It is common to learn to play an orchestral musical instrument through regular one-to-one lessons with an experienced musician as a tutor. Intuition suggests that the principal activity during these meetings would be playing, however conversation is important, not just as a way to analyse musical contributions, but to organise them within the lesson flow. Activities are managed conversationally, discussion interleaved with performance, demonstration and musical experimentation, resulting in a rich multi-modal social interaction. This thesis presents a detailed ethnographic study of five one-to-one clarinet lessons. Conversation transcription notation was developed specifically to capture the musical sounds produced alongside dialogue. Analysis of the shape and timing of the musical contributions shows that many aspects of music produced in this context are shaped by the way that playing can function as a conversational turn. For example, during student performance the volume, duration and timing of the tutor's utterances, in relation to the student's musical phrasing, determines whether they are interpreted as encouraging backchannels, or a bid for the floor to provide immediate feedback. Non-verbal behaviours such as gaze and changes in posture are used to encourage a student to self-repair and continue with their performance, despite mutual acknowledgement that a problem has occurred. Fine-grained analysis of a video-mediated remote lesson reveals what happens when this organisation is disturbed. The change in medium reduces the availability of non-verbal cues, and the disruption caused by latency has divergent effects on the sequence and placement of turns, as they are experienced at each location. For example, students find it more difficult to anticipate tutor interruption of their performance or correctly identify backchannels, leading to miscommunication. Our understanding of the importance of these phenomena to lesson flow leads to recommendations for tools to better support student-tutor interaction during the remote lesson experience.

This thesis explores the historical development of the electronic organ via the survey, analysis and comparison of stylistic practices heard in historic recordings. This project establishes that the instrument went through several significant stages of development since its introduction in 1935, which have hitherto been undocumented in scholarly work. As this thesis will show, the changing design of the instrument can be aligned with an evident expansion in the stylistic lexicon of musical arrangement and performance. This aural-based micro-genre of electronic music is rediscovered via a multi-faceted survey model that triangulates the results of transcribed recordings, reconstructive performance on period instruments and practitioner survey. This addresses the typical challenge of historical instrument study: that of defining the degree to which technology shapes musical performance. Chapter One places the instrument within a cultural context via a review of literature. The reason for the instrument’s lack of appeal to musicologists is explained as the result of an image problem: the instrument is often regarded as a dated appliance of home entertainment and exists within a method of practice which aligns more closely to that of jazz than Western art music. By removing stereotypes and establishing the displaced cultural values that the instrument embodies, it is possible to see the true value of the research process. Chapter Two begins to present the findings of the survey by examining some of the earliest recordings made on the Hammond organ. The chapter illustrates how certain design flaws in an instrument that was originally Christopher Stanbury Introduction 6 intended as a low-cost replacement for a pipe organ led to an entirely different trajectory than the inventor’s initial ecclesiastical application. Chapter Three details further updates to the original Hammond design whilst correcting and expanding upon previous definitions of features that are defined in literature. The Lowrey organ is also introduced, along with an illustration of why the unique features and tonal qualities of the instrument resulted in a different approach to musical arrangement and performance. Chapter Four documents the introduction of emulative voicing, whereby instruments of the nineteen seventies and early eighties were designed to imitate the sound of other acoustic instruments. The resultant change in arrangement and performance style is illustrated and compared to the results of previous chapters. Chapter Five details instruments made by the Yamaha Corporation that feature digital synthesis technologies. The vast distance between these instruments and previous models, both in terms of technological profile and resultant performance practice, is illustrated and discussed. Chapter Six provides a summary of the survey findings and reexamines the evident changes in the instrument and performance practice. The nature of the relationship between organist and instrument is discussed, along with a return to some of the literature reviewed in Chapter One. Discrepancies between the conclusions of some authors and those of this thesis are outlined and discussed.

Bluegrass as it is played in the United States today is not simply a resistant category of country music, but performs a particular and emergent view of past/present relations. More than a "micromusic" mediating between "supercultures" and "subcultures" (in Mark Slobin's terms 1993), in fact bluegrass's complex history resists simple top down or bottom up perspectives, articulating a distinct space of authenticity. Active `genre tending' in a jam setting poetically articulates emergent social relations, in a specific spatiotemporal frame, at New York City's The Baggot Inn jam scene, a site of bluegrass performance at which the genre is employed creatively as a way of socializing and articulating contemporary presence. Learning a genre on an individual level is an actively embodied linking of technique and feeling, and differing listening experiences may lead to differing ideas of what a musical text represents. Expressive skill, executed through embodied musical gestures derived from specific pieces of music, may embed personal biography with social history and experience. Successful coperformance of a genre (bluegrass, in this case) requires a dynamic performative flexibility. This flexibility in turn can permanently affect both player and context, though different players may have to work to agree or disagree. These live, face to face interactions which depend on local specifics, maintain the coherence of the wider musical genre that facilitates those very actions themselves.

Orientador: Ricardo Lobo Kubala / Banca: Luiz Britto Passos Amato / Banca: Emerson Luiz de Biaggi / Resumo: O presente trabalho tem por objetivo aprofundar o conhecimento acerca da realização de acordes na viola a partir da concepção dos principais autores da literatura da viola e do violino dos séculos XIX e XX. Aspectos da escrita empregada para indicar a sobreposição de notas para esses instrumentos trouxeram a necessidade de reflexão sobre sua realização por parte do instrumentista. Devido ao formato curvo do cavalete e ao fato de a crina do arco ser plana, a execução de acordes demanda o uso de técnica específica, sendo necessário o uso de estudos e exercícios para seu desenvolvimento. Trata-se de assunto fundamental para o desenvolvimento do instrumentista, entretanto, observa-se escassez de material pedagógico disponível que aborde a técnica de acordes. Foi realizado um levantamento no intuito de quantificar e classificar a ocorrência de emprego de acordes em métodos, livros de exercícios, estudos e caprichos, nos quais foram encontradas propostas de estudo, realização e interpretação de acordes. Observou-se que as orientações relacionadas à execução de acordes diferem marcantemente entre os autores consultados, apontando para uma riqueza de possibilidades de realização desse aspecto da técnica de arco que fornece variedade de meios para atender às vastas demandas estilísticas com que se deparam violistas e violinistas enquanto intérpretes. / Abstract: This research aims to deepen the knowledge about chord playing on Viola, based on the conceptions of the main Viola and Violin authors of the 19th and 20th centuries. Some aspects related to the writing of overlapping notes to those instruments brought the need of reflection about their execution by players. Due to the curved form of the bridge and to the fact that the hair of the bow is flat, the execution of chords demands the usage of a specific technique and consequently the use of studies and exercises for its development. Despite it is a fundamental matter for the instrumentalist's development, it may be observed a scarcity of teaching material available that addresses the chord playing technique. A research with the purpose of quantifying and classifying the occurrence of chord usage in methods, practicing books, etudes and caprices was done, and varied proposals of studying, performance and interpretation of chords were found in those methods. It was observed that the orientation related to the execution of chords differs markedly among consulted authors, displaying a richness of performing possibilities of such bowing technique aspect that provides a variety of means to attend to the wide stylistic demands which Viola and Violin players encounter as performers. / Mestre

Orientadora: Sonia Marta Rodrigues Raymundo / Banca: Werner Aguiar / Banca: Fausto Borém de Oliveira / Banca: Wânia Mara Agostini Storolli / Banca: Alexandre Silva Rosa / Resumo: Esta pesquisa observa o estado de presença na performance musical. Parte-se da ideia de presença, que advém da filosofia, proposta aqui como sendo um dos aspectos formantes da performance musical, condição na qual o intérprete pode se inserir em menor ou maior grau enquanto atua. Defende-se a tese de que quando a ação de performance musical contém conscientemente o estado de presença, abrem-se novas possibilidades para o contínuo desenvolvimento artístico e humano do músico que executa um instrumento em público (performer musical), abordado aqui particularmente pelo viés do contrabaixista. Face às diferentes gradações possíveis de envolvimento do músico com seus fazeres artísticos, lança-se a ideia de reconexão das características da performance musical com aspectos das performances em outras áreas, no sentido de tentar compreender alguns dos elementos que extravasam as especificidades desta área de atuação e que permitam que se exercite a observação sob esta perspectiva. O performer teria, a partir da conscientização desse processo, a possibilidade de adotar intencionalmente uma postura amalgamada aos efeitos de sua atuação artística e, por consequência, acrescer sua pesquisa e seu desenvolvimento enquanto músico, estendendo-os inclusive para além do momento da performance. Para tanto, o trabalho se organiza em quatro capítulos a saber: O primeiro capítulo apresenta a ideia de presença e estado de presença, bem como aspectos de cognição, neurologia e biologia que dizem respe... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: This research observes the state of presence in musical performance. Starting from the idea of presence, which comes from philosophy, proposed here as one of the formative aspects of musical performance, a condition in which the performer can insert him/herself to a lesser or greater degree while performing. The thesis defended here is that when the action of musical performance consciously contains the state of presence, new possibilities for the continuous artistic and human development of the musician who performs an instrument in public (musical performer) are open, here addressed particularly by the bass player's bias. Considering the different possible degrees of musician's involvement with his/her artistic practices, the idea of reconnecting musical performance features with aspects of performances in other areas is proposed here, in order to understand some of the elements that go beyond this field's specificities and allow observation to be exercised from this perspective. From the awareness of this process, the performer could intentionally adopt a posture amalgamated to the outcomes of his/her artistic performance and consequently broaden his/her research and development as a musician, extending them even beyond the moment of performance. Therefore, this work is organized into four chapters namely: The first chapter introduces the concept of presence and state of presence, as well as aspects of cognition, neurology and biology which relate to its manifestation in t... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor

The main purpose of this dissertation was to explore the psychomotor and cognitive characteristics of the practice behaviours of a group of novice keyboard instrumentalists and to identify those factors which had most significant influence on performance achievement. The pivotal question guiding the study was 'How can one characterise the effects of practice strategies on the performance outcomes of this group of novice performers?' Six research questions were examined. The first three concerned student predisposition, practice procedures, and performance achievement. The second three questions examined the relationships between personal characteristics, practice behaviours and performance outcomes. The results of the study indicate that some beginners are capable of cognitive engagement in the execution of practice. Students who planned, analysed and evaluated practice strategies, both mentally and physically, were identified as self-regulated learners. These students were the more successful achievers. Students who made use of the technology, specifically for instructional purposes, made more gains that those that did not. Accumulated practice was not found to influence performance achievement. Implications for future research on this little explored subject were included / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Music is both an art and a science involving emotional appreciation and intellectual understanding. When music performances are assessed, appropriate criteria should be used by examiners who appreciate the art and understand the science. This study examined the effects of training and experience on the judgements made by individuals who possessed an understanding of music performance (i.e. qualified musicians and music educators), from observations on videotape of three piano performances (by the same pianist). The thirty three participants were required to observe the videotape and complete a separate music performance assessment (MPA)sheet for each piece, and then rank the three pieces in order of preference. The MPA sheet contained (a) thirty three descriptive statements, under five headings, to which the examiner responded on a . six point Likert scale, and (b) a section for recording an overall impression mark, with provision for comment. There were four examiner categories: (1) untrained and inexperienced, (2) trained and inexperienced, (3) untrained and experienced, and (4) trained and experienced. The term 'experience' was applied to those participants who had previous involvement as examiners in any formal music performance assessment situation. The term 'trained' was applied to those participants who attended a short preparation course presented as part of the study. The responses of the four categories of examiner were tested for significant difference (.05 level) through the use of multivariate analysis of variance with repeated measures. One of the performances (piece 1) was recorded digitally by computer (using MIDI and the 'Vision' program) which provided a printout of what occurred during the performance. A comparison of the subjective analysis of the 'Vision' printout results with the examiner responses for piece 1, revealed that there was a link between the judgements made by examiners and the actual performance by the pianist. Results of the study indicate that (a) experience and training effects the criteria used by music examiners in the assessment of music performances, (b) training influenced the examiner responses more than experience, (c) in the 'best' performance, the effects of examiner training and experience were negligible, and (d) in the area of 'global' and 'specific' assessment of music performance, all examiners divorced the two approaches, however judgements of the untrained examiners were more obvious in their disparity. The results of this study suggest that the training a music examiner receives prior to the performance assessment session may be more important in producing consistent and accurate reports than the amount of previous examining experience. The criteria used by the music examiner should be clearly presented with appropriate dimensions for the musical instrument on which the student performs.

Treatise (D.M.A.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2003. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available from UMI.

I designed three experiments to determine how procedural memory consolidation in a music task is affected by practice under different conditions of speed regulation and different time intervals between practice sessions. Ninety-two nonpianist musicians practiced a 9-note sequence with their nondominant hand on a digital piano in three sessions, each of which comprised 3 blocks of 15 performance trials. In Experiment 1 (n= 31), participants were instructed to perform as quickly and accurately as possible but determined their own tempos in each trial. In Experiment 2 (n = 31), three defined practice tempos (M. M. = 52, 72, and 92) were externally regulated in a stable practice procedure in which tempo changed between, not within, blocks. In Experiment 3 (n =30), the same three tempos were externally regulated in a variable practice procedure in which practice tempo changed from trial to trial within each block. In each experiment, three different groups' practice sessions were separated by either 5 min, 6 hr, or 24 hr. Consistent with previous descriptions of procedural memory consolidation, the results of Experiment 1 show that note accuracy improved significantly between Sessions 1 and 2 only when the sessions were separated by a 24-hr interval that included sleep; performance speed improved in all groups between Sessions 1 and 2, and between Sessions 2 and 3 when sessions were separated by 6 or 24 hr. In Experiment 2 (stable practice) there were significant improvements in note and tempo accuracy between Sessions 1 and 2 when those sessions were separated by 5 min or 6 hr, but not when the sessions were separated by 24 hr. In Experiment 3 (variable practice), note accuracy improved between Sessions 1 and 2 only when the sessions were separated by a 24-hour interval that included sleep; there were no significant improvements in tempo accuracy, perhaps due to the high physical demands of matching varying target tempos in successive trials. These results demonstrate that motor skill learning in music is affected by the time interval between practice sessions, and that the effects of distributed practice are dependent upon practice conditions.

The purpose of this study was to examine the responses of male and female children to musical performance anxiety. Twenty-six sixth-grade piano students (11 male, 15 female) performing in a piano recital served as subjects. Boys' and girls' heart rates, behaviour, performance quality, and anxiety levels were examined for possible differences between the genders. It was found that girls had substantially higher heart rates than boys immediately prior to performing, but that this difference was minimal while performing. Significantly more anxious behaviours were noted for both genders prior to performing than during performing, but boys had significantly more anxious behaviours than girls in both cases. Very little difference was noted in boys' anxiety scores (State-trait Anxiety Inventory for Children) between low, medium and high performance quality levels, however girls with moderate performance quality had much higher anxiety than did those with low and high quality performances. As well, girls were found to give significantly higher quality performances than boys. Correlation and regression analyses suggest that the genders respond differently to musical performance anxiety. These analyses were run on the data in three ways: All Children, Boys Only, and Girls Only. It was found that several relationships that emerged in the All Children analysis were driven by a strong relationship in a single gender, but were nearly absent, or in fact opposite, in the other.