A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Arts in fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Music at the University of Zululand, 2005. / This document on umaskandi is about a vocal musical style that was created and nurtured by the Zulu people. Externally and, at a distance, the style may not appear to be artistically captivating, praiseworthy, and linguistically significant. It is but only on closer scrutiny that the aesthetic worth of the music can be realized. Even then, without a considerable research into a sizeable amount of the people's arts in relation to their life activities, a casual listener may not identify any worthiness in the practice of umaskandi music. This is generally the case with all the music of Africa. The music is contained in the life activities of the people. Having discovered the entertaining element in the music, a serious listener will still be faced with the greater challenges of fathoming the organization of sound, the significance of the libretto and the physical execution, in relation to the lifestyles of the performers. The sound of the music, the observed rhythmic activity of the performers, and the language of the libretto and its elocution are only the surface of the activity. There is still, but, more signification in the unsaid source of the music. The reason for the neglect of this music style by Western cultures and by some modern local indigenous Africans, was not a mere oversight, but a result of stigmatization of all African arts by Europeans, whose intention was to dominate the whole of Africa. They would not succeed in managing the people dictatorially without destroying the latter's culture- For some time, therefore, because of such pressures and the demands of the culture of cities, and missionary education, the Westerners were able to 'convert' some Africans against their own (African) culture. Such attempts to 'Europeanize' Africans took place wherever there were European settlers on African soil. But, because of the breadth of the continent, they could not cover the whole surface of the country. Even amongst those that were reached, like the Zulus, there were always people who were not willing to abandon their indigenous heritage. Many were unbending and insisted on maintaining their traditional arts and cultures. It was from such a cultural attitude and disposition that umaskandi idiom was born. The coming in of democratic rule in South Africa has, however, restored the dignity of every human culture in the country. Therefore, all nationalities are free to practise their various cultures with firmness and self-assurance. This attitude lent more confidence to those that performed umaskandi music. It took some time before 'sophisticated' Africans could appreciate the sound and movement in performance of umaskandi performance style. The other nationalities took a little longer. Up to this day, those that have not been orientated in the language of the performers have not grasped the essence in umaskandi music, because of the social contextual nature of the music. Should a form of prejudice against indigenous African languages be sustained, ignorance about the life and thought patterns of Africans shall grow. This will be a drawback for the South African people as a whole. This phenomenon is worthy of mention because the propagation of isiZulu is getting threatened in many ways. First: There is a big population of Zulu and non-Zulu learners that do not receive tuition of their vernacular because some school managers are negative towards African languages. Secondly: Umaskandi musicians, who are the custodians of isiZulu language and culture, and other Zulu artistes, shall never be comprehended if the language is ignored. So, for those unfortunate learners who do not have isiZulu in their curriculum, the doors are closed on both sides. Since they are not given tuition in the classroom, they are most likely to develop a negative attitude towards the language, which would be a great disaster. In their schooling career, they will also miss the further * education through music' that is provided by Zulu music practitioners at large. Umaskandi musicians, who are speakers of isiZulu language, are in their own way, keepers and propagators of isiZulu culture. Their instruments are tuned in isiZulu style, which is their own instrumental creation bashed on their singing style. Their libretto is in isiZulu. They are historians of isiZulu life and its relevant culture of yesteryear. This will be missed. Umaskandi concept, which embraces the isiZulu instrumental tuning, isiZulu manner of dancing, isiZulu vocal harmony and isiZulu elocution of izibongo (praise poetry) , originated in the indigenous lives of the Zulu people. These people were so solid in their belief and practice that they clang tenaciously onto their culture even when they were exposed to a conglomeration of foreign cultures in the horrible mining environment. Umaskandi concept, therefore, had an effect on the people's behaviour. When the African indigenous people came across the new musical instrumentation at their disposal, they adapted the latter and used them to become an extension of their vocal styles. When conditions in the mines were depressing, degrading and debasing, they painfully sang of the good life that they had left behind in their indigenous homes. Through this umaskandi style, they have, therefore, been able to relate a people's history. The final question in the last chapter is whether umaskandi concept can be a method of education in the performance of instruments just as tonic solfa is a method of vocal music. The question can be extended further to inquire whether umaskandi concept can be a method of moral and cul tural determination and perseverance as it has been the case with Zulu musicians.

The purpose of this study was to examine how race and gender bias influence music educators' perceptions of musical style and evaluations of brief jazz and classical piano performances. Previous research has shown that race and gender bias and stereotype activation influence our judgment of others. These factors could result in biased evaluations of musical performances, including ensemble auditions and college level juries. I constructed an instrument designed to test these biases by experimentally manipulating race and gender variables of jazz and classical performances. Videos of a black male, white male, white female, and black female pianist were synchronized with identical audio recordings to control for performer ability. The first experiment measured how stereotypes influence participants' proper identification of jazz and classical styles in a series of 2-second video clips. The second experiment measured how race and gender bias influence participants' evaluations of jazz and classical performances in a series of 10-second video clips. The participants in this study were a national sample of applied music faculty (n=315). Participants were randomly assigned to four test conditions in a 2x2 (performer race X performer gender) between subjects blind experimental design. The dependent variables were classical jury grade predictions, jazz jury grade predictions, and accuracy of style identification. Results of a 2x2 ANOVA revealed significant differences in style identification by gender and interaction of race and gender. Participants were more likely to associate female performers with classical music and the black male performer with jazz. There were also significant differences in classical jury grade predictions by race, and jazz jury grade predictions by the interaction of race and gender. The black male performer received the lowest average jury grade predictions in both jazz and classical performances, scoring between 0.5 and 1 letter grade lower than the other performers. Results suggest that a negative association of females and jazz music still exists, as well as a stereotype of a black male jazz performer. While females did not receive significantly lower jazz jury grade predictions than the male performers, they may still feel marginalized in college jazz programs and ensembles. The results also suggest that black males may be at a significant disadvantage in college music admissions, auditions, and juries. These results have serious implications for music educators at every level. We must strive for fair and equitable audition processes and ensure that every child, regardless of race or gender, has an equal opportunity to participate in ensembles and music programs. / Music Education

This thesis deals with artificial intelligence composing classical music and ways of evaluating its performance by listeners. The text provides the first overview of the conducted experiments based on the so-called Turing test and, set up on the analysis of primary sources, it suggests possible improvements in terms of methodology. In the end, we propose an alternative test, which rejects the philosophical implications of the Turing test and, in contrast to the original experiment, also provides room for a music-theoretical analysis of the generated works.

Since the implementation and achievement score pressures of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, elective course offerings such as music have been drastically reduced, especially in the middle school setting. A great deal of correlational research has shown a positive correlation between music education in school and students’ overall academic achievement. This study examined the correlation between those middle school students that participated in the District Concert Band Music Performance Assessment (MPA) versus those middle school students that did not regarding their achievement scores on the 2016 English language arts (ELA) and mathematics subtests of the Florida Standards Assessments (FSA). The theoretical framework of this study was undergirded by Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. The researcher used a non-experimental ex post facto research design for the collection of the study’s data. The results indicated that there was a positive, statistically significant difference between both the ELA and mathematics achievement scores of those students that participated in the MPA and those that did not. There was also a positive, statistically significant difference between both the ELA and mathematics achievement scores of those students that participated in the MPA and the level of music their band performed. However, there was not a statistically significant difference between both the ELA and mathematics achievement scores of those students that performed at the MPA and the final overall rating that their band received. School administrators are charged with the responsibility of ensuring that effective programs are instituted in their schools so their students can be successful. The results of this quantitative non-experimental ex post facto study could provide administrators additional research-based evidence suggesting that band on the middle-school level, which is a branch of music education, could be a program to include in the school’s curriculum because it might positively contribute to the school’s ELA and mathematics achievement and academic culture. Additional research can also be conducted to observe the effects of music study on student achievement for students of all grade levels and socioeconomics. This would lead school administrators to continue practicing the notion of educating the whole child while making administrative decisions, which should be the sine qua non of education.