This study collected a representative sample of current grade 6-12 school orchestra directors' incorporation of alternative styles in the curriculum. It examined directors' repertoire selection process and their potential influence on student engagement, motivation, and retention, with a specific interest in alternative styles. Alternative styles in string education that are included in this study are contemporary pop, folk, bluegrass, rock, Irish fiddle, jazz, and world music. Participants were recruited in the study through two private Facebook groups for school orchestra directors (School Orchestra and String Teachers, and Orchestra Teachers) and two communities on Reddit pertaining to music teaching (r/MusicEd and r/MusicTeachers). This thesis explored the development of Western European art music for string instruments, how it became the dominant category of music in school orchestra curricula in the turn of the twentieth century, and particular challenges directors face when including alternative styles in the 6-12 string curriculum. This study analyzed District and State Music Performance Assessment (MPA) criteria and the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards (NGSSS) for the Arts in the state of Florida to see if there was evidence of the Western European art music canon in Florida's string curriculum at the 6-12 grade level. The music list accepted for MPA heavily skewed towards Western European art music, especially for higher ensemble classes: AF, AS, BF, and BS. A breakdown of these ensemble classifications is outlined further in this thesis. Despite this, most participants reported incorporating alternative styles in their respective programs, with some expressing reservations regarding difficulty of alternative styles of music and discomfort on the part of the director. Participants reported typical levels of enthusiasm from students when directors included alternative styles of music. Some reported specific factors that affect student enthusiasm, such as the arranger of the piece and their involvement in repertoire selection. This study includes a repertoire list of alternative styles of music recommended by its participants.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine whether the status of the Elementary Special Music Teacher (ESMT) had changed during the 5 year period, 1966 to 1971 , and to identify possible pressures that had effects upon that change.

The purpose of this study was to determine what changes occurred in values in music education from 1950 to 1970, as presented in written value statements from the Music Educators Journal, and to determine the direction(s) of change. Eighteen categories of value under four general headings (Social Values, Psychological Values, Aesthetic Values, and Futuristic Values) were identified and were the focus of the study.

The purpose of this study is to present a philosophy of music education of Karol Szymanowski, 20th Century Polish composer and educator, through an examination of his life and work. Szymanowski emerged as a composer at an historical period when Poland was an independent nation striving to maintain its freedom and develop itself culturally. The historical conditions influenced the course of Szymanowski's career which he devoted entirely to fulfillment of his role as a composer in the culture and his role as music educator in the society. He realized that the work of the composer and music educator have vast cultural and social ramifications. For the purpose of examining Szymanowski's career, the available primary and secondary sources were read. The relevant parts from the Polish sources were translated into English. The comparison of questions and issues raised by Plato and Dewey in their philosophies of education led to development of a philosophical framework. This framework was utilized to analyze Szymanowski's writings and to provide a structural base for presentation of Szymanowski's philosophy of music education. Szymanowski's life fell into three distinctive stages. The first was characterized by the development of the composer's own aestheticism in terms of his individual relationship to his culture and his relationship to his art. The second showed the transformation of his personal aestheticism into a social ethic. The third was a synthesis of the composer's aestheticism and ethics and an expansion of his role into the music educator's function. With social development his ethics became of prime importance. It served as a background to further examination of the relationship between man and society as well as metaphysical and epistemological issues. Szymanowski's three-stage career conceived of music education as the natural development of the composer dedicated to fulfillment of his cultural and social obligation to his own country and the music educator's function as developer and propagator of the native culture. The philosophical model derived from Szymanowski's career can provide a useful reference to other music educators in the course of their own professional development.

This study focused on Christopher Small's (b. 1927) perspectives on the inception, reception and application of his work since 1977 when his first book, Music Society Education was published. Small's perceptions and thoughts were recorded, transcribed and analyzed using oral history techniques based on qualitative research design. Grounded theory was employed in data analysis, and in the interpretation of Small's responses to interview questions. Implications for teachers, policy makers and curriculum designers suggest that musical activity within institutions ought to be examined further as to what end this activity serves, and as to where it places both teacher and learner. The author sought the extent to which Small's ideas have gained traction in current music education practice and findings revealed that Small's ideas are outside of foundational and current trends in music education based in the European classical tradition.

The primary objective of this study is to write a brass method which will give the college student a thorough foundation in articulation, tone production, intonation, and other factors involved in the playing of the trumpet, French horn, bass and trombone. This brass method will be written for college level brass classes.

The problem of teaching music-reading to the masses of musically-illiterate children and adults weighs heavily on the hearts and minds of all competent, conscientious music teachers. This test of music-reading ability has been devised in the hope that it will help music students and teachers to determine specific weaknesses of one kind or another, in the individual students musical comprehension.

The purpose of this study was to investigate perceptions of high school students who made music with code in Sonic Pi. This qualitative multiple case study focused on individuals in an extracurricular club at a public charter high school who volunteered to participate on-site and remotely asynchronously via Canvas learning management system. This study was guided by five research questions, including: (1) What musical ideas, if any, do participants report learning or demonstrate through making music with code in Sonic Pi? (2) How does making music with code impact participants’ perceptions of their music making? (3) How does making music with code impact participants’ perceptions of their ability to learn to make music? (4) How does making music with code impact participants’ interest in music courses? (5) How does making music with code impact participants’ interest in computer science courses? Participants completed research study materials, including a series of tutorials for Sonic Pi. Data included answers to questionnaires and surveys, multimedia artifacts including the source code and exported audio of participants’ music making, and interviews of participants that were codified and analyzed in two cycles, utilizing descriptive coding, values coding, and longitudinal coding. Participants’ code and multimedia artifacts revealed a close alignment to the four properties of sound, including: pitch, duration, intensity/amplitude, and timbre. Participants’ artifacts revealed themes and demonstrated ideas extending beyond the four properties, including: form, non-traditional music notation, and randomization. Participants all agreed their coded artifacts are music. Additionally, participants’ varied responses about musicianship and composers suggests that making music is something anyone can engage in, regardless of how one identifies themself. All participants agreed that Sonic Pi is a useful tool for learning and understanding musical concepts and that Western staff notation is not required knowledge for making music. Participants’ interests in music or computer science courses were impacted by their prior experiences in music and/or coding. This study concludes with a discussion of themes based on the findings.

Thesis (D.M.A.)--Boston University / Entrepreneurship is a topic gaining attention within post-secondary education in the United States in a multitude of disciplines outside of the traditional business school. In the discipline of music, entrepreneurship education can be described as an approach to preparing professional musicians that considers the artistic and economic environment they will encounter upon graduation. The aim of entrepreneurship education is to help a student creatively apply her or his education, skills, passion, and vision toward creating a sustainable career in music. Entrepreneurship education may hold particular significance in the realm of music teacher preparation in post-secondary education for its potential to broaden employment opportunities for music educators and to help them create new and expanded value for individuals and communities within and beyond the pre-K-12 school settings for which music educators are traditionally prepared to work. Examples include preparation in studio teaching and community music leadership. Drawing on the historical and theoretical foundations of traditional entrepreneurship, and examining current models of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial thinking in music education, I develop a conceptual framework for how entrepreneurship education might serve as a means of positively transforming music teacher preparation practices in post-secondary education to better meet the career needs and interests of music education majors and other music majors who aspire to teach music. Programs that are designed to create musical, social, and economic value for individuals and communities may challenge and expand current accepted definitions of "music educator" and might bring greater relevance to the aims, processes, and content involved in music teacher preparation programs. Particular attention is focused upon three entrepreneurial models of music education: the Sistema Fellows Program of El Sistema USA, Musical Futures in the United Kingdom, and the Music-in-Education concentration at New England Conservatory.

Teacher preparation programs have played a major role in developing candidates’ knowledge and abilities in teaching. These preparation programs have been designed according to the policies and regulations of national and state governments, accrediting agencies, and universities. Moreover, cultural contexts influence practices and educational systems. Investigating education policies and their implementation in the United States and the Republic of Korea would shed light on music teacher training in each context, and help officials understand and diagnose local problems. The purpose of this study was to analyze documented policies and procedures for music teacher licensure programs in two countries, to explore their implementation, and investigate candidates’ learning during both programs. The perspectives of two types of knowledge, subject matter knowledge and general pedagogical knowledge, also guided the study. Massachusetts policies and regulations were analyzed. Tito University in Massachusetts and Quinn University in the ROK were selected. Document analysis, individual interviews with professors, and focus group interviews with student teachers in licensure programs in each context were employed. Both Massachusetts and the ROK required music teacher candidates to possess knowledge and skills in Western Classical music. While Massachusetts regulations included what kinds of music and music education knowledge teacher candidates must have, the ROK regulations indicated how many credits teacher candidates must complete in music, music education, and general education areas. In both contexts, interviews with professors revealed that these programs followed policies and standards of the national, state, and accrediting agencies. In planning curriculum, all professors must consider policies. However, at Tito, professors reported paying closer attention to training students in classroom expertise, whereas Quinn professors paid closer attention to preparing students for the national exam. Teacher candidates wanted to have more field-based experiences in both contexts, although students in Massachusetts worked at practice for a longer period than those in the ROK. Candidates at Tito needed to learn a variety of music from other traditions besides Western Classical music. Candidates at Quinn were overwhelmed due to preparation for The Examination. Individual policy interpretation produced different outcomes. Further research is needed regarding implementation of policies in other licensure programs.