The Kenyah, an indigenous group dwelling in the mountainous plateau region and the upper reaches of four major rivers of Borneo, constitute one of many minority communities in Sarawak, the largest state of Malaysia. This small, isolated community has nurtured refined forms of visual and performing arts, such as the music of the sape, a boat-shaped lute which has become a national cultural emblem. Kenyah historical and socio-cultural background is shown to have played a major role in shaping the development of a sophisticated choral singing tradition featuring homophonic harmony. Their substantial repertoire of attractive recreational songs and community-wide participation in musicking form the focus of this thesis, viewed from the perspective of music education. The growing stature of world musics within the sphere of music education has led to increasing collaboration between ethnomusicologists and music educators to investigate and disseminate traditional genres. Kenyah songs, being distinctly Asian in flavour, yet largely conforming to classical Western musical syntax, would be especially valuable for world music programmes. However, in Malaysia, the shortage of available, relevant teaching materials, especially folksongs in a variety of tonalities, ill-equips the teachers to teach music genuinely reflecting local cultures, or to implement international approaches such as those of Kodály and Orff. Analysis of over eighty songs documented during fieldwork in two different river-systems since 1996 demonstrated that they display a range of tonalities (predominantly pentatonic, hence especially amenable to Kodály programmes), emotional variety, rhythmic consistency and associated dance movements. The song-texts feature poetic references to a variety of interesting subjects. Responses from schoolchildren, workshop-participants and teacher-trainees demonstrated that the songs held wide appeal for both inherent and delineated meanings. Many succeeded in mastering the melody, lyrics, harmony and movements despite lack of familiarity with the language. Choral performances of the songs, although attracting some points of criticism regarding modifications, drew approval from culture-bearers who expressed gratification that non-Kenyah could perform songs fast disappearing from their own community. Kenyah recreational songs would thus be a timely addition to music classes and to choral repertoire around the world. / Thesis (DMus)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Music / Unrestricted

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The application of the label music to complex sound requires structure. Musical or rhythmic structure can be thought of as being due to the interaction of two theoretically distinct structures of phrase and metre. Perception of both metrical and phrase structure is dependent not only on the physical structure of the acoustic presentation but also upon cognitive structure being imposed on the auditory sensations. Early work in the psychology of music focused on establishing the perceptual cues that determine the parsing of music in time. These perceptual determinants can be categorized on the basis of the theoretical components of music: melody, harmony, rhythm, and timbre. With the exception of accent strength based on stability judgments of tones or chords (i.e., structural accenting), phenomenal accents have been assumed by some theorists to be equally-salient, additive, and categorical. The assumption of equal accent strength not only has been applied to different phenomenal accents within a theoretical component category but also between categories. Three series of experiments were conducted to test the assumption of equal weight and additivity of rhythmic cues. In the first series, a harmonic and a temporal accent were pitted against each other in such a way as to form different rhythm patterns. As well, two harmonic conditions which varied in the frequency of chord presentations (i.e., the compositerhythm) but not the frequency of chord changes (i.e., the harmonic-rhythm) were presented. Musicians and nonmusicians were requested to report perceived rhythm patterns in an attempt to determine the relative salience of the harmonic and temporal accents. In addition, a behavioural measure of the perceived metre was taken. Results indicated that the location of chord changes was the main determinant of subjects' rhythmic perceptions and the perceived onset of a measure. As well, although subjects primarily inferred different metres based on the composite-rhythm, an interaction of metrical and rhythmic choices was found indicating that perception of rhythm patterns and inference of metrical structure may not always be independent. In the second series of experiments, the contribution of harmonic-temporal and harmonic-structural features to the perception of rhythm patterns was investigated by pitting a harmonic and a temporal accent against each other in such a way as to form 5 possible rhythm patterns. Across the experiments, the chord progressions employed were varied, as was the timing of chord onsets (i.e., the composite-rhythm) and changes (i.e., the harmonic-rhythm). In all experiments, musicians and nonmusicians were requested to report perceived rhythm patterns in an attempt to determine the relative salience of the various accents. Results indicated that changes in the composite-and harmonic-rhythm led to a predictable change in an inferred metrical structure, and that all diatonic chord progressions lead to similar patterns of responses in which coincidences of harmonic, temporal, and inferred metrical accents were perceptually salient events. When a nondiatonic chord progression was employed however, there was neither evidence of an inferred metre, nor of responses on the basis of accent coincidence. Overall, musicians were found to primarily report rhythm patterns defined by the location of harmonic accents, while nonmusicians reported rhythm patterns defined by an inferred metrical structure. In the third series of experiments, the relative contribution of cues for metre inference was determined. In many theories of metre inference, the cues which serve as markers for major metrical accent locations are the basis from which one infers or determines a metre. However, phrase and metrical structure often support one another with phrase boundaries coinciding with metrically important locations. Thus, it becomes difficult to determine which cues, if any, are used exclusively, or predominantly as the basis for metre inference. Three experiments were conducted in which different time-spans defined by harmonic, melodic, and temporal accents, and their coincidences were systematically pitted against one another. Musicians and nonmusicians were requested to identify the metre of the stimuli as belonging to a category of either a triple (e.g., 6/8 or 3/4 time), or a duple metre (e.g., 2/4 or 4/4 time). It was found that musicians use harmonic information much more often and reliably than do nonmusicians who also use the temporal accent to define a metrical structure. Nevertheless, across the experiments, when a harmonic accent was present, subjects used that accent to define the metre. Furthermore, the coincidence of melodic accents was used more often than a temporal accent to determine a metrical structure. Together the three series of experiments highlight the significant role of harmonic accents in the perception of rhythm patterns in music. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

In this paper we analyze the existing methods for exploring and evaluating the characteristics of the jump mechanic in video games by comparing qualitative research done in the field of game studies. For this study we are using the jump as a centerpiece, starting with an analysis of different methodologies that break down game mechanics and assessing their functionality and possible effects on players. Primarily this focus will be on how mechanics are broken down from different perspectives and how these methodologies compare. The intent behind the review of these methodologies is to objectively simplify the process of collecting and comparing relevant research in order to familiarize the reader with the concept of game mechanics and their parts from an assortment of perspectives while also retaining knowledge on their similarities and differences. This paper comes to the conclusion that one could argue for the discovery of three thematic similarities between the methodologies.These similarities are then presented to shape an understanding of how a resonating or “Harmonic”(Swink, 2008, p.297) systems could be developed.

This study attempt to analyze the style Albéniz, especially as expressed in Iberia Suite. As with all composers, his particular style is created out of his own combining and recombining the principal elements of music, arranging them in a certain way to suit his needs and taste. The musical elements are: rhythm, melody, and harmony. The study is organized in ten chapters.

The design of my proposal was deeply influenced by the typical character of spa pavillions in urban recreational parks. Neveertheless i combine such a character with contemporary more conceptual way of architecture. With maybe bigger scale, but having reasons for that. Into the center of park i place a house of baths, where all the activities typical for paths take action - massages, rehabilitation, swimming and wellness. Other parts of the project such as two new proposed buildings for a hotel have the same character of a pavillion in a park. Their interdependant relationships creates new story in a city.

This study examined the linkages between marital harmony and conflict and infants' emotional and physiological regulation abilities and developmental status at six- and nine-months of age. Participants included 93 first-time mothers and their infants (43 males, 50 females) from a Mountain West community. Mothers were asked to complete a battery of questionnaires, including a demographic measure and Braiker and Kelly's (1979) marital quality questionnaire. The revised Bayley Scales of Infant Development (BSID II) and Behavior Rating Scales (BRS) 2nd Edition were administered at six- and nine-months to measure infants' mental and motor development status and emotional regulation abilities. Infants' heart rate was also measured at six- and nine-months to measure their physiological regulation abilities. While correlations were found between high levels of marital conflict and infants' emotional regulation abilities at six-months, these correlations were not found at nine-months. However, this study was able to tease apart the direction of affect between marital conflict and infants' emotional and physiological regulation. Based on previous literature, it was hypothesized that marital conflict at six-months would predict infants' regulatory abilities at nine-months. However, the results from this study suggest that infant variables at six-months predict marital quality at nine-months. Specifically, infants' low emotional and physiological regulation abilities at six-months predicts higher levels of marital conflict at nine-months. Overall, these findings present a new perspective and offer new insights into the relationship between marital conflict and infants' regulation abilities. These findings have important implications for understanding the impact that infants' poorer regulation abilities can have on a marriage. Additional research is needed to further investigate the long-term consequences of infants' regulatory abilities on marital functioning and vice versa.

Women's participation in the labor force has increased in Singapore in the recent years. Research has suggested that women's attempt to relate their traditional roles as wife and mother with the expectations of their modern role as a paid employee may have an impact on their mental health. Data from a cross-sectional national probability sample of 284 employed mothers in Singapore were used to investigate the relationships between work hours, marital satisfaction, child relationship satisfaction, work-family harmony, and mental health. Based on the results of the Structural Equation Model, mothers who worked long hours experienced more positive mental health. This is perhaps attributable to paid work being considered as a means by which women can contribute to the family's welfare and well-being, instead of competing with one's finite resources. Results of the mediation analysis suggested that marital satisfaction had a positive, albeit small, effect on mental health through work-family harmony. This renders support to the family stress model theory, suggesting that for Asian women who actively participate in the work force, family relationships play an important role on their work-life experience, which ultimately has a significant impact on their mental health. Recognizing the unique cultural meanings Asian societies ascribe to work and family can facilitate a better understanding of Asian women's work-family experience.

Detta självständiga arbete grundar sig i en nyfikenhet kring praktiska övningar och komplement till den vanligtvis teoretiskt lagda undervisningen i musikteori. Den nutida forskningen uppmanar till en mer praktiskt inriktad undervisning då mycket av den musikteori som lärs ut idag saknar pedagogisk tanke. Musiker får lära sig mer om musikteori men väldigt lite om hur de kan utnyttja kunskaperna. Forskarnas lösning på problemet är att återinföra den s. k. partimento-traditionen, som är en gammal tradition där elever fick lära sig om- och utforska harmonik på ett praktiskt sätt genom spel och improvisation. Men denna lösning skulle kräva en genomgående revision av hela ämnet musikteori och kräva en omstrukturering på internationell nivå. Jag har därför valt att utforma och genomföra en samling praktiska övningar baserade på denna gamla tradition som kan fungera som ett komplement till dagens teoretiska undervisning. Dessa övningar genomförs tillsammans med informanter i studien och kombineras med olika intervjumoment för att ta reda på hur klassiska musiker förhåller sig till denna problematik. Resultatet visar på att det finns brister i gymnasiekursen Gehörs- och Musiklära, till exempel att undervisningen ofta saknar viktiga moment som gehör och mer praktisk undervisning. Det framkommer även att det saknas tydlig kommunikation mellan gymnasier och musikhögskolor och att många elever känner sig oförberedda införantagningsproven. Informanterna uttrycker sig även positivt till de förutnämnda övningarna och påstår att dessa kan fungera bra som komplement till undervisningen. / This degree project is based on a curiosity about practical exercises and supplements to the typically theory-oriented music theory education. Contemporary research encourages a more practical approach to teaching, as much of the music theory taught today lacks pedagogical meaning. Musicians often learn more about music theory, but very little about how to apply their knowledge. The researchers' solution to this problem is to reintroduce the so-called partimento tradition, which is an old tradition where students learn and explore harmony in a practical way through playing and improvisation. However, this solution would require a major revision of the entire curriculum and a restructuring at an international level. Therefore, I have chosen to design and conduct a collection of practical exercises based on this old tradition, which can serve as a supplement to today's theoretical education. These exercises are carried out together with participants in the study and combined with various interview elements to understand how classical musicians approach this issue. The results indicate that there are shortcomings in the high-school course in music theory, such as the teaching often lacking important elements like ear training and more practical exercises. It also appears that there is a lack of communication between high schools and music colleges and that many students feel unprepared for the entrance exams. The participants express a positive attitude towards the aforementioned practical exercises and claim that they can work well as a complement to the education.

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