The History of Secondary Music Education in Two Significant Institutions in Hungary up to the Middle of the 20th Century

"When it comes to the exploration of history of theoretical classes in Hungarian secondary education, it's indispensable to learn about the structure, operation and formation process of conservatoire, the type of institution, which was formed in the 19th century. This study is intended to briefly present the Hungarian institutionalized music education and, after that, to describe the first hundred years of the two significant school of the conservatory institution-system in detail: the National Music School and the Debrecen Music School. In the study we demonstrate the background of formation, the operation, the structure and the eminent leaders of the institutions mentioned above and highlight their transformation in the different education policy systems. Keywords: Music Education in Hungary, National Music School, Debrecen Music School"

SOME ASPECTS OF REFORM AND CHANGE IN THE SYSTEM OF SECONDARY MUSIC SCHOOLS - ANALYSIS OF RELEVANT LITERATURE

The paper debates some aspects of reform and change in secondary music education. The reforms in secondary music education are in line with the general tendencies in the school system in Serbia. Accordingly, the paper discusses the leading aspects of the changes in the secondary music schools and their alignment with similar schools in the European educational system.The main objective of this theoretical research is to identify significant aspects of changes related to curriculum change and innovation in content - textbooks, and the assessment process. The paper uses a qualitative approach, based on an analysis of selected research studies published after 2001. They cover key topics related to changes in secondary music schools. In spite of the fact that there are few research papers in our region that deal with the implications of the reform in the secondary music education system, based on the analysis of the available papers we can conclude, that there are steps to meet the planned changes.

Extending Vocal Pedagogy: Extended Vocal Techniques in North American Post-Secondary Music Education

In North America, post-secondary music education is heavily focused on (and limited to) the repertoire and techniques of the Western Art Music canon. Vocal training at these institutions is no exception: vocalists are trained in the bel canto technique whose lineage reaches back to seventeenth-century Italy. This conservatory-based curriculum supports a categorical vocal pedagogy, one that seeks to produce a particular type of singer with a very specific kind of sound. Instead of embracing what each individual singer is capable of, this model focuses on what singers should be capable of from the perspective of repertoire and technical mastery in the operatic tradition. In this paper I will argue that this model risks our losing sight of what the singer has to say in favour of what the composer has to say. Recently there has been discussion and research around a more inclusionary model of vocal pedagogy that would incorporate other techniques alongside bel canto. However, these discussions have been focused on inclusion of musical theatre and belt techniques, with very little discourse on the inclusion of extended vocal techniques. By drawing on the scholarly discourse on the limits and extensions of technical training in post-secondary vocal performance, as well as interviews with several women working in the performance and teaching of extended vocal techniques in Canada, I will explore the potential for extended vocal techniques to contribute to a more inclusive model of vocal pedagogy.

Sang Tong’s contribution to the development of the national theory of harmony

Background. The article is devoted to the study of the scientific works of Sang Tong in the field of the national theory of harmony. His studies has a leading role in the development theoretical thought in the area of Chinese musicology and composition. Sang Tong’s contribution to national music education is determined by clarity of presentation of his teaching materials supported by numerous examples that is motivation for students to comprehend the science of composition. Being an outstanding composer, Sang Tong talentedly integrated the dissonant and pentatonic writing, emphasizing in his writings the national specifics due to atonal organization of music. The works of Sang Tong sounds abroad, they are performed on a concert stage, occupies a worthy place in the educational process of students of conservatories from different countries. In this connection, seems to be relevant the purpose of this article is to identify the main provisions of the theoretical works of the outstanding Chinese composer in the field of the national science of harmony and their role in the development of Chinese musical art in the second half of the 20th century. The mastering of this information is extremely necessary for the performers of San Tong music, as well as for teachers who are studying this musical repertoire in a class with students. Finally, the information presented will provide an opportunity to comprehend the artistic value of the musical heritage of Sang Tong, as well as allow attract more wide circles of professional musicians and audiences to his works. The results of the study. The first theoretical work of Sang Tong was the article “Theory of chord application and their subordination” (1957), where the musician analyzes the views of various authors on the problem of harmonization in composer’s work, systematizes them, giving a personal assessment. He gives many examples of the use of one or another composition tool. The composer considers methods of textural complexity in the study “Parallels to historical evolution and its application in Chinese and foreign musical works combined with pentatonic melody” (1963). In searching for his own composer’s writing, Sang Tong wanted to find the perfect textural balance: on the one hand, not reaching the difficult to perceive linear polyphony, on the other – not simplifying the texture into primitive forms of contrasting polyphony (as a variation of heterophony). The research experience of the 1960s and the 70s Sang Tong summarized in the monograph “Discussion on the horizontal and acoustic structure of pentatonic” (1980), which became a quality-teaching tool in the field of secondary music education. University vocalists also study at lectures on harmony, which helps them to expand the horizons of knowledge about national music. In 1982, Sang Tong published the first comprehensive study of contemporary music in China entitled “Introduction to harmonic processing techniques” in the journal Musical Art. Since 1994, Sang Tong planned to write a fundamental work that sums up his research – the ontology of Chinese music, but from year to year, because of illness, postponed it. Finally, in 2004, the Shanghai Music Publishing House published a series of Sang Tong articles in the form of a monograph “The Historical Evolution of Semitones”. This work is a fundamental study of the history of the development of harmony in China, which provides answers to the questions of the evolution of Chinese semantics and, related to it, the theory of the acoustics of Chinese instruments. Thinking about the quality of secondary music education, Sang Tong decided to prepare a textbook for an initial five-year program of study. In 2001, he published the Harmony Course, submitting it to the state commission for consideration as a school textbook. The San Tong’s Course of Harmony has become a basic national textbook in China. To date, the level of this theoretical work is considered unsurpassed and attributed to masterpieces in the field of music education. It is distinguished by a solid theoretical foundation that allows the students to find any answers to questions concerning the principles of voce-leading, transport, rules of resolution of various intervals. Conclusions. The composer and theorist Sang Tong entered the history of Chinese music of the twentieth century as the founder in the field of the modern national theory of harmony. For more than fifty years of academic research, Sang Tong has made an outstanding contribution to the development of theory of harmony in China, was creating a number of musicological studies of harmony that demonstrate the highest theoretical level. He laid a solid foundation for the future development of the national school of harmony theory, bringing the younger generation of Chinese composers to a high professional level.

Technology in the Music Classroom—Navigating through a Dense Forest The Case of Greece

Our world today is dominated by ICT, and “digital literacy” skills are considered vital for educating the citizen of the future. In music and music education the use of technology has had a profound impact, offering freedom and opening new paths for creativity and musical explorations. But teachers are still reluctant and in most cases unprepared to bring into the classroom skills and technology applications that students are familiar with outside school that could revolutionize music teaching and learning. Greece, in much the same way as countries around the world, in the middle of a crippling economic crisis, is debating the extent and the quality of ICT integration in education. A number of initiatives and projects utilizing technology are available for primary and secondary music education, but in the end, as is evident from this snapshot, it depends on the music teacher to take advantage of technology’s transformative powers.

Teachers' use of digital technology in secondary music education: illustrations of changing classrooms

The music industry in the 21st century uses digital technology in a wide range of applications including performance, composition and in recording and publishing. Much of this digital technology is freely available via downloads from the internet, as part of software included with computers when they are purchased and via applications that are available for some mobile phones. Such technology is transforming music and the way people approach many traditional music activities. This paper is about transformative practices that are underway in some secondary school music classrooms. Practices are being shaped by the culture of the schools and the students that they recruit. We describe the perceptions and practices of nine music teachers in four New Zealand secondary schools with regard to digital technology and how they are changing their work in their classroom. Data collection techniques include interviews, observation and a questionnaire. The data were subjected to two stages of thematic analysis. Grounded analysis was used to allow the teachers' voices emerge. This was then followed by the application of five themes identified in the literature on pedagogic change prompted by teachers' adoption of digital technologies.