the voice and solfa. The first musical example, on Side A, is of a two-year-old Hungarian singing a nursery rhyme; the last, on Side F, is of Kodály's Hymn of Zrinyi, sung by the choir of the Central Ensemble of the Ironworkers' Union. Each record is adequately banded, so that it is easy to locate any example, and in addition to the detailed commentary in the text book, each example is announced helpfully before it is performed. The quality of recording is lively, although somewhat marred by echo and pre-echo, and the stereophonic balance is realistic, especially in the circular games on Side A.

What Was ““Shostakovich,”” and What Came Next?

2007 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 297-338
Author(s):  
PETER J. SCHMELZ
Keyword(s):  
String Quartet ◽  
Art Music ◽  
Vantage Point ◽  
Soviet Bloc ◽  
Remarkable Change ◽  
Dmitri Shostakovich ◽  
Western Art ◽  
In Memoriam ◽  
Soviet Music ◽  
Musical Styles

The title of this article is borrowed from anthropologist Katherine Verdery's 1996 study What Was Socialism, and What Comes Next? In her book Verdery surveyed the recent changes in Eastern Europe, and specifically Romania, from her vantage point in the uncertain period following the momentous events from 1989 to 1991 in the former Soviet bloc. Similarly, this article explores how Shostakovich, widely perceived in 1975 as the musical representative of socialism, influenced what came after him. It details how Soviet composers from the younger generations, including Edison Denisov, Mieczysłław Weinberg, Boris Tishchenko, Alfred Schnittke, and Valentin Sil'vestrov, dealt with Shostakovich's legacy in their compositions written in his memory, including Denisov's DSCH, Weinberg's Symphony no.12, Tishchenko's Symphony no. 5, Schnittke's Prelude In Memoriam Dmitri Shostakovich and Third String Quartet, and Sil'vestrov's Postludium DSCH. In their memorial works, as they wrestled with the legacy of Shostakovich and his overwhelming influence, these composers also grappled with the shifting nature of the Soviet state, changing musical styles both foreign and domestic, and fundamental issues of aesthetic representation and identity associated with the move from modernism to postmodernism then affecting all composers in the Western art music tradition. The 1970s came at the heels of a decade of remarkable change in Soviet music and society, but at the time of Shostakovich's death, change in Soviet life began to seem increasingly unlikely. Despite recent interpretations by scholars such as anthropologist Alexei Yurchak that emphasize the fundamental immutability of the 1970s, however, these memorial compositions show that audible and significant developments were indeed occurring in the musical styles of the 1970s and early 1980s. Examining Shostakovich's legacy therefore also reveals the larger changes of the Soviet 1970s and early 1980s, both musical and otherwise.

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