The effects of brain trauma on the memory skills of musicians

The localization of function in terms of music processing in the brain has fascinated researchers in many disciplines for well over one hundred years. Is there a central location for this specialized and complex process or does it involve many different areas of the brain? Some researchers have thought that the processing of language and music are analogous, but does the processing of music occur in the same way as language (Damasio and Damasio, 1977), (Zatorre, 1984)? In recent years the use of non-invasive imaging techniques such as the PET scan (Positron Emission Tomography) and MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) have proven to be most accurate in the demonstration of brain activity (Vollmer-Haase et aI., 1998) and have led researchers to agree that there is not a specific anatomical centre for music in the brain (Baeck, 2002), (Peretz, 2002). This thesis will examine in what way and to what degree various types of Traumatic Brain Injury in musicians affect music memory. A pilot study was conducted with musicians who have not experienced brain trauma. These musicians were asked to complete a questionnaire and then were interviewed in order to understand the process with which they utilize their musical memory. Six brain-injured musicians were also interviewed in the same manner. When possible, medical records were solicited and reviewed as a means of ascertaining specifics regarding the trauma. Using then, a qualitative framework in a case study format, the questionnaire and the focused interviews will provide the data. (London, 1982), (Psathas, 1972). This format will provide a perspective that has been neglected in many studies in Neuromusicology, that of allowing the musicians to speak for themselves. The interviews are a study of the personal reflections of the musicians who are commenting on their understanding of their own experiences of musical memory. While my interest does lie in the clinical evidence provided by researchers in the field of Neuromusicology and their insights into musical memory, there has not been any extensive work written which concerns itself with the personal experiences of musicians and their subjective interpretation of these memorization processes. The balance between -\ the clinical evidence needs to be contrasted with the subjective elements of a person's selfperception and understanding. It is my aim in this study to explore these perceptions in the context of real life situations. It should also be noted that the observations made are a reflection of the subject's personal experiences and their subjective view of these experiences

Adaptive Piano Pedagogy for the Student with Autistic Spectrum Disorder

Music therapy is a well known means of creating emotional, academic and social advances in the life of children with autism. However, private instrumental instructions, a form of music therapy for this population, are not easily accessible. Not many piano teachers have the experience, background or understanding needed to teach students with varying degrees of challenges in sensory integration, information processing, aural and visual discrimination, motor problems and low muscle tone. The literature review in this thesis includes an overview of autistic spectrum disorder, the special learning needs of the child with autism, and general piano pedagogy theories, strategies and techniques, which pave the way for the adaptation of piano pedagogy for learners with ASD. The author concludes that the music therapist providing adapted piano instruction should emphasize teacher-student bonding, rhythm entrainment, improvisation, and visual and auditory discrimination skills. These areas are explored in greater depth and also demonstrated at various functioning levels through the introduction of three related case studies

The Net of Jewels: An exploration and shape-based guitar pedagogy for songwriters

This article offers an informal, summary description of the Net of Jewels (NOJ) method, a guitar pedagogy specifically targeted to songwriters writing songs on guitar. The core of the NOJ approach is a progressive sequence of activities that incorporate shape-directed exploration of the guitar fingerboard as an integral aspect, supporting insights about harmony and theory, advancement of guitar skills and technique, and innovative creative work. The article outlines NOJ\u27s core concepts and teaching principles, describes NOJ\u27s pedagogical sequence of topics and supporting exercises and other activities, and provides background on the method\u27s origin and evolution. This description reflects the author\u27s perspective as the developer of NOJ, based on two decades of experience in teaching and refining the method, including the design of two levels of NOJ-based courses, incorporated into the songwriting curriculum at Berklee College of Music

Examining the effect of practicing with different modeling conditions on the memorization of young piano students

La modélisation est une technique d'enseignement étudiée dans les domaines de l'apprentissage moteur, des neurosciences, de l'enseignement et de la musique. Cependant, on ignore si cette technique peut être efficace pour mémoriser la notation musicale pour piano, en particulier pour les jeunes élèves. Cette étude a donc examiné l'effet de la pratique instrumentale utilisant différentes conditions de modélisation sur la mémorisation d'une pièce de piano. Ces conditions de modélisation étaient les suivantes: modélisation auditive et modélisation vidéo avec indices. L'étude comportaitune quasi-expérience avec 24 jeunes élèves de piano de 3e année du Conservatoire royal de musique (CRM) au Canada ou l'équivalent. Les participants ont pratiqué avec une condition de modélisation afin de déterminer quelle condition produirait les meilleurs résultats de rétention mnémonique. Les résultats ont montré que la modélisation vidéo avec indices était l'outil de pratique le plus efficace en termes d'erreurs de notes et de rythmes, lorsqu'elle est comparée à la modélisation audio et aux groupes de pratique libre. Ces résultats appuient les recherches en neurosciences selon lesquelles l'utilisation de techniques visuelles, auditives et motrices produisent la meilleure rétention. Cela offre un grand potentiel pour l'utilisation de la modélisation vidéo avec repères comme outil de pratique pour les élèvesen piano afin d'améliorer la mémorisation.Modeling is a teaching technique that is studied in the fields of motor learning, neuroscience, teaching, and music. Yet it is unknown whether this technique can be effective in memorizing piano music especially for young students. Therefore, this study examined the effect of practicing with different modeling conditions on memorizing a piano piece. These modeling conditions were: aural modeling, and video modeling with cues. The study conducted a quasi-experiment with 24 young piano students at Grade 3 level of the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) in Canada or equivalent. Participants practiced with one modeling condition in order to measure which condition would produce best retention results. Results showed that video modeling with cues seemed to be the most effective practice tool in terms of low note mistakes and rhythm mistakes compared to audio modeling and free practice groups. This finding supports neuroscience research that states that the use of visual, aural and motor techniques produce the best memory recall. This provides great potential for using video modeling with cues as a practice tool for pianostudents for better memorization

Investigating the process of learning jazz pedagogy and improvisation through an eight-week professional development workshop

Music teachers often have life and educational experiences which lead them to identify with a specific role and community of individuals with common interests—for instance, band director, choral director, or orchestra director. But if teachers lack experience and identification with jazz improvisation, and their teaching positions require them to teach a jazz ensemble, how do they find membership in a community of jazz improvisers and educators? To what extent do the borders of the jazz community of practice intersect with those of other music communities of practice? Moreover, who are the brokers that facilitate movement between different music communities of practice? Viewed through the lens of Lave and Wenger’s (1991) concept of legitimate peripheral participation, in this qualitative multiple case study, I investigated three instrumental music teachers as they became more adept both at improvising and at teaching jazz improvisation. As the research suggested, the process of learning is not merely about acquiring information; it is also about changing a music teacher’s practice, resulting in his or her increased confidence as an improvising musician within a community of practice. Pre- and post-study visits to the participants’ respective schools, participants’ enrollment in an eight-week jazz improvisation workshop (jazz community of practice), and their subsequent attendance at a one-week summer jazz residency generated this study’s data, which took the form of recorded video, audio observations, and interviews. The qualitative research analysis program NVivo facilitated several cycles of coding, categorizing, and sub-categorizing data. The following themes developed from the data analysis: finding time to practice; motivation; past experiences; confidence; and piano skills. The findings of this study suggest that creating a community of practice, mentored by a professional in the field of study, and lasting for an extended length of time, creates an effective situated learning environment that enhances professional development. To varying degrees, each participant incorporated information, concepts, and techniques from the workshops and summer jazz residency into their school curriculum, and became more confident teachers of jazz improvisation. As important as professional development is for inservice music teachers, a well- rounded undergraduate music curriculum, which includes jazz pedagogy, may help preservice music teachers become better trained inservice music teachers. Future researchers might consider studying extended music teacher professional development workshops as well as research student learning as a result of teachers participating in those workshops

Interactive Tango Milonga: An Interactive Dance System for Argentine Tango Social Dance

abstract: When dancers are granted agency over music, as in interactive dance systems, the actors are most often concerned with the problem of creating a staged performance for an audience. However, as is reflected by the above quote, the practice of Argentine tango social dance is most concerned with participants internal experience and their relationship to the broader tango community. In this dissertation I explore creative approaches to enrich the sense of connection, that is, the experience of oneness with a partner and complete immersion in music and dance for Argentine tango dancers by providing agency over musical activities through the use of interactive technology. Specifically, I create an interactive dance system that allows tango dancers to affect and create music via their movements in the context of social dance. The motivations for this work are multifold: 1) to intensify embodied experience of the interplay between dance and music, individual and partner, couple and community, 2) to create shared experience of the conventions of tango dance, and 3) to innovate Argentine tango social dance practice for the purposes of education and increasing musicality in dancers.Dissertation/ThesisDoctoral Dissertation Music 201

Cognition and musical improvisation in individual and group contexts

The aims of this research are to investigate how improvisatory skills develop in individuals and\ud teams. It focuses upon the effect of musical expertise in different musical genres on the\ud development of improvisatory skills. Multi methods were applied in the research and classified\ud into four phases. The first phase involved a self-case study implementing deliberate self\ud regulated practice based on a planned sequential model; a) sight-reading; b) memorising; and c)\ud improvising; over 8 weeks in a trained classical musician. Additionally, the self-case study used\ud two commissioned musical compositions matched in length, harmony and structure, one in the\ud classical genre the other in jazz. In the 2nd phase, semi-structured interviews were conducted\ud with novice and expert improvisers. The final phases included experiments studying sightreading,\ud memorising and improvising as a duo and observations and interviews relating to\ud ensemble rehearsals and improvisation with cross genre compositions. The findings suggest\ud that learning to improvise is frustrating and anxiety provoking. Seven elements were found to\ud be important in acquiring musical skills and domain knowledge acquisition: physiological\ud adaptation and developing reading music skills; establishing auditory schemata; automaticity;\ud use of memorisation strategies; analytic strategy application; and improvising to a coherent\ud musical structure. The findings also show that sight-reading and improvising share similarities\ud in their characteristics when learning to improvise as a duo. Issues such as communicating to\ud the audience, performance identity and connecting to the context are essential in the duo\ud improvisation performance. The findings indicate that a 'concept of break-points' (Poole,\ud 1983) take place during the latter stage of the ensemble improvisation process where changes\ud occur across all three elements, musical structure, social structure and communicative behavior. (Bastien\ud and Hostager, 2002:21) Factors such as leadership, group member characteristic, resource, information flow, the creative environment and collateral structure can influence the quality of\ud group improvisation performance

Let's play it by-ear: learning piano in a college setting with an aural emphasis

The primary purpose of this action research study was to find if there were any measurable differences between community college students learning piano with an integrated aural/reading approach and those learning piano with an all-reading approach. Specifically, I examined the differences in performance outcomes and sight-reading ability. Data were collected from pre- and post-test performance measures in note reading, playing of a familiar tune, sight reading, and performance of prepared pieces. As a secondary measure to assess student enjoyment and preferences, student journals were kept, and interviews were conducted for both the integrated aural/reading (aural group) and the all-reading group (reading group). The researcher-instructor also maintained a teacher journal to annotate and reflect on instructional activities and teaching strategies throughout the semester. The study was conducted in two different phases over two consecutive fall semesters. Participants included students enrolled in two community colleges in California. Results showed that the aural groups had the largest pre-and post-test gains in reading notes in the grand staff for both phases. For sight reading music with limited preview time, the reading groups scored highest in both phases. For performance of Prepared Pieces, the aural group outscored the reading group in Phase 1 but the reverse happened in Phase 2, consistent with higher pretest scores in playing of any familiar tune for each group. Most students in the aural group enjoyed the by-ear activities and felt that such activities should be included in a beginning piano course. Some students expressed they gained a deeper understanding of what they were playing and were able to self- check for mistakes. I found that by-ear activities seemed to work best for students in the first five weeks of instruction before playing pieces with hands together became more complex. Based on my experience as a musician and teacher and the results of this study, I believe that an aural approach merits consideration as a core component of the piano course curriculum. Learning by-ear did not hinder reading development and may have helped it, consistent with extant research (Brown, 1990; Glenn, 1999; Haston, 2004; Musco, 2006). Integrating an aural approach with an existing reading-based approach may better suit the needs of today’s community college students