scholarly journals Gamelan Girls. Gender, Childhood, and Politics in Balinese Music Ensembles, de Sonja Lynn Downing

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 210
Author(s):  
Laurent Bellemare
Keyword(s):  
Music Ensembles

Class, Control, and Classical Music

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Bull
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Cultural Production ◽  
Classical Music ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Middle Classes ◽  
Class Culture ◽  
White Middle Class ◽  
Music Ensembles ◽  
The Aesthetic

Through an ethnographic study of young people playing and singing in classical music ensembles in the south of England, this book analyses why classical music in England is predominantly practiced by white middle-class people. It describes four ‘articulations’ or associations between the middle classes and classical music. Firstly, its repertoire requires formal modes of social organization that can be contrasted with the anti-pretentious, informal, dialogic modes of participation found in many forms of working-class culture. Secondly, its modes of embodiment reproduce classed values such as female respectability. Thirdly, an imaginative dimension of bourgeois selfhood can be read from classical music’s practices. Finally, its aesthetic of detail, precision, and ‘getting it right’ requires a long-term investment that is more possible, and makes more sense, for middle- and upper-class families. Through these arguments, the book reframes existing debates on gender and classical music participation in light of the classed gender identities that the study revealed. Overall, the book suggests that inequalities in cultural production can be understood through examining the practices that are used to create a particular aesthetic. It argues that the ideology of the ‘autonomy’ of classical music from social concerns needs to be examined in historical context as part of the classed legacy of classical music’s past. It describes how the aesthetic of classical music is a mechanism through which the middle classes carry out boundary-drawing around their protected spaces, and within these spaces, young people’s participation in classical music education cultivates a socially valued form of self-hood.

Habits of Mind as a Framework for Assessment in Music Education

2019 ◽  
pp. 201-224
Author(s):  
Jillian Hogan ◽  
Ellen Winner
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Arts Education ◽  
Habits Of Mind ◽  
Public High School ◽  
Student Agency ◽  
Thinking Dispositions ◽  
Music Classroom ◽  
Music Ensembles ◽  
School Music ◽  
High School Music

Music making requires many kinds of habits of mind—broad thinking dispositions potentially useful outside of the music room. Teaching for habits of mind is prevalent in both general and other areas of arts education. This chapter reports a preliminary analysis of the habits of mind that were systematically observed and thematically coded in twenty-four rehearsals of six public high school music ensembles: band, choir, and orchestra. Preliminary results reveal evidence of eight habits of mind being taught: engage and persist, evaluate, express, imagine, listen, notice, participate in community, and set goals and be prepared. However, two habits of mind that the researchers expected to find taught were not observed: appreciate ambiguity and use creativity. These two nonobserved habits are ones that arts advocates and theorists assume are central to arts education. The chapter discusses how authentic assessment of habits of mind in the music classroom may require novel methods, including the development of classroom environments that foster additional levels of student agency.

American Gamelan and the Ethnomusicological Imagination

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth A Clendinning
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Music Teachers ◽  
American Music ◽  
World Music ◽  
Music Programs ◽  
Music Ensembles ◽  
College Music

The book seeks to answer these questions: Why are there more than 150 gamelans (Indonesian percussion ensembles) in North America, and why are more than half of them associated with American colleges and universities? How and why did gamelan ensembles spark the ethnomusicological imagination? What impact have these ensembles had on college music programs, their local communities, and transnational Indonesian performing arts scenes? How does a lifetime of teaching foreign college students shape the lives of non-American music teachers? First providing an overview of gamelan and its incorporation in education in North America, this book uses the story of the career and community of one performer-teacher, I Made Lasmawan of Bali and Colorado, as a case study to examine the formation and sustenance academic world music ensembles. It examines the way students develop musical and cultural competence by learning gamelan in traditional ethnomusicology ensemble courses and analyzes the merits of including gamelan ensembles in studies in percussion, composition, and music education. More broadly, the book argues that beyond the classroom, the presence of these ensembles shapes transnational arts education and touristic performing arts scenes in Bali. Finally, it advocates for world music ensemble courses as a powerful means for teaching musical and cultural diversity and sparking transnational exchanges, both in and outside the classroom.

Organizational dynamics in community ensembles

2021 ◽  
pp. 24-34
Author(s):  
David A. Camlin
Keyword(s):  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Group Identity ◽  
Organizational Dynamics ◽  
Community Music ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Full Participation ◽  
Music Ensembles ◽  
Holistic Practice

Looking into organizational dynamics in community ensembles, this chapter addresses the questions of: (1) how musical, social, and paramusical factors shape participation in community music ensembles; (2) how participants progress from peripheral or non-participation to full participation in such ensembles; and (3) what factors both facilitate and impede such participation, and how these tensions might be addressed. The meaning of participation in community music ensembles is something which is constantly negotiated and renegotiated between those involved. The chapter introduces a number of theoretical perspectives as “lenses” through which to view the resulting discussion. These include a consideration of the inherent tensions involved in performing both “works” and “relationships” as a holistic practice, as well as the value of a “situated” understanding of sociocultural practice, and how this can lead to the formation of “rational communities” of practice which both include and exclude participants in the formation of group identity.

Valuing your voice

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peggy D. Bennett
Keyword(s):  
Physical Education ◽  
Sound Production ◽  
Vocal Folds ◽  
Good Argument ◽  
Vocal Production ◽  
Vocal Health ◽  
Large Classes ◽  
Music Ensembles ◽  
Speed Up ◽  
Good For

If you have ever contracted laryngitis, you know the value of your voice. You feel fine. You are not contagious. You have much to do. You cannot make a good argument for staying home. Yet teaching without a healthy voice can be hard, hard work. Our voice is our most precious instrument. Do we care for it as if that is true? These five suggestions can help you maintain a healthy voice. 1. Balance of breath and muscle. When vocal sound production is balanced with muscle and breath, we are generally using our voice properly. When more muscle than breath is used, a forced sound causes undue stress on our vocal folds, often resulting in a raspy sound. Support your voice with breath energy to help maintain healthy vocal production. 2. Hydration. Talking for lengthy amounts of time causes us to lose moisture through our breath. Don’t wait until you’re thirsty to drink water. Stay hydrated throughout the day. 3. Avoid touching your face. Our hands are often the germiest parts of our bodies. To maintain a healthy voice, avoid touch­ing your face, especially during cold and flu season. 4. Vary your vocal expression. Variety in pitch, pace, and vol­ume is good for our voices and good for our listeners. Vary the pitch of your voice by shifting between higher and lower tones. Speed up and slow down the pace of your speaking. Speak at louder and quieter volumes to help students listen. 5. Lift your voice. Speaking at the lower part of your vocal range, especially if you are projecting loudly to a group, can cause vocal difficulties similar to a callus on your vocal folds. For the health of your voice, lift it to a medium high range (say “mm- hm” as an agreement and stay at the “hm” level) and speak using plenty of breath energy. The louder we talk, the less students need or want to listen! Try speaking normally rather than “talking over” noisy students; they will learn to respond. In physical education, music ensembles, and other large classes, a habit of shout- speaking can develop and derail your vocal health.

scholarly journals General Music Today Music Ideas Series: Viewpoints in Secondary General Music—Article Two: Power Trio: Three Ideas for Renewed Success With Classroom Ensembles

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-14
Author(s):  
Virginia Wayman Davis ◽  
Laura Singletary ◽  
Kimberly VanWeelden
Keyword(s):  
Music Education ◽  
Popular Music ◽  
Practical Experience ◽  
Upper Elementary ◽  
Elementary Music ◽  
General Music ◽  
Music Classroom ◽  
Music Ensembles ◽  
Music Class ◽  
Instrumental Ensembles

In this second of three in the series, we explore methods for incorporating instrumental ensembles into your music classroom. Experiences such as performing on ukulele, bucket drums, and in modern popular music ensembles are excellent ways to provide meaningful, relevant music education to students of all ages. Using both research-based information and practical experience, we will discuss ideas for three common instrumental ensembles. The techniques and resources provided in this article are starting points, appropriate for various levels and configurations of music classes: upper elementary music classes, secondary general music classes, afterschool or extracurricular music groups, or for teachers seeking to start an alternative ensemble or rebrand an existing nonperformance music class.

‘A volcano viewed from afar’: the Music of Salvatore Sciarrino

Tempo ◽  
1995 ◽  
pp. 22-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Hodges
Keyword(s):  
Contemporary Music ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Music Ensembles ◽  
Do So

With the exception of a few small-scale pieces programmed by the more adventurous contemporary music ensembles, the music of Salvatore Sciarrino has not been performed frequently in this country; BBC Radio 3 has given occasional airtime to larger works, but we have yet to hear much of his most important music in any form. This article should act, I hope, as a pointer to readers who might wish to explore his output on disc, which currently is really the only way to do so in this country.

Reducing Risk of Noise-Induced Hearing Loss in Collegiate Music Ensembles Using Ambient Technology

2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 132-138
Author(s):  
Jason Powell ◽  
Kris Chesky
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Noise Induced Hearing Loss ◽  
Jazz Ensemble ◽  
Statistical Measures ◽  
Instructional Activities ◽  
Behavioral Theories ◽  
Ambient Displays ◽  
Music Ensembles ◽  
Within Subjects ◽  
Instructor Behaviors

Student musicians are at risk for noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) as they develop skills and perform during instructional activities. Studies using longitudinal dosimeter data show that pedagogical procedures and instructor behaviors are highly predictive of NIHL risk, thus implying the need for innovative approaches to increase instructor competency in managing instructional activities without interfering with artistic and academic freedom. Ambient information systems, an emerging trend in human-computer interaction that infuses psychological behavioral theories into technologies, can help construct informative risk-regulating systems. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of introducing an ambient information system into the ensemble setting. The system used two ambient displays and a counterbalanced within-subjects treatment study design with six jazz ensemble instructors to determine if the system could induce a behavior change that alters trends in measures resulting from dosimeter data. This study assessed efficacy using time series analysis to determine changes in eight statistical measures of behavior over a 9-wk period. Analysis showed that the system was effective, as all instructors showed changes in a combination of measures. This study is in an important step in developing non-interfering technology to reduce NIHL among academic musicians.

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