The purpose of this intrinsic case study was to show how Expert Team Theory can
explain the application of goal orientated rehearsal strategies which were designed
for this study for an ad hoc ensemble at the School of Music of the North-West
University, Potchefstroom, South Africa. The case study was considered as the most
suitable research method to investigate the ways in which goal-orientated rehearsal
strategies influence dynamics during rehearsals of a new music ensemble, and the
experiences by the members of their interaction, because this approach allowed me
to investigate these strategies in a real world environment.
This study was born out of an interest in rehearsal strategies and in different ways to
structure music rehearsals. The characteristics of a new music ensemble determined
the use of Expert Team Theory as the theoretical basis for the design of the goalorientated
rehearsal strategies. These characteristics correspond well with that of an
expert team as “a set of interdependent team members, each of whom possesses
unique and expert-level knowledge, skills, and experience related to task
performance, and who adapt, coordinate, and cooperate as a team, thereby
producing sustainable and repeatable team functioning at superior or at least nearoptimal
levels of performance” (Salas et al., 2006:439-440).
Based on interviews with the participants and the observations of video recordings of
the rehearsals, the results show that interpreting the data through the theoretical lens
of Expert Team Theory enabled me to explain the rehearsal process as a dynamic
confluence of experiences created through the interaction of the ensemble members
who grew through increasing cooperation and coordination to resemble an expert
team. Their sense of collectiveness and their trust coupled with strong leadership
allowed the success of the strategy of prebrief-performance-debrief. The ensemble
developed progressively clearer shared mental models and understandings of roles
and responsibilities. A clear, valued and shared vision helped them to manage and
optimize performance outcomes. The findings are also interrogated in terms of
cooperative learning to further explain the web-like way in which different themes
developed. This led to a discussion of the limitations of this study and suggestions
for further research. / MA (Performance), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:NWUBOLOKA1/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/15491 |
| Date | January 2014 |
| Creators | Oosthuizen, Pieter Andreas |
| Source Sets | North-West University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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