It was this writer's problem to determine which of these two contentions is correct; i.e., to find out whether or not it is possible for a person to perceive a difference in 2/4 and 4/4 meters by listening to the accents. It was felt that a large group of college music students and faculty members should provide satisfactory subjects for this experiment. If, as a result of this experiment, it was found that these trained musicians could actually discriminate between the simple meter and its compound with any marked degree of consistency, it would then be admitted that the difference in the two meters is important. If, however, it was found that even musicians, who knew the technical distinctions between 2/4 and 4/4, could not really hear the difference in the two when the music was played by competent performers, it would then be contended that no important difference exists.

Thesis (D.M.A.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1974. / Typescript. Vita. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 154-157).