Sample records for musical instrument digital

  1. Background instrumental music and serial recall.

    PubMed

    Nittono, H

    1997-06-01

    Although speech and vocal music are consistently shown to impair serial recall for visually presented items, instrumental music does not always produce a significant disruption. This study investigated the features of instrumental music that would modulate the disruption in serial recall. 24 students were presented sequences of nine digits and required to recall the digits in order of presentation. Instrumental music as played either forward or backward during the task. Forward music caused significantly more disruption than did silence, whereas the reversed music did not. Some higher-order factor may be at work in the effect of background music on serial recall.

  2. Demonstrating DREAM: A Digital Resource Exchange about Music

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Upitis, Rena; Boese, Karen; Abrami, Philip C.

    2015-01-01

    The Digital Resource Exchange About Music (DREAM) is an online tool for exchanging information about digital learning tools for music education. DREAM was designed by our team to encourage music teachers to learn about digital resources related to learning to play a musical instrument, both in classroom and independent music studio settings. In…

  3. Software for Classroom Music Making.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ely, Mark C.

    1992-01-01

    Describes musical instrument digital interface (MIDI), a communication system that uses digital data to enable MIDI-equipped instruments to communicate with each other. Includes discussion of music editors, sequencers, compositional software, and commonly used computers. Suggests uses for the technology for students and teachers. Urges further…

  4. Analog-to-digital conversion to accommodate the dynamics of live music in hearing instruments.

    PubMed

    Hockley, Neil S; Bahlmann, Frauke; Fulton, Bernadette

    2012-09-01

    Hearing instrument design focuses on the amplification of speech to reduce the negative effects of hearing loss. Many amateur and professional musicians, along with music enthusiasts, also require their hearing instruments to perform well when listening to the frequent, high amplitude peaks of live music. One limitation, in most current digital hearing instruments with 16-bit analog-to-digital (A/D) converters, is that the compressor before the A/D conversion is limited to 95 dB (SPL) or less at the input. This is more than adequate for the dynamic range of speech; however, this does not accommodate the amplitude peaks present in live music. The hearing instrument input compression system can be adjusted to accommodate for the amplitudes present in music that would otherwise be compressed before the A/D converter in the hearing instrument. The methodology behind this technological approach will be presented along with measurements to demonstrate its effectiveness.

  5. Analog-to-Digital Conversion to Accommodate the Dynamics of Live Music in Hearing Instruments

    PubMed Central

    Bahlmann, Frauke; Fulton, Bernadette

    2012-01-01

    Hearing instrument design focuses on the amplification of speech to reduce the negative effects of hearing loss. Many amateur and professional musicians, along with music enthusiasts, also require their hearing instruments to perform well when listening to the frequent, high amplitude peaks of live music. One limitation, in most current digital hearing instruments with 16-bit analog-to-digital (A/D) converters, is that the compressor before the A/D conversion is limited to 95 dB (SPL) or less at the input. This is more than adequate for the dynamic range of speech; however, this does not accommodate the amplitude peaks present in live music. The hearing instrument input compression system can be adjusted to accommodate for the amplitudes present in music that would otherwise be compressed before the A/D converter in the hearing instrument. The methodology behind this technological approach will be presented along with measurements to demonstrate its effectiveness. PMID:23258618

  6. Music, Technology, and an Evolving Curriculum.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moore, Brian

    1992-01-01

    Mechanical examples of musical technology, like the Steinway piano, are well known and accepted. Use of computers and electronic technology is the next logical step in developing art of music. MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is explained, along with digital devices (such as synthesizers, sequencers, music notation software, multimedia,…

  7. Teaching Music in the Age of MIDI.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jordahl, Gregory

    1988-01-01

    Explores the combination of the microcomputer and a digital synthesizer which use the Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI). Discusses the evolution of MIDI, music classroom applications, and suggestions before purchasing a MIDI. (MVL)

  8. Transformations: Technology and the Music Industry.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Peters, G. David

    2001-01-01

    Focuses on the companies and organizations of the Music Industry Conference (MIC). Addresses topics such as: changes in companies due to technology, audio compact discs, the music instrument digital interface (MIDI) , digital sound recording, and the MIC on-line music instruction programs offered. (CMK)

  9. Using MIDI: A Staff Development Program Designed To Increase Teacher Awareness of the Technological Applications of Musical Instrument Digital Interface in the Classroom.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Neese, Charles Glen

    This practicum report describes an instructional program designed to increase teacher awareness of the technological applications of musical instrument digital interface (MIDI) in the classroom. The primary goal of the study was to assist music teachers in becoming more informed about MIDI, and to enable them to effectively select the appropriate…

  10. The EyeHarp: A Gaze-Controlled Digital Musical Instrument

    PubMed Central

    Vamvakousis, Zacharias; Ramirez, Rafael

    2016-01-01

    We present and evaluate the EyeHarp, a new gaze-controlled Digital Musical Instrument, which aims to enable people with severe motor disabilities to learn, perform, and compose music using only their gaze as control mechanism. It consists of (1) a step-sequencer layer, which serves for constructing chords/arpeggios, and (2) a melody layer, for playing melodies and changing the chords/arpeggios. We have conducted a pilot evaluation of the EyeHarp involving 39 participants with no disabilities from both a performer and an audience perspective. In the first case, eight people with normal vision and no motor disability participated in a music-playing session in which both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. In the second case 31 people qualitatively evaluated the EyeHarp in a concert setting consisting of two parts: a solo performance part, and an ensemble (EyeHarp, two guitars, and flute) performance part. The obtained results indicate that, similarly to traditional music instruments, the proposed digital musical instrument has a steep learning curve, and allows to produce expressive performances both from the performer and audience perspective. PMID:27445885

  11. Computers as Music Teachers.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Taylor, Jack A.

    1983-01-01

    Peripheral components for music instruction include a music keyboard, a digital music synthesizer, and music listening devices. Computers can teach sight-singing, playing an instrument, dictation, and composition. Computer programs should be interactive with students. (KC)

  12. Kids with disabilities inspire a musical instrument

    ScienceCinema

    Daily, Dan; Pfeifer, Kent

    2018-02-14

    The Midiwing is a musical instrument that unites music and computer technology for those who lack the experience, physical ability, or maturity to play music with traditional instruments. To create the instrument, Dan Daily, Director of Musicode Innovations, reworked and recoded Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) technology and introduced ergonomic design. He applied to the New Mexico Small Business Assistance (NMSBA) Program to receive help when he discovered the microcontroller he used was being phased out. Daily and Kent Pfeifer, an engineer at Sandia National Laboratories and musician himself, partnered to create a new state-of-the-art design.

  13. Kids with disabilities inspire a musical instrument

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Daily, Dan; Pfeifer, Kent

    The Midiwing is a musical instrument that unites music and computer technology for those who lack the experience, physical ability, or maturity to play music with traditional instruments. To create the instrument, Dan Daily, Director of Musicode Innovations, reworked and recoded Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) technology and introduced ergonomic design. He applied to the New Mexico Small Business Assistance (NMSBA) Program to receive help when he discovered the microcontroller he used was being phased out. Daily and Kent Pfeifer, an engineer at Sandia National Laboratories and musician himself, partnered to create a new state-of-the-art design.

  14. Dynamic modal characterization of musical instruments using digital holography

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Demoli, Nazif; Demoli, Ivan

    2005-06-01

    This study shows that a dynamic modal characterization of musical instruments with membrane can be carried out using a low-cost device and that the obtained very informative results can be presented as a movie. The proposed device is based on a digital holography technique using the quasi-Fourier configuration and time-average principle. Its practical realization with a commercial digital camera and large plane mirrors allows relatively simple analyzing of big vibration surfaces. The experimental measurements given for a percussion instrument are supported by the mathematical formulation of the problem.

  15. Discrete-time modelling of musical instruments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Välimäki, Vesa; Pakarinen, Jyri; Erkut, Cumhur; Karjalainen, Matti

    2006-01-01

    This article describes physical modelling techniques that can be used for simulating musical instruments. The methods are closely related to digital signal processing. They discretize the system with respect to time, because the aim is to run the simulation using a computer. The physics-based modelling methods can be classified as mass-spring, modal, wave digital, finite difference, digital waveguide and source-filter models. We present the basic theory and a discussion on possible extensions for each modelling technique. For some methods, a simple model example is chosen from the existing literature demonstrating a typical use of the method. For instance, in the case of the digital waveguide modelling technique a vibrating string model is discussed, and in the case of the wave digital filter technique we present a classical piano hammer model. We tackle some nonlinear and time-varying models and include new results on the digital waveguide modelling of a nonlinear string. Current trends and future directions in physical modelling of musical instruments are discussed.

  16. Can We Afford These Affordances? GarageBand and the Double-Edged Sword of the Digital Audio Workstation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bell, Adam Patrick

    2015-01-01

    The proliferation of computers, tablets, and smartphones has resulted in digital audio workstations (DAWs) such as GarageBand in being some of the most widely distributed musical instruments. Positing that software designers are dictating the music education of DAW-dependent music-makers, I examine the fallacy that music-making applications such…

  17. Using MIDI Accompaniments for Music Learning at School and at Home

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kersten, Fred

    2004-01-01

    This article discusses how MIDI and other computer technologies can help students build their musical skills in the classroom and at home. MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) has provided music teachers with increasing opportunity to use quality computer-developed musical accompaniments in teaching music to children. Standard MIDI files…

  18. An Assessment of a Technology in Music Programme. Technical Report 91-2, Revised Version.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Clarkson, Austin E.; Pegley, Karen

    An innovative intermediate music programme was instituted at an elementary school in a middle class suburban area in Canada. The music teacher at the school designed a unique curriculum, the Technology in Music Programme (TIMP), for a classroom equipped with microcomputers, sequencers, drum machines, music instrument digital interface (MIDI)…

  19. Improved Digit Span in Children after a 6-Week Intervention of Playing a Musical Instrument: An Exploratory Randomized Controlled Trial

    PubMed Central

    Guo, Xia; Ohsawa, Chie; Suzuki, Akiko; Sekiyama, Kaoru

    2018-01-01

    Previous studies have reported that music training not only improves children's musical skills, but also enhances their cognitive functions. However, there is a disagreement about what domain(s) might be affected. Moreover, effects of short-term (

  20. Improved Digit Span in Children after a 6-Week Intervention of Playing a Musical Instrument: An Exploratory Randomized Controlled Trial.

    PubMed

    Guo, Xia; Ohsawa, Chie; Suzuki, Akiko; Sekiyama, Kaoru

    2017-01-01

    Previous studies have reported that music training not only improves children's musical skills, but also enhances their cognitive functions. However, there is a disagreement about what domain(s) might be affected. Moreover, effects of short-term (

  1. The Promise of MIDI Technology: A Reflection on Musical Intelligence.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ohler, Jason

    1998-01-01

    Describes MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) technology and music education; provides information on conducting a MIDI workshop for all ages; and offers guidelines for creating a MIDI workstation for the classroom. Hardware and software vendor contact information is provided. (PEN)

  2. Integrating Technology into the K-12 Music Curriculum.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Washington Office of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Olympia.

    This guide is intended to provide resources for integrating technology into the K-12 music curriculum. The focus of the guide is on computer software and the use of MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) in the music classroom. The guide gives two examples of commercially available curricula that integrate technology as well as lesson plans…

  3. MIDI-Assisted Composing in Your Classroom.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Reese, Sam

    1995-01-01

    Describes a junior high school course in musical composition using Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) technology. Discusses course objectives and three composition projects. Includes a list of definitions and asserts that MIDI technology offers students and teachers a powerful method to study how music works. (CFR)

  4. Exploring Music through Technology.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Willard, Joanne B.

    1992-01-01

    Describes a high school music technology course that uses a project-oriented approach to teach students about hardware and software tools for sequencing, arranging, multitrack recording, and mixing. Course equipment is listed, and the MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is briefly described. Copyright guidelines for educational uses of…

  5. Free-Field Spatialized Aural Cues for Synthetic Environments

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1994-09-01

    any of the references previously listed. B. MIDI Other than electronic musicians and a few hobbyists, the Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI...developed in 1983 and still has a long way to go in improving its capabilities, but the advantages are numerous. An entire musical score can be stored...the same musical file on a computer in one of the various digital sound formats could easily occupy 90 megabytes of disk space. 7 K III. PREVIOUS WORK

  6. Collaborating and Creating on Music Technologies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dillon, Teresa

    2003-01-01

    Across all UK secondary school subject areas the proliferation of information and communication technologies (ICTs) has changed the nature of learning. Music education now includes the use of digital tools, such as programmable keyboards and computers, as key learning and music making instruments. Despite such usage there is relatively little…

  7. Nine Suggestions for Improving Sequences. Technology.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Muro, Don

    1995-01-01

    Maintains that many educators are using sequences to create accompaniments and practice tapes geared to student abilities. Describes musical instruction using Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI). Discusses eight suggestions designed to make the process of sequencing more efficient. (CFR)

  8. Music Teacher Perceptions of a Model of Technology Training and Support in Virginia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Welch, Lee Arthur

    2013-01-01

    A plethora of technology resources currently exists for the music classroom of the twenty-first century, including digital audio and video, music software, electronic instruments, Web 2.0 tools and more. Research shows a strong need for professional development for teachers to properly implement and integrate instructional technology resources…

  9. Relationships among Musical Aptitude, Digit Ratio and Testosterone in Men and Women

    PubMed Central

    Borniger, Jeremy C.; Chaudhry, Adeel; Muehlenbein, Michael P.

    2013-01-01

    Circulating adult testosterone levels, digit ratio (length of the second finger relative to the fourth finger), and directional asymmetry in digit ratio are considered sexually dimorphic traits in humans. These have been related to spatial abilities in men and women, and because similar brain structures appear to be involved in both spatial and musical abilities, neuroendocrine function may be related to musical as well as spatial cognition. To evaluate relationships among testosterone and musical ability in men and women, saliva samples were collected, testosterone concentrations assessed, and digit ratios calculated using standardized protocols in a sample of university students (N = 61), including both music and non-music majors. Results of Spearman correlations suggest that digit ratio and testosterone levels are statistically related to musical aptitude and performance only within the female sample: A) those females with greater self-reported history of exposure to music (p = 0.016) and instrument proficiency (p = 0.040) scored higher on the Advanced Measures of Music Audiation test, B) those females with higher left hand digit ratio (and perhaps lower fetal testosterone levels) were more highly ranked (p = 0.007) in the orchestra, C) female music students exhibited a trend (p = 0.082) towards higher testosterone levels compared to female non-music students, and D) female music students with higher rank in the orchestra/band had higher testosterone levels (p = 0.003) than lower ranked students. None of these relationships were significant in the male sample, although a lack of statistical power may be one cause. The effects of testosterone are likely a small part of a poorly understood system of biological and environmental stimuli that contribute to musical aptitude. Hormones may play some role in modulating the phenotype of musical ability, and this may be the case for females more so than males. PMID:23520475

  10. Technology as the Crayon Box.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Garcia, Lilia

    2000-01-01

    While arts facilities should be equipped with computers, color scanners, MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) labs, connective video cameras, and appropriate software, music rooms still need pianos and visual art rooms need traditional art supplies. Dade County (Florida) Schools's pilot teacher assistance projects and arts-centered schools…

  11. Musical examination to bridge audio data and sheet music

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pan, Xunyu; Cross, Timothy J.; Xiao, Liangliang; Hei, Xiali

    2015-03-01

    The digitalization of audio is commonly implemented for the purpose of convenient storage and transmission of music and songs in today's digital age. Analyzing digital audio for an insightful look at a specific musical characteristic, however, can be quite challenging for various types of applications. Many existing musical analysis techniques can examine a particular piece of audio data. For example, the frequency of digital sound can be easily read and identified at a specific section in an audio file. Based on this information, we could determine the musical note being played at that instant, but what if you want to see a list of all the notes played in a song? While most existing methods help to provide information about a single piece of the audio data at a time, few of them can analyze the available audio file on a larger scale. The research conducted in this work considers how to further utilize the examination of audio data by storing more information from the original audio file. In practice, we develop a novel musical analysis system Musicians Aid to process musical representation and examination of audio data. Musicians Aid solves the previous problem by storing and analyzing the audio information as it reads it rather than tossing it aside. The system can provide professional musicians with an insightful look at the music they created and advance their understanding of their work. Amateur musicians could also benefit from using it solely for the purpose of obtaining feedback about a song they were attempting to play. By comparing our system's interpretation of traditional sheet music with their own playing, a musician could ensure what they played was correct. More specifically, the system could show them exactly where they went wrong and how to adjust their mistakes. In addition, the application could be extended over the Internet to allow users to play music with one another and then review the audio data they produced. This would be particularly useful for teaching music lessons on the web. The developed system is evaluated with songs played with guitar, keyboard, violin, and other popular musical instruments (primarily electronic or stringed instruments). The Musicians Aid system is successful at both representing and analyzing audio data and it is also powerful in assisting individuals interested in learning and understanding music.

  12. Digital Waveguide Architectures for Virtual Musical Instruments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, Julius O.

    Digital sound synthesis has become a standard staple of modern music studios, videogames, personal computers, and hand-held devices. As processing power has increased over the years, sound synthesis implementations have evolved from dedicated chip sets, to single-chip solutions, and ultimately to software implementations within processors used primarily for other tasks (such as for graphics or general purpose computing). With the cost of implementation dropping closer and closer to zero, there is increasing room for higher quality algorithms.

  13. Musical Sound, Instruments, and Equipment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Photinos, Panos

    2017-12-01

    'Musical Sound, Instruments, and Equipment' offers a basic understanding of sound, musical instruments and music equipment, geared towards a general audience and non-science majors. The book begins with an introduction of the fundamental properties of sound waves, and the perception of the characteristics of sound. The relation between intensity and loudness, and the relation between frequency and pitch are discussed. The basics of propagation of sound waves, and the interaction of sound waves with objects and structures of various sizes are introduced. Standing waves, harmonics and resonance are explained in simple terms, using graphics that provide a visual understanding. The development is focused on musical instruments and acoustics. The construction of musical scales and the frequency relations are reviewed and applied in the description of musical instruments. The frequency spectrum of selected instruments is explored using freely available sound analysis software. Sound amplification and sound recording, including analog and digital approaches, are discussed in two separate chapters. The book concludes with a chapter on acoustics, the physical factors that affect the quality of the music experience, and practical ways to improve the acoustics at home or small recording studios. A brief technical section is provided at the end of each chapter, where the interested reader can find the relevant physics and sample calculations. These quantitative sections can be skipped without affecting the comprehension of the basic material. Questions are provided to test the reader's understanding of the material. Answers are given in the appendix.

  14. The sound of friction: Real-time models, playability and musical applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Serafin, Stefania

    Friction, the tangential force between objects in contact, in most engineering applications needs to be removed as a source of noise and instabilities. In musical applications, friction is a desirable component, being the sound production mechanism of different musical instruments such as bowed strings, musical saws, rubbed bowls and any other sonority produced by interactions between rubbed dry surfaces. The goal of the dissertation is to simulate different instrument whose main excitation mechanism is friction. An efficient yet accurate model of a bowed string instrument, which combines the latest results in violin acoustics with the efficient digital waveguide approach, is provided. In particular, the bowed string physical model proposed uses a thermodynamic friction model in which the finite width of the bow is taken into account; this solution is compared to the recently developed elasto-plastic friction models used in haptics and robotics. Different solutions are also proposed to model the body of the instrument. Other less common instruments driven by friction are also proposed, and the elasto-plastic model is used to provide audio-visual simulations of everyday friction sounds such as squeaking doors and rubbed wine glasses. Finally, playability evaluations and musical applications in which the models have been used are discussed.

  15. Software-Based Scoring and Sound Design: An Introductory Guide for Music Technology Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Walzer, Daniel A.

    2016-01-01

    This article explores the creative function of virtual instruments, sequencers, loops, and software-based synthesizers to introduce basic scoring and sound design concepts for visual media in an introductory music technology course. Using digital audio workstations with user-focused and configurable options, novice composers can hone a broad range…

  16. Learning to Play a Musical Instrument with a Digital Portfolio Tool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Upitis, Rena; Abrami, Philip C.; Brook, Julia; Troop, Meagan; Varela, Wynnpaul

    2012-01-01

    The body of research examining deliberate practice and self-regulation in musical instruction has grown extensively over the past decade. Compelling evidence indicates that students with higher levels of self-regulation develop superior performance skills and experience more fulfillment as musicians. But in order to develop the self-regulatory…

  17. "That Was Me!": Applications of the Soundbeam MIDI Controller as a Key to Creative Communication, Learning, Independence and Joy.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Swingler, Tim

    This paper describes the "Soundbeam MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) Controller," which allows even those students who have severe physical disabilities to create interesting aural and musical effects. Soundbeam works by emitting an invisible beam of high frequency sound inaudible to human ears. Even very slight interruptions…

  18. Data sonification and sound visualization.

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kaper, H. G.; Tipei, S.; Wiebel, E.

    1999-07-01

    Sound can help us explore and analyze complex data sets in scientific computing. The authors describe a digital instrument for additive sound synthesis (Diass) and a program to visualize sounds in a virtual reality environment (M4Cave). Both are part of a comprehensive music composition environment that includes additional software for computer-assisted composition and automatic music notation.

  19. Electrostatic Graphene Loudspeaker

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-06-01

    millennia, with classic examples being drum- heads and whistles for long-range communications and entertainment .4 In modern society, efficient small...harmonic oscilla- tor. Unlike most insect or musical instrument resonators which exhibit lightly damped sharp frequency response, a wide-band audio...sound signal is introduced from a signal generator or from a commercial laptop or digital music player. The maximum amplitude of the input signal Vin

  20. Creative Practical Use of Digital Media in Early Childhood Education, Parts 1 & 2.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chiba, Takeo; Kanou, Akira; Matsuda, Sohei; Izhara, Dai; Ishigahki, Emiko

    1997-01-01

    Discusses the creative use of television broadcasts, computers for interactive play, electronic instruments for musical expression, and interactive books in Japanese early childhood education. Considers how television can be used more effectively and how computers enhance interaction between children, describes how electronic instruments during…

  1. A Comprehensive Review of Sensors and Instrumentation Methods in Devices for Musical Expression

    PubMed Central

    Medeiros, Carolina Brum; Wanderley, Marcelo M.

    2014-01-01

    Digital Musical Instruments (DMIs) are musical instruments typically composed of a control surface where user interaction is measured by sensors whose values are mapped to sound synthesis algorithms. These instruments have gained interest among skilled musicians and performers in the last decades leading to artistic practices including musical performance, interactive installations and dance. The creation of DMIs typically involves several areas, among them: arts, design and engineering. The balance between these areas is an essential task in DMI design so that the resulting instruments are aesthetically appealing, robust, and allow responsive, accurate and repeatable sensing. In this paper, we review the use of sensors in the DMI community as manifested in the proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME 2009–2013). Focusing on the sensor technologies and signal conditioning techniques used by the NIME community. Although it has been claimed that specifications for artistic tools are harder than those for military applications, this study raises a paradox showing that in most of the cases, DMIs are based on a few basic sensors types and unsophisticated engineering solutions, not taking advantage of more advanced sensing, instrumentation and signal processing techniques that could dramatically improve their response. We aim to raise awareness of limitations of any engineering solution and to assert the benefits of advanced electronics instrumentation design in DMIs. For this, we propose the use of specialized sensors such as strain gages, advanced conditioning circuits and signal processing tools such as sensor fusion. We believe that careful electronic instrumentation design may lead to more responsive instruments. PMID:25068865

  2. A comprehensive review of sensors and instrumentation methods in devices for musical expression.

    PubMed

    Medeiros, Carolina Brum; Wanderley, Marcelo M

    2014-07-25

    Digital Musical Instruments (DMIs) are musical instruments typically composed of a control surface where user interaction is measured by sensors whose values are mapped to sound synthesis algorithms. These instruments have gained interest among skilled musicians and performers in the last decades leading to artistic practices including musical performance, interactive installations and dance. The creation of DMIs typically involves several areas, among them: arts, design and engineering. The balance between these areas is an essential task in DMI design so that the resulting instruments are aesthetically appealing, robust, and allow responsive, accurate and repeatable sensing. In this paper, we review the use of sensors in the DMI community as manifested in the proceedings of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME 2009-2013). Focusing on the sensor technologies and signal conditioning techniques used by the NIME community. Although it has been claimed that specifications for artistic tools are harder than those for military applications, this study raises a paradox showing that in most of the cases, DMIs are based on a few basic sensors types and unsophisticated engineering solutions, not taking advantage of more advanced sensing, instrumentation and signal processing techniques that could dramatically improve their response. We aim to raise awareness of limitations of any engineering solution and to assert the benefits of advanced electronics instrumentation design in DMIs. For this, we propose the use of specialized sensors such as strain gages, advanced conditioning circuits and signal processing tools such as sensor fusion. We believe that careful electronic instrumentation design may lead to more responsive instruments.

  3. Instrument-independent analysis of music by means of the continuous wavelet transform

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Olmo, Gabriella; Dovis, Fabio; Benotto, Paolo; Calosso, Claudio; Passaro, Pierluigi

    1999-10-01

    This paper deals with the problem of automatic recognition of music. Segments of digitized music are processed by means of a Continuous Wavelet Transform, properly chosen so as to match the spectral characteristics of the signal. In order to achieve a good time-scale representation of the signal components a novel wavelet has been designed suited to the musical signal features. particular care has been devoted towards an efficient implementation, which operates in the frequency domain, and includes proper segmentation and aliasing reduction techniques to make the analysis of long signals feasible. The method achieves very good performance in terms of both time and frequency selectivity, and can yield the estimate and the localization in time of both the fundamental frequency and the main harmonics of each tone. The analysis is used as a preprocessing step for a recognition algorithm, which we show to be almost independent on the instrument reproducing the sounds. Simulations are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

  4. Telecommunications and MIDI.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Beckstead, David

    1996-01-01

    Explores the educational possibilities inherent in combining Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) with communications technology. A MIDI system (a combination synthesizer and computer) allows students to compose, record, experiment, and correct at one site. A MIDI file can be sent via e-mail to others for comments. (MJP)

  5. "Seeing things in my head": a synesthete's images for music and notes.

    PubMed

    Mills, Carol Bergfeld; Boteler, Edith Howell; Larcombe, Glenda K

    2003-01-01

    We explored synesthetic experiences (photisms) elicited by music and notes for GS, a 22-year-old female college student, who is a genuine digit synesthete (Mills et al 1999 Cognitive Neuropsychology 16 181-191). After extensive interviews, we conducted five studies using synthesizer notes in different octaves and in different instrument sounds. GS described, drew, or selected her photisms from alternatives. The results were: (a) her photisms had shape, color, movement, and texture: (b) different instruments had photisms with different shapes and families of instruments had similar shapes; (c) low-pitched notes were darker and larger than high notes; (d) instrument and pitch affected each other; (e) a given note was perceived as darker after a high note than after a low note; and (f) GS's drawings of notes became more consistent with repeated trials. Theoretical observations are discussed on the basis of these results.

  6. New Styles, New Technologies, New Possibilities in Jazz.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kuzmich, John, Jr.

    1989-01-01

    Focuses on the growth of jazz-related ensembles and jazz education. Covers trends that parallel technological developments including electronic keyboards, Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) systems, the computer, computer assisted instruction, interactive video, and the compact disc. Urges teachers to update their knowledge and experience…

  7. Manifold compositions, music visualization, and scientific sonification in an immersive virtual-reality environment.

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kaper, H. G.

    1998-01-05

    An interdisciplinary project encompassing sound synthesis, music composition, sonification, and visualization of music is facilitated by the high-performance computing capabilities and the virtual-reality environments available at Argonne National Laboratory. The paper describes the main features of the project's centerpiece, DIASS (Digital Instrument for Additive Sound Synthesis); ''A.N.L.-folds'', an equivalence class of compositions produced with DIASS; and application of DIASS in two experiments in the sonification of complex scientific data. Some of the larger issues connected with this project, such as the changing ways in which both scientists and composers perform their tasks, are briefly discussed.

  8. MIDI Keyboards: Memory Skills and Building Values toward School.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Marcinkiewicz, Henryk R.; And Others

    This document summarizes the results of a study which evaluated whether school instruction with Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) keyboards improves memory skill and whether school instruction with MIDI keyboards improves sentiments toward school and instructional media. Pupils in early elementary grades at five schools were evaluated…

  9. Trained Musical Performers' and Musically Untrained College Students' Ability to Discriminate Music Instrument Timbre as a Function of Duration.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Johnston, Dennis Alan

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the ability of trained musicians and musically untrained college students to discriminate music instrument timbre as a function of duration. Specific factors investigated were the thresholds for timbre discrimination as a function of duration, musical ensemble participation as training, and the relative discrimination abilities of vocalists and instrumentalists. The subjects (N = 126) were volunteer college students from intact classes from various disciplines separated into musically untrained college students (N = 43) who had not participated in musical ensembles and trained musicians (N = 83) who had. The musicians were further divided into instrumentalists (N = 51) and vocalists (N = 32). The Method of Constant Stimuli, using a same-different response procedure with 120 randomized, counterbalanced timbre pairs comprised of trumpet, clarinet, or violin, presented in durations of 20 to 100 milliseconds in a sequence of pitches, in two blocks was used for data collection. Complete, complex musical timbres were recorded digitally and presented in a sequence of changing pitches to more closely approximate an actual music listening experience. Under the conditions of this study, it can be concluded that the threshold for timbre discrimination as a function of duration is at or below 20 ms. Even though trained musicians tended to discriminate timbre better than musically untrained college students, musicians cannot discriminate timbre significantly better then those subjects who have not participated in musical ensembles. Additionally, instrumentalists tended to discriminate timbre better than vocalists, but the discrimination is not significantly different. Recommendations for further research include suggestions for a timbre discrimination measurement tool that takes into consideration the multidimensionality of timbre and the relationship of timbre discrimination to timbre source, duration, pitch, and loudness.

  10. Music Instruction Goes Digital

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Demski, Jennifer

    2011-01-01

    Faced with meager enrollment in band, orchestra, and choir programs, schools are using digital technology to excite students about creating music on today's terms. This article discusses how music educators reinvent their profession by acknowledging and incorporating the way students interact with music today--digitally. Bill Evans, a music…

  11. The IMUTUS interactive music tuition system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tambouratzis, George; Bakamidis, Stelios; Dologlou, Ioannis; Carayannis, George; Dendrinos, Markos

    2002-05-01

    This presentation focuses on the IMUTUS project, which concerns the creation of an innovative method for training users on traditional musical instruments with no MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) output. The entities collaborating in IMUTUS are ILSP (coordinator), EXODUS, SYSTEMA, DSI, SMF, GRAME, and KTH. The IMUTUS effectiveness is enhanced via an advanced user interface incorporating multimedia techniques. Internet plays a pivotal role during training, the student receiving guidance over the net from a specially created teacher group. Interactiveness is emphasized via automatic-scoring tools, which provide fast yet accurate feedback to the user, while virtual reality methods assist the student in perfecting his technique. IMUTUS incorporates specialized recognition technology for the transformation of acoustic signals and music scores to MIDI format and incorporation in the training process. This process is enhanced by periodically enriching the score database, while customization to each user's requirements is supported. This work is partially supported by European Community under the Information Society Technology (IST) RTD programme. The authors are solely responsible for the content of this communication. It does not represent the opinion of the European Community, and the European Community is not responsible for any use that might be made of data appearing therein.

  12. Introduction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rossing, Thomas D.

    String instruments are found in almost all musical cultures. Bowed string instruments form the backbone of symphony orchestras, and they are used widely as solo instruments and in chamber music as well. Guitars are used universally in pop music as well as in classical music. The piano is probably the most versatile of all musical instruments, used widely not only in ensemble with other musical instruments but also as a solo instrument and to accompany solo instruments and the human voice.

  13. Music-Notation Searching and Digital Libraries.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Byrd, Donald

    Almost all work on music information retrieval to date has concentrated on music in the audio and event (normally MIDI) domains. However, music in the form of notation, especially Conventional Music Notation (CMN), is of much interest to musically trained persons, both amateurs and professionals, and searching CMN has great value for digital music…

  14. An Analysis of Music Fan towards Music Streaming Purchase Intention of Thailand's Music Industry

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sanitnarathorn, Pannawit

    2018-01-01

    Digital music streaming are climbing but overall music revenue is declining with digital music piracy being blamed as the culprit. In a 10 year period from 2003 to 2013, global music sales dropped from $US23.3 to $US15 billion dollars with Thailand's music industry following the trend dropping from $US 304 million in 2010 to $US 279 million in…

  15. Musicians' working memory for tones, words, and pseudowords.

    PubMed

    Benassi-Werke, Mariana E; Queiroz, Marcelo; Araújo, Rúben S; Bueno, Orlando F A; Oliveira, Maria Gabriela M

    2012-01-01

    Studies investigating factors that influence tone recognition generally use recognition tests, whereas the majority of the studies on verbal material use self-generated responses in the form of serial recall tests. In the present study we intended to investigate whether tonal and verbal materials share the same cognitive mechanisms, by presenting an experimental instrument that evaluates short-term and working memories for tones, using self-generated sung responses that may be compared to verbal tests. This paradigm was designed according to the same structure of the forward and backward digit span tests, but using digits, pseudowords, and tones as stimuli. The profile of amateur singers and professional singers in these tests was compared in forward and backward digit, pseudoword, tone, and contour spans. In addition, an absolute pitch experimental group was included, in order to observe the possible use of verbal labels in tone memorization tasks. In general, we observed that musical schooling has a slight positive influence on the recall of tones, as opposed to verbal material, which is not influenced by musical schooling. Furthermore, the ability to reproduce melodic contours (up and down patterns) is generally higher than the ability to reproduce exact tone sequences. However, backward spans were lower than forward spans for all stimuli (digits, pseudowords, tones, contour). Curiously, backward spans were disproportionately lower for tones than for verbal material-that is, the requirement to recall sequences in backward rather than forward order seems to differentially affect tonal stimuli. This difference does not vary according to musical expertise.

  16. Distributed digital music archives and libraries

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fujinaga, Ichiro

    2005-09-01

    The main goal of this research program is to develop and evaluate practices, frameworks, and tools for the design and construction of worldwide distributed digital music archives and libraries. Over the last few millennia, humans have amassed an enormous amount of musical information that is scattered around the world. It is becoming abundantly clear that the optimal path for acquisition is to distribute the task of digitizing the wealth of historical and cultural heritage material that exists in analogue formats, which may include books and manuscripts related to music, music scores, photographs, videos, audio tapes, and phonograph records. In order to achieve this goal, libraries, museums, and archives throughout the world, large or small, need well-researched policies, proper guidance, and efficient tools to digitize their collections and to make them available economically. The research conducted within the program addresses unique and imminent challenges posed by the digitization and dissemination of music media. The are four major research projects in progress: development and evaluation of digitization methods for preservation of analogue recordings; optical music recognition using microfilms; design of workflow management system with automatic metadata extraction; and formulation of interlibrary communication strategies.

  17. Online Music Collaboration Project: Digitally Mediated, Deterritorialized Music Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cremata, Radio; Powell, Bryan

    2017-01-01

    This article investigates and interrogates notions of student-centered music learning through collaboration in digital spaces. By harnessing the power and potential of Internet networks, one music educator in Miami, FL challenged his students to an online music collaboration project (OMCP) where students were asked to engage in deterritorialized…

  18. Instrument classification in polyphonic music based on timbre analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Tong

    2001-07-01

    While most previous work on musical instrument recognition is focused on the classification of single notes in monophonic music, a scheme is proposed in this paper for the distinction of instruments in continuous music pieces which may contain one or more kinds of instruments. Highlights of the system include music segmentation into notes, harmonic partial estimation in polyphonic sound, note feature calculation and normalization, note classification using a set of neural networks, and music piece categorization with fuzzy logic principles. Example outputs of the system are `the music piece is 100% guitar (with 90% likelihood)' and `the music piece is 60% violin and 40% piano, thus a violin/piano duet'. The system has been tested with twelve kinds of musical instruments, and very promising experimental results have been obtained. An accuracy of about 80% is achieved, and the number can be raised to 90% if misindexings within the same instrument family are tolerated (e.g. cello, viola and violin). A demonstration system for musical instrument classification and music timbre retrieval is also presented.

  19. Wavelets in music analysis and synthesis: timbre analysis and perspectives

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Alves Faria, Regis R.; Ruschioni, Ruggero A.; Zuffo, Joao A.

    1996-10-01

    Music is a vital element in the process of comprehending the world where we live and interact with. Frequency it exerts a subtle but expressive influence over a society's evolution line. Analysis and synthesis of music and musical instruments has always been associated with forefront technologies available at each period of human history, and there is no surprise in witnessing now the use of digital technologies and sophisticated mathematical tools supporting its development. Fourier techniques have been employed for years as a tool to analyze timbres' spectral characteristics, and re-synthesize them from these extracted parameters. Recently many modern implementations, based on spectral modeling techniques, have been leading to the development of new generations of music synthesizers, capable of reproducing natural sounds with high fidelity, and producing novel timbres as well. Wavelets are a promising tool on the development of new generations of music synthesizers, counting on its advantages over the Fourier techniques in representing non-periodic and transient signals, with complex fine textures, as found in music. In this paper we propose and introduce the use of wavelets addressing its perspectives towards musical applications. The central idea is to investigate the capacities of wavelets in analyzing, extracting features and altering fine timbre components in a multiresolution time- scale, so as to produce high quality synthesized musical sounds.

  20. Students' Attitudes towards Individual Musical Instrument Courses in Music Education Graduate Programs in Turkey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Önder, Gülten Cüceoglu

    2015-01-01

    The Individual Musical Instrument course is a compulsory part of the curriculum, in the Music Education Departments of universities in Turkey. The main purpose of the course is to ensure that each student is able to play a musical instrument and, use the instrument once they become music teachers. This study aims to determine the attitudes of…

  1. Gender Associations with World Music Instruments by Secondary School Music Students from the USA

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kelly, Steven N.; VanWeelden, Kimberly

    2014-01-01

    This article investigated possible gender associations with world music instruments by secondary school-age music students from the USA. Specific questions included: (1) Do the primary instruments played by the students influence gender associations of world music instruments? (2) Does age influence possible gender associations with world music…

  2. Computer Music

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cook, Perry R.

    This chapter covers algorithms, technologies, computer languages, and systems for computer music. Computer music involves the application of computers and other digital/electronic technologies to music composition, performance, theory, history, and the study of perception. The field combines digital signal processing, computational algorithms, computer languages, hardware and software systems, acoustics, psychoacoustics (low-level perception of sounds from the raw acoustic signal), and music cognition (higher-level perception of musical style, form, emotion, etc.).

  3. A Survey of Modes of Student Response Indicative of Musical Learning in Elementary Instrumental Music.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Weaver, Molly A.

    This master's thesis reports on a study of the frequency and modes of student responses that demonstrate musical learning in the elementary instrumental music class. Some advances must be made toward more definitive evaluation practices in elementary school instrumental music if instrumental programs are to be justified in terms of improved…

  4. KSC-07pd1318

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2007-05-25

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Following the debut of its new attraction, Shuttle Launch Experience, on May 26, the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex treated guests to a concert by the instrumental group Mannheim Steamroller, seen here. Known for its digital-classic-rock style, Mannheim Steamroller recorded sound from the last space shuttle liftoff at Kennedy Space Center, and has incorporated it into its music. Photo credit: NASA/George Shelton

  5. KSC-07pd1316

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2007-05-25

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Following the debut of its new attraction, Shuttle Launch Experience, on May 26, the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex treated guests to a concert by the instrumental group Mannheim Steamroller, seen here. Mannheim Steamroller, known for its digital-classic-rock style, recorded sound from the last space shuttle liftoff at Kennedy Space Center, and has incorporated it into its music. Photo credit: NASA/George Shelton

  6. KSC-07pd1319

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2007-05-25

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Following the debut of its new attraction, Shuttle Launch Experience, on May 26, the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex treated guests to a concert by the instrumental group Mannheim Steamroller, seen here. Known for its digital-classic-rock style, Mannheim Steamroller recorded sound from the last space shuttle liftoff at Kennedy Space Center, and has incorporated it into its music. Photo credit: NASA/George Shelton

  7. 37 CFR 385.10 - General.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... and nonsubscription digital music services in accordance with the provisions of 17 U.S.C. 115. (b... musical works through subscription or nonsubscription digital music services pursuant to 17 U.S.C. 115...

  8. Playing Digital: Music Instruction for the Next Generation.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hardy, Lawrence

    2001-01-01

    Active involvement in music can yield significant intellectual and emotional benefits. A Washington-area high school features a digitally literate music teacher and a piano lab with 25 workstations allowing music-loving students to express their creativity. MIDI sequencers and synthesizers aid young composers' efforts. (MLH)

  9. Oldies, Music Rights, and the Digital Age

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McDonald, Peter

    2005-01-01

    The author discusses the issue of copyright, oldies, and digital preservation. He examines efforts being made to create digital sound repositories for music record prior to 1970 at such places as Yale, Syracuse, the New York Public Library, and the Library of Congress. These issues are explored by contrasting the music industry's concern for loss…

  10. Modular and Adaptive Control of Sound Processing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    van Nort, Douglas

    This dissertation presents research into the creation of systems for the control of sound synthesis and processing. The focus differs from much of the work related to digital musical instrument design, which has rightly concentrated on the physicality of the instrument and interface: sensor design, choice of controller, feedback to performer and so on. Often times a particular choice of sound processing is made, and the resultant parameters from the physical interface are conditioned and mapped to the available sound parameters in an exploratory fashion. The main goal of the work presented here is to demonstrate the importance of the space that lies between physical interface design and the choice of sound manipulation algorithm, and to present a new framework for instrument design that strongly considers this essential part of the design process. In particular, this research takes the viewpoint that instrument designs should be considered in a musical control context, and that both control and sound dynamics must be considered in tandem. In order to achieve this holistic approach, the work presented in this dissertation assumes complementary points of view. Instrument design is first seen as a function of musical context, focusing on electroacoustic music and leading to a view on gesture that relates perceived musical intent to the dynamics of an instrumental system. The important design concept of mapping is then discussed from a theoretical and conceptual point of view, relating perceptual, systems and mathematically-oriented ways of examining the subject. This theoretical framework gives rise to a mapping design space, functional analysis of pertinent existing literature, implementations of mapping tools, instrumental control designs and several perceptual studies that explore the influence of mapping structure. Each of these reflect a high-level approach in which control structures are imposed on top of a high-dimensional space of control and sound synthesis parameters. In this view, desired gestural dynamics and sonic response are achieved through modular construction of mapping layers that are themselves subject to parametric control. Complementing this view of the design process, the work concludes with an approach in which the creation of gestural control/sound dynamics are considered in the low-level of the underlying sound model. The result is an adaptive system that is specialized to noise-based transformations that are particularly relevant in an electroacoustic music context. Taken together, these different approaches to design and evaluation result in a unified framework for creation of an instrumental system. The key point is that this framework addresses the influence that mapping structure and control dynamics have on the perceived feel of the instrument. Each of the results illustrate this using either top-down or bottom-up approaches that consider musical control context, thereby pointing to the greater potential for refined sonic articulation that can be had by combining them in the design process.

  11. Applying Computer-Assisted Musical Instruction to Music Appreciation Course: An Example with Chinese Musical Instruments

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lou, Shi-Jer; Guo, Yuan-Chang; Zhu, Yi-Zhen; Shih, Ru-Chu; Dzan, Wei-Yuan

    2011-01-01

    This study aims to explore the effectiveness of computer-assisted musical instruction (CAMI) in the Learning Chinese Musical Instruments (LCMI) course. The CAMI software for Chinese musical instruments was developed and administered to 228 students in a vocational high school. A pretest-posttest non-equivalent control group design with three…

  12. From the Museum to the Music Classroom: Teaching the "Umrhubhe" as an Ensemble Instrument

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dontsa, Luvuyo

    2008-01-01

    While there is a keen interest in indigenous African instrumental music among South African university music students, indigenous music instruments such as the "umrhubhe" (musical bow without a calabash resonator) have not found their way into the classroom. Most music departments focus on the teaching and learning of western instruments…

  13. Instrument-Making as Music-Making: An Ethnographic Study of "Shakuhachi" Students' Learning Experiences

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Matsunobu, Koji

    2013-01-01

    Instrument-making is a powerful way to teach and learn music, especially world music. This case study looks at adult music learners whose engagement in music involves instrument-making and the long lasting practice of music. A case in point is Japanese and North American practitioners of Japanese bamboo flutes, especially the end-blown…

  14. Genetic influences on musical specialization: a twin study on choice of instrument and music genre.

    PubMed

    Mosing, Miriam A; Ullén, Fredrik

    2018-05-09

    Though several studies show that genetic factors influence individual differences in musical engagement, aptitude, and achievement, no study to date has investigated whether specialization among musically active individuals in terms of choice of instrument and genre is heritable. Using a large twin cohort, we explored whether individual differences in instrument choice, instrument category, and the type of music individuals engage in can entirely be explained by the environment or are partly due to genetic influences. About 10,000 Swedish twins answered an extensive questionnaire about music-related traits, including information on the instrument and genre they played. Of those, 1259 same-sex twin pairs reported to either play an instrument or sing. We calculated the odds ratios (ORs) for concordance in music choices (if both twins played) comparing identical and nonidentical twin pairs, with significant ORs indicating that identical twins are more likely to engage in the same type of music-related behavior than are nonidentical twins. The results showed that for almost all music-related variables, the odds were significantly higher for identical twins to play the same musical instrument or music genre, suggesting significant genetic influences on such music specialization. Possible interpretations and implications of the findings are discussed. © 2018 New York Academy of Sciences.

  15. Inharmonic music elicits more negative affect and interferes more with a concurrent cognitive task than does harmonic music.

    PubMed

    Bonin, Tanor; Smilek, Daniel

    2016-04-01

    We evaluated whether task-irrelevant inharmonic music produces greater interference with cognitive performance than task-irrelevant harmonic music. Participants completed either an auditory (Experiment 1) or a visual (Experiment 2) version of the cognitively demanding 2-back task in which they were required to categorize each digit in a sequence of digits as either being a target (a digit also presented two positions earlier in the sequence) or a distractor (all other items). They were concurrently exposed to either task-irrelevant harmonic music (judged to be consonant), task-irrelevant inharmonic music (judged to be dissonant), or no music at all as a distraction. The main finding across both experiments was that performance on the 2-back task was worse when participants were exposed to inharmonic music than when they were exposed to harmonic music. Interestingly, performance on the 2-back task was generally the same regardless of whether harmonic music or no music was played. We suggest that inharmonic, dissonant music interferes with cognitive performance by requiring greater cognitive processing than harmonic, consonant music, and speculate about why this might be.

  16. The Vocal Tract Organ: A New Musical Instrument Using 3-D Printed Vocal Tracts.

    PubMed

    Howard, David M

    2017-10-27

    The advent and now increasingly widespread availability of 3-D printers is transforming our understanding of the natural world by enabling observations to be made in a tangible manner. This paper describes the use of 3-D printed models of the vocal tract for different vowels that are used to create an acoustic output when stimulated with an appropriate sound source in a new musical instrument: the Vocal Tract Organ. The shape of each printed vocal tract is recovered from magnetic resonance imaging. It sits atop a loudspeaker to which is provided an acoustic L-F model larynx input signal that is controlled by the notes played on a musical instrument digital interface device such as a keyboard. The larynx input is subject to vibrato with extent and frequency adjustable as desired within the ranges usually found for human singing. Polyphonic inputs for choral singing textures can be applied via a single loudspeaker and vocal tract, invoking the approximation of linearity in the voice production system, thereby making multiple vowel stops a possibility while keeping the complexity of the instrument in reasonable check. The Vocal Tract Organ offers a much more human and natural sounding result than the traditional Vox Humana stops found in larger pipe organs, offering the possibility of enhancing pipe organs of the future as well as becoming the basis for a "multi-vowel" chamber organ in its own right. Copyright © 2017 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Computer Music

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cook, Perry

    This chapter covers algorithms, technologies, computer languages, and systems for computer music. Computer music involves the application of computers and other digital/electronic technologies to music composition, performance, theory, history, and perception. The field combines digital signal processing, computational algorithms, computer languages, hardware and software systems, acoustics, psychoacoustics (low-level perception of sounds from the raw acoustic signal), and music cognition (higher-level perception of musical style, form, emotion, etc.). Although most people would think that analog synthesizers and electronic music substantially predate the use of computers in music, many experiments and complete computer music systems were being constructed and used as early as the 1950s.

  18. Digital Artistry and Mediation: (Re)mixing Music Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vakeva, Lauri

    2012-01-01

    There is no doubt that mediation has become a central issue outside formal music education. An outstanding example of this is digital music and its dependence on the new technologies of production, dissemination, and consuming. In this paper, the author argues that (1) mediation is one of the most important aspects of digital artistry and that (2)…

  19. Intention to Commit Online Music Piracy and Its Antecedents: An Empirical Investigation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Morton, Neil A.; Koufteros, Xenophon

    2008-01-01

    Online piracy of copyrighted digital music has become rampant as Internet bandwidth and digital compression technologies have advanced. The music industry has suffered significant financial losses and has responded with lawsuits, although online music piracy remains prevalent. This article developed a research model to study the determinants of…

  20. A Transcultural Theory of Thinking for Instrumental Music Education: Philosophical Insights from Confucius and Dewey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tan, Leonard

    2016-01-01

    In music education, thinking is often construed in terms of acquiring conceptual knowledge of musical elements. Research has found, however, that instrumental music educators have largely neglected conceptual teaching and learning. This begs the following questions: What is the nature of thinking in instrumental music education? How should…

  1. Higuchi’s Method applied to detection of changes in timbre of digital sound synthesis of string instruments with the functional transformation method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kanjanapen, Manorth; Kunsombat, Cherdsak; Chiangga, Surasak

    2017-09-01

    The functional transformation method (FTM) is a powerful tool for detailed investigation of digital sound synthesis by the physical modeling method, the resulting sound or measured vibrational characteristics at discretized points on real instruments directly solves the underlying physical effect of partial differential equation (PDE). In this paper, we present the Higuchi’s method to examine the difference between the timbre of tone and estimate fractal dimension of musical signals which contains information about their geometrical structure that synthesizes by FTM. With the Higuchi’s method we obtain the whole process is not complicated, fast processing, with the ease of analysis without expertise in the physics or virtuoso musicians and the easiest way for the common people can judge that sounds similarly presented.

  2. Who Gets to Play? Investigating Equity in Musical Instrument Instruction in Scottish Primary Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moscardini, Lio; Barron, David S.; Wilson, Alastair

    2013-01-01

    There is a widely held view that learning to play a musical instrument is a valuable experience for all children in terms of their personal growth and development. Although there is no statutory obligation for instrumental music provision in Scottish primary schools, there are well-established Instrumental Music Services in Local Education…

  3. Music Teacher Knowledge: An Examination of the Intersections between Instrumental Music Teaching and Conducting

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Forrester, Sommer H.

    2018-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the complexities of instrumental music teacher knowledge as they relate to the intersection between instrumental music teaching and conducting, and to explore how participants describe and perceive these intersections. The key research question guiding this study was, How do high school instrumental music…

  4. Receptive amusia: evidence for cross-hemispheric neural networks underlying music processing strategies.

    PubMed

    Schuppert, M; Münte, T F; Wieringa, B M; Altenmüller, E

    2000-03-01

    Perceptual musical functions were investigated in patients suffering from unilateral cerebrovascular cortical lesions. Using MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) technique, a standardized short test battery was established that covers local (analytical) as well as global perceptual mechanisms. These represent the principal cognitive strategies in melodic and temporal musical information processing (local, interval and rhythm; global, contour and metre). Of the participating brain-damaged patients, a total of 69% presented with post-lesional impairments in music perception. Left-hemisphere-damaged patients showed significant deficits in the discrimination of local as well as global structures in both melodic and temporal information processing. Right-hemisphere-damaged patients also revealed an overall impairment of music perception, reaching significance in the temporal conditions. Detailed analysis outlined a hierarchical organization, with an initial right-hemisphere recognition of contour and metre followed by identification of interval and rhythm via left-hemisphere subsystems. Patterns of dissociated and associated melodic and temporal deficits indicate autonomous, yet partially integrated neural subsystems underlying the processing of melodic and temporal stimuli. In conclusion, these data contradict a strong hemispheric specificity for music perception, but indicate cross-hemisphere, fragmented neural substrates underlying local and global musical information processing in the melodic and temporal dimensions. Due to the diverse profiles of neuropsychological deficits revealed in earlier investigations as well as in this study, individual aspects of musicality and musical behaviour very likely contribute to the definite formation of these widely distributed neural networks.

  5. Music? I Can't Play a Note!

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vahed, Zubeda

    1982-01-01

    Classroom activities for ESL that use music and musical instruments are suggested to develop locomotor skills, auditory discrimination, and reading and writing skills. Such activities could include using musical instruments, playing imagination games, writing lyrics, hearing ethnic music, and having music-related events and visitors. (MSE)

  6. Music Program of Study: Educational Program Definition.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    West Virginia State Dept. of Education, Charleston.

    The West Virginia music study program is a public school K-12 curriculum sequence. This program is divided into the four principal areas of: (1) general classroom music; (2) string instrumental music; (3) wind and percussion instrumental music; and (4) choral music. The general classroom music program is an early and middle childhood sequence of…

  7. Musique instrumentale 10-20-30: Instruments a vent et a percussion. (Instrumental Music 10-20-30: Wind and Percussion Instruments. Teaching Guide).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Alberta Dept. of Education, Edmonton. Language Services Branch.

    The introduction for this Alberta (Canada) music education guide offers reasons for students to study the fine arts at the secondary school level. A philosophy of music education is presented along with 5 key outcomes and 11 music appreciation expectations for secondary students to attain. The volume features wind and percussion instruments. The…

  8. A socioeconomic related 'digital divide' exists in how, not if, young people use computers.

    PubMed

    Harris, Courtenay; Straker, Leon; Pollock, Clare

    2017-01-01

    Government initiatives have tried to ensure uniform computer access for young people; however a divide related to socioeconomic status (SES) may still exist in the nature of information technology (IT) use. This study aimed to investigate this relationship in 1,351 Western Australian children between 6 and 17 years of age. All participants had computer access at school and 98.9% at home. Neighbourhood SES was related to computer use, IT activities, playing musical instruments, and participating in vigorous physical activity. Participants from higher SES neighbourhoods were more exposed to school computers, reading, playing musical instruments, and vigorous physical activity. Participants from lower SES neighbourhoods were more exposed to TV, electronic games, mobile phones, and non-academic computer activities at home. These patterns may impact future economic, academic, and health outcomes. Better insight into neighbourhood SES influences will assist in understanding and managing the impact of computer use on young people's health and development.

  9. A socioeconomic related 'digital divide' exists in how, not if, young people use computers

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    Government initiatives have tried to ensure uniform computer access for young people; however a divide related to socioeconomic status (SES) may still exist in the nature of information technology (IT) use. This study aimed to investigate this relationship in 1,351 Western Australian children between 6 and 17 years of age. All participants had computer access at school and 98.9% at home. Neighbourhood SES was related to computer use, IT activities, playing musical instruments, and participating in vigorous physical activity. Participants from higher SES neighbourhoods were more exposed to school computers, reading, playing musical instruments, and vigorous physical activity. Participants from lower SES neighbourhoods were more exposed to TV, electronic games, mobile phones, and non-academic computer activities at home. These patterns may impact future economic, academic, and health outcomes. Better insight into neighbourhood SES influences will assist in understanding and managing the impact of computer use on young people’s health and development. PMID:28362868

  10. Perceptually Salient Regions of the Modulation Power Spectrum for Musical Instrument Identification.

    PubMed

    Thoret, Etienne; Depalle, Philippe; McAdams, Stephen

    2017-01-01

    The ability of a listener to recognize sound sources, and in particular musical instruments from the sounds they produce, raises the question of determining the acoustical information used to achieve such a task. It is now well known that the shapes of the temporal and spectral envelopes are crucial to the recognition of a musical instrument. More recently, Modulation Power Spectra (MPS) have been shown to be a representation that potentially explains the perception of musical instrument sounds. Nevertheless, the question of which specific regions of this representation characterize a musical instrument is still open. An identification task was applied to two subsets of musical instruments: tuba, trombone, cello, saxophone, and clarinet on the one hand, and marimba, vibraphone, guitar, harp, and viola pizzicato on the other. The sounds were processed with filtered spectrotemporal modulations with 2D Gaussian windows. The most relevant regions of this representation for instrument identification were determined for each instrument and reveal the regions essential for their identification. The method used here is based on a "molecular approach," the so-called bubbles method. Globally, the instruments were correctly identified and the lower values of spectrotemporal modulations are the most important regions of the MPS for recognizing instruments. Interestingly, instruments that were confused with each other led to non-overlapping regions and were confused when they were filtered in the most salient region of the other instrument. These results suggest that musical instrument timbres are characterized by specific spectrotemporal modulations, information which could contribute to music information retrieval tasks such as automatic source recognition.

  11. Digital Music Toys for Young Children: Parents' Review of the "Munchkin Mozart Magic™ Cube"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Costa-Giomi, Eugenia; Hunt, Edward

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to gather information about caregivers' views of the value of a digital music toy, its musical features, as well as their comments about children's responses to the toy. Instead of asking parents to provide their opinions about a broad category of interactive music toys, the authors selected one of the many toys…

  12. Adult Perspectives of Learning Musical Instruments

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roulston, Kathryn; Jutras, Peter; Kim, Seon Joo

    2015-01-01

    This article reports findings from a qualitative study of adults' perceptions and experiences of learning musical instruments. Conducted in the south-east United States, 15 adults who were learning instruments were recruited via community music groups and private instrumental teachers. Analysis of transcripts of semi-structured interviews…

  13. Why Do They Choose Their Instruments?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cantero, Irene Martínez; Jauset-Berrocal, Jordi-Angel

    2017-01-01

    Motivation is a key word in the arts and, especially, in music since it conveys collective, as well as individual, feelings. The beginning of musical instrument learning should be based on the student's musical interest but, due to the casual and improvised nature of everyday situations in which the choice of a musical instrument takes place, tend…

  14. Towards a Transcultural Theory of Democracy for Instrumental Music Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tan, Leonard

    2014-01-01

    At present, instrumental music education, defined in this paper as the teaching and learning of music through wind bands and symphony orchestras of Western origin, appears embattled. Among the many criticisms made against instrumental music education, critics claim that bands and orchestras exemplify an authoritarian model of teaching that does…

  15. Sex-Role Associations of Music Instruments and Occupations by Gender and Major.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Griswold, Philip A.; Chroback, Denise A.

    1981-01-01

    Undergraduate music majors and nonmajors rated 17 musical instruments and two related musical occupations on a masculine/feminine scale. The harp, flute, and piccolo had high feminine ratings; the trumpet, string bass, and tuba had high masculine ratings. Instrument ratings were significantly different for major, but not for gender. (Author/SJL)

  16. Factors Affecting Literacy Achievement of Eighth Grade Middle School Instrumental Music Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kurt, Johnny T.

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this pretest-posttest comparative efficacy study was to analyze factors affecting literacy achievement of eighth grade middle school instrumental music students (n = 38) including (a) socioeconomic status (SES), (b) gender, (c) grade point average (GPA), (d) music motivation, (e) music involvement, and (f) instrument section. The…

  17. Spontaneous sensorimotor coupling with multipart music.

    PubMed

    Hurley, Brian K; Martens, Peter A; Janata, Petr

    2014-08-01

    Music often evokes spontaneous movements in listeners that are synchronized with the music, a phenomenon that has been characterized as being in "the groove." However, the musical factors that contribute to listeners' initiation of stimulus-coupled action remain unclear. Evidence suggests that newly appearing objects in auditory scenes orient listeners' attention, and that in multipart music, newly appearing instrument or voice parts can engage listeners' attention and elicit arousal. We posit that attentional engagement with music can influence listeners' spontaneous stimulus-coupled movement. Here, 2 experiments-involving participants with and without musical training-tested the effect of staggering instrument entrances across time and varying the number of concurrent instrument parts within novel multipart music on listeners' engagement with the music, as assessed by spontaneous sensorimotor behavior and self-reports. Experiment 1 assessed listeners' moment-to-moment ratings of perceived groove, and Experiment 2 examined their spontaneous tapping and head movements. We found that, for both musically trained and untrained participants, music with more instruments led to higher ratings of perceived groove, and that music with staggered instrument entrances elicited both increased sensorimotor coupling and increased reports of perceived groove. Although untrained participants were more likely to rate music as higher in groove, trained participants showed greater propensity for tapping along, and they did so more accurately. The quality of synchronization of head movements with the music, however, did not differ as a function of training. Our results shed new light on the relationship between complex musical scenes, attention, and spontaneous sensorimotor behavior.

  18. Ancient music instrument in east java: study about continuity and change in the 10-15 century

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pamungkas, H.; Thomas, N. A.; Nasution

    2018-01-01

    This research is included in art history, especially music art in East Java. The oldest evidence of musical instruments in this area is evidenced through the Jalatunda site, Trawas. On one of the relief panels found apsara (nymphs) plays vina (stringed instrument). This site was from the 10th century. Since then the relief of musical instruments more and more carved. This is apparent in some temples in East Java after the 11th century. Not only in terms of the number of instruments, but the type of musical instruments is also displayed more diverse. The inflatable instrument (xylophone), the percussion instrument (membraphone), or idiophone show diversity over time. The development is an interesting phenomenon in the life of music art. Problems in this research, whether within the period of 5 centuries (10-15 AD century) there is a change in how to play instrument. This research uses ethnographic analogy method. In the archaeological discipline, this method is used to reconstruct past lives through activities that can be found in temple reliefs in East Java.

  19. Gender and Instrument Associations, Stereotypes, and Stratification: A Literature Review

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wych, Gina M. F.

    2012-01-01

    This literature review examines and synthesizes 30 years of research into the relationship between gender and musical instruments. Specifically, the review focuses on how this relationship affects instrument selection by grade school students entering a school music program. Topics include the gender typing of musical instruments, instrument…

  20. Digital Technologies and the Mediation of Undergraduate Students' Collaborative Music Compositional Practices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dobson, Elizabeth; Littleton, Karen

    2016-01-01

    Music education is supported by an increasing range of digital technologies that afford a remarkable divergence of opportunities for learning within the classroom. Musical creativities are not, however, limited to classroom situations; all musicians are engaged in work that traverses multiple social and physical settings. Guided by sociocultural…

  1. A Comparison Study of the California Test of Basic Skills between Fourth and Fifth Grade Instrumental Music Pullout Students and Students Not Involved in the Instrumental Music Program.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Corral, S. Joseph

    The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of an instrumental music pullout program on student achievement. Two hundred and twenty-three students were divided into 2 groups. The first group consisted of 46 instrumental music students in grades 4 and 5. The second group consisted of 177 students who did not participate in the instrumental…

  2. Beyond Guided Listening: Exploring World Musics with Classroom Instruments

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bartolome, Sarah J.

    2011-01-01

    This article explores issues of authenticity related to adapting world music examples for classroom instruments and suggests ways to engage students in active, participatory music-making activities derived from diverse musical cultures. Several lesson plan segments are provided to aid general music specialists in implementing "play along"…

  3. Movin' to the Music: Simple--and Essential--Experiences for Preschoolers.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oberg, Barbara

    1997-01-01

    Highlights the importance of inclusion of music in preschool curriculum. Promotes using a variety of musical activities to stimulate imagination including quiet listening, marching while clanging instruments, dancing, singing, and playing games. Provides suggestions on where to start, songs, rhythm instruments, musical props, stories and music,…

  4. Two centuries of French patents as documentation of musical instrument construction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jean, Haury

    2005-09-01

    The French Patent Office I.N.P.I. has preserved the originals of ca. 12000 French patents filed between 1791 and present days that are concerned with music-related inventions. As an I.N.P.I. pilot project, these were identified, collected, and classified by the present author, and the actual database named ``Musique & Brevets'' is going to be expanded with English, American, and German material, bringing currently a knowledge base up to 1900. It is expected to be made available on an I.N.P.I. website. This is an unequaled initiative that covers all branches of musical instrument manufacture, mechanical musical instruments, early recording and reproducing of music, but also educational material and methods for printing music. There already exists a number of websites presenting inventions on musical instruments, but these are restricted to one particular instrument and its related patents. ``Musique & Brevets'' intends to be exhaustive and make links between patents filed in different countries at the same time. The paper will present the content of the database, the access to texts and drawings of the patents via specific links, and their importance for the study of history and construction of musical instruments.

  5. Feedback control of acoustic musical instruments: collocated control using physical analogs.

    PubMed

    Berdahl, Edgar; Smith, Julius O; Niemeyer, Günter

    2012-01-01

    Traditionally, the average professional musician has owned numerous acoustic musical instruments, many of them having distinctive acoustic qualities. However, a modern musician could prefer to have a single musical instrument whose acoustics are programmable by feedback control, where acoustic variables are estimated from sensor measurements in real time and then fed back in order to influence the controlled variables. In this paper, theory is presented that describes stable feedback control of an acoustic musical instrument. The presentation should be accessible to members of the musical acoustics community who may have limited or no experience with feedback control. First, the only control strategy guaranteed to be stable subject to any musical instrument mobility is described: the sensors and actuators must be collocated, and the controller must emulate a physical analog system. Next, the most fundamental feedback controllers and the corresponding physical analog systems are presented. The effects that these controllers have on acoustic musical instruments are described. Finally, practical design challenges are discussed. A proof explains why changing the resonance frequency of a musical resonance requires much more control power than changing the decay time of the resonance. © 2012 Acoustical Society of America.

  6. 77 FR 55783 - Mechanical and Digital Phonorecord Delivery Compulsory License

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-09-11

    ... filed by the Recording Industry Association of America, Inc., National Music Publishers Association, Songwriters Guild of America, Digital Media Association, and Music Reports, Inc., (``Joint Requestors''). The...

  7. Musical instruments of Brazilian capoeira: Historical roots, symbolism, and use

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ilari, Beatriz

    2002-11-01

    This paper describes the historical roots, symbolism, and uses of musical instruments in capoeira. A martial art form of Afro-Brazilian origin, capoeira is rhythmically performed to music in a roda (i.e., circle). Capoeira is at times defined as a martial art form disguised as dance because it is rooted in the struggles of African slaves. Elements of music, dance, fight, and ritual are part of this unique martial art form, which has two main styles: Angola and Regional. Capoeira styles are important as they determine rhythmic patterns, chant, movement, and musical instrumentation in a roda. The leading instrument in all capoeira styles is the berimbau. The instrument dictates the rhythm and movement of capoeira players in a roda (Ilari, 2001). Made out of a wooden stick, a wire, and a gourd and played with a stick and a coin, the berimbau is considered a sacred instrument due to its association with the cry of the slaves. Other instruments used in capoeira are pandeiros, agogo bells, reco-recos, and atabaques. A discussion regarding the use of these instruments within the context of capoeira will be presented at the conference. The incorporation of these instruments into contemporary Brazilian music will also be considered.

  8. 77 FR 29259 - Adjustment of Determination of Compulsory License Rates for Mechanical and Digital Phonorecords

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-05-17

    ..., music bundles, paid locker services and purchased content locker services. DATES: Comments and... Association of Independent Music (``A2IM''); Music Reports, Inc. (``Music Reports''); the National Music... and Church Music Publishers Association, jointly (collectively, ``Copyright Owners''); EMI Music...

  9. Music@Home: A novel instrument to assess the home musical environment in the early years.

    PubMed

    Politimou, Nina; Stewart, Lauren; Müllensiefen, Daniel; Franco, Fabia

    2018-01-01

    The majority of children under the age of 5 appear to show spontaneous enjoyment of singing, being exposed to music and interacting with musical instruments, but whether variations in engaging in such activities in the home could contribute to developmental outcomes is still largely unknown. Critically, researchers lack a comprehensive instrument with good psychometric properties to assess the home musical environment from infancy to the preschool years. To address this gap, this paper presents two studies that describe the development and validation of the Music@Home questionnaire, which comprises two versions: Infant and Preschool. In Study 1, an initial pool of items was generated and administered to a wide audience of parents (n = 287 for the Infant, n = 347 for the Preschool version). Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify different dimensions comprising the home musical environment of both infants and pre-schoolers, and to reduce the initial pool of items to a smaller number of meaningful items. In Study 2, convergent and divergent validity and internal and test-retest reliability of the new instrument were established, using data from a different sample of participants (n = 213 for the Infant, n = 213 for the Preschool version). The second study also investigated associations between the Music@Home and musical characteristics of the parents, such as their musical education and personal engagement with music. Overall, the Music@Home constitutes a novel, valid and reliable instrument that allows for the systematic assessment of distinct aspects of the home musical environment in families with children under the age of 5. Furthermore, the Infant and Preschool versions of the Music@Home present differential associations with musical characteristics of the parents opening a new area of inquiry into how musical exposure and interaction in the home may vary across different developmental stages.

  10. Local Music Collections: Strategies for Digital Access, Presentation, and Preservation--A Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Doi, Carolyn

    2015-01-01

    The Saskatchewan Music Collection (SMC) is a local music collection held at the University of Saskatchewan. This case study examines a project to digitize and present this unique special collection in the online environment. The project aims to facilitate access to the collection, preserve the collection and promote scholarship and interest in the…

  11. Careers in the Music Industry.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ryan, Peter J.; And Others

    1982-01-01

    Describes jobs in the music industry, including instrument designer, sales representative, instrument repair-person, retail music sales-person, recording engineer, and careers in the new video music industry. Educational requirements, personal qualifications, and the advantages and disadvantages of each job are discussed. (AM)

  12. Instrumental Music...A Success Opportunity.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roesene, Paul E.

    1982-01-01

    Discusses methods for teaching instrumental music skills to educable mentally handicapped children. The author advocates consistent rules for equipment handling and playing position, frequent positive feedback from teachers, private lessons, rote-learning of music, and group playing experiences. Appropriate music training significantly improved…

  13. The Relationship between Pre-Service Music Teachers' Self-Efficacy Belief in Musical Instrument Performance and Personality Traits

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Girgin, Demet

    2017-01-01

    Purpose: Strong self-efficacy bring achievement in instrument education as in other disciplines. Achievement will increase the quality of instrument education, and it will be reflected in the professional lives of pre-service teachers and their students. This suggests that research on belief in musical instrument performance is necessary.…

  14. Learning a Music Instrument in Early Childhood: What Can We Learn from Professional Musicians' Childhood Memories?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smith, Wyverne

    2008-01-01

    Professional early childhood educators are often asked for advice about whether or when a young child should learn to play a music instrument. Many educators who do not have a background in music education may not be confident in providing such advice. A range of overseas research has supported learning a music instrument in the early childhood…

  15. Developing a Scale for Strategies Used during the Practice and Learning of Instrumental Music

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uygun, Mehtap Aydiner; Kilinçer, Özlem

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to develop a valid and reliable scale to identify the strategies students who study instrumental music use during the practice and learning of instrumental music based on their own responses. The study group comprised of 358 students studying music education in five universities in the academic year of 2015 to 2016.…

  16. A recent U.S. patent process for a musical instrument

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Baecker, James I.

    2005-09-01

    The ins and outs of going from a novel musical instrument concept to issuance of a U.S. patent. The technical work performed included the development of a musical instrument based on space-frame body construction and a definition of the instrument body's resonance characteristics. The result required a description of the invention and communication with the patent attorney and conveying a correct perception of the invention to the U.S. Patent Office. This presentation describes several technical, practical, legal, and commercial issues encountered during the patent process by the inventors and their business entity. On 7 September 2004, U.S. Patent No. 6,787,688 for a musical instrument was issued and assigned by the inventors to Harmos Music, Ltd.

  17. Exploring new kinds of relationships using generative music-making software.

    PubMed

    Dillon, Steve; Jones, Anita

    2009-08-01

    This project focuses upon the use of jam2jam, a generative computer system, to increase access to improvization experiences for children and to facilitate new kinds of relationships with artists. The network jamming system uses visual and audio cultural materials to enable communities to be expressive with artistic materials that they value as a community. As the system is part of a network, performances can be shared between communities at great distances and recordings of performances can be uploaded to a digital social network (http://www.jam2jam.com/) and shared both locally and with the wider community. This paper examines a preliminary project where artwork made by Indigenous mental health clients in Far North Queensland was digitized and given to a group of 8-12-year-old urban Indigenous children to 'improvize' with and make music/video clips using the jam2jam instrument. It seeks to generate a discussion and identify applications within creative arts-led community health settings to facilitate new kinds of relationships with self, peers, local community, culture and artists through collaborative improvization.

  18. The Relationship between High School Music Activities and the College Student's Musical Independence. (How Musically Important Are All-State Band, Concert Festival, Private Lessons, Marching Contests, Etc.?).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bobbett, Gordon C.; And Others

    This paper presents a study attempting to identify and evaluate high school activities that impact instrumental student outcome. High school music activities and their impact on student instrumental outcome from a variety of perspectives were examined. There is a subtle difference between musical independence and musical achievement. Musical…

  19. Finding the Muse: Teaching Musical Expression to Adolescents in the One-to-One Studio Environment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McPhee, Eleanor A.

    2011-01-01

    One-to-one music lessons are a common and effective way of learning a musical instrument. This investigation into one-to-one music teaching at the secondary school level explores the teaching of musical expression by two instrumental music teachers of brass and strings. The lessons of the two teachers with two students each were video recorded…

  20. The perception of prosody and associated auditory cues in early-implanted children: the role of auditory working memory and musical activities.

    PubMed

    Torppa, Ritva; Faulkner, Andrew; Huotilainen, Minna; Järvikivi, Juhani; Lipsanen, Jari; Laasonen, Marja; Vainio, Martti

    2014-03-01

    To study prosodic perception in early-implanted children in relation to auditory discrimination, auditory working memory, and exposure to music. Word and sentence stress perception, discrimination of fundamental frequency (F0), intensity and duration, and forward digit span were measured twice over approximately 16 months. Musical activities were assessed by questionnaire. Twenty-one early-implanted and age-matched normal-hearing (NH) children (4-13 years). Children with cochlear implants (CIs) exposed to music performed better than others in stress perception and F0 discrimination. Only this subgroup of implanted children improved with age in word stress perception, intensity discrimination, and improved over time in digit span. Prosodic perception, F0 discrimination and forward digit span in implanted children exposed to music was equivalent to the NH group, but other implanted children performed more poorly. For children with CIs, word stress perception was linked to digit span and intensity discrimination: sentence stress perception was additionally linked to F0 discrimination. Prosodic perception in children with CIs is linked to auditory working memory and aspects of auditory discrimination. Engagement in music was linked to better performance across a range of measures, suggesting that music is a valuable tool in the rehabilitation of implanted children.

  1. Why can't I manage my digital images like MP3s? The evolution and intent of multimedia metadata

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Goodrum, Abby; Howison, James

    2005-01-01

    This paper considers the deceptively simple question: Why can't digital images be managed in the simple and effective manner in which digital music files are managed? We make the case that the answer is different treatments of metadata in different domains with different goals. A central difference between the two formats stems from the fact that digital music metadata lookup services are collaborative and automate the movement from a digital file to the appropriate metadata, while image metadata services do not. To understand why this difference exists we examine the divergent evolution of metadata standards for digital music and digital images and observed that the processes differ in interesting ways according to their intent. Specifically music metadata was developed primarily for personal file management and community resource sharing, while the focus of image metadata has largely been on information retrieval. We argue that lessons from MP3 metadata can assist individuals facing their growing personal image management challenges. Our focus therefore is not on metadata for cultural heritage institutions or the publishing industry, it is limited to the personal libraries growing on our hard-drives. This bottom-up approach to file management combined with p2p distribution radically altered the music landscape. Might such an approach have a similar impact on image publishing? This paper outlines plans for improving the personal management of digital images-doing image metadata and file management the MP3 way-and considers the likelihood of success.

  2. Why can't I manage my digital images like MP3s? The evolution and intent of multimedia metadata

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Goodrum, Abby; Howison, James

    2004-12-01

    This paper considers the deceptively simple question: Why can"t digital images be managed in the simple and effective manner in which digital music files are managed? We make the case that the answer is different treatments of metadata in different domains with different goals. A central difference between the two formats stems from the fact that digital music metadata lookup services are collaborative and automate the movement from a digital file to the appropriate metadata, while image metadata services do not. To understand why this difference exists we examine the divergent evolution of metadata standards for digital music and digital images and observed that the processes differ in interesting ways according to their intent. Specifically music metadata was developed primarily for personal file management and community resource sharing, while the focus of image metadata has largely been on information retrieval. We argue that lessons from MP3 metadata can assist individuals facing their growing personal image management challenges. Our focus therefore is not on metadata for cultural heritage institutions or the publishing industry, it is limited to the personal libraries growing on our hard-drives. This bottom-up approach to file management combined with p2p distribution radically altered the music landscape. Might such an approach have a similar impact on image publishing? This paper outlines plans for improving the personal management of digital images-doing image metadata and file management the MP3 way-and considers the likelihood of success.

  3. The Classroom Percussionist

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Marshall, Herbert D.

    2006-01-01

    The article offers tips on introducing percussion activities in elementary music class. Percussion equipment should be treated as musical instruments and not toys, teaching correct names, playing techniques and notation for the instruments. Active listening experiences for students should be planned, including band music. Band music incorporates…

  4. For a Song: Music across the ESL Curriculum.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lems, Kristin

    This paper in the form of an outline addresses the use of songs and instrumental music throughout the English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) curriculum. The rationale for using music in general, and specifically using popular songs and instrumental music, are noted. Criteria for selection of music for classroom use are listed, and a taxonomy is…

  5. Children with Disabilities Playing Musical Instruments: With the Right Adaptations and Help from Their Teachers and Parents, Students with Disabilities Can Play Musical Instruments

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McCord, Kimberly; Fitzgerald, Margaret

    2006-01-01

    In this article, the authors share the story of Stephanie, a dyslexic student who experiences problems reading music. The authors recommend for music teachers to share the list of students wanting to play an instrument with special educators to find out if there are students who are receiving special education services, what their strengths and…

  6. Digital Sound Synthesis Algorithms: a Tutorial Introduction and Comparison of Methods

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, J. Robert

    The objectives of the dissertation are to provide both a compendium of sound-synthesis methods with detailed descriptions and sound examples, as well as a comparison of the relative merits of each method based on ease of use, observed sound quality, execution time, and data storage requirements. The methods are classified under the general headings of wavetable-lookup synthesis, additive synthesis, subtractive synthesis, nonlinear methods, and physical modelling. The nonlinear methods comprise a large group that ranges from the well-known frequency-modulation synthesis to waveshaping. The final category explores computer modelling of real musical instruments and includes numerical and analytical solutions to the classical wave equation of motion, along with some of the more sophisticated time -domain models that are possible through the prudent combination of simpler synthesis techniques. The dissertation is intended to be understandable by a musician who is mathematically literate but who does not necessarily have a background in digital signal processing. With this limitation in mind, a brief and somewhat intuitive description of digital sampling theory is provided in the introduction. Other topics such as filter theory are discussed as the need arises. By employing each of the synthesis methods to produce the same type of sound, interesting comparisons can be made. For example, a struck string sound, such as that typical of a piano, can be produced by algorithms in each of the synthesis classifications. Many sounds, however, are peculiar to a single algorithm and must be examined independently. Psychoacoustic studies were conducted as an aid in the comparison of the sound quality of several implementations of the synthesis algorithms. Other psychoacoustic experiments were conducted to supplement the established notions of which timbral issues are important in the re -synthesis of the sounds of acoustic musical instruments.

  7. Defining the spectral and amplitude domain of music---a window into audio

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nam, Myoung W.

    In terms of 'visualizing music', this thesis presents the first critical measurements for the selected musical instruments (piano, violin, cello, flute, piccolo, drums, double bass, electric bass, and electric guitar) seeking to describe their place in the spectral and amplitude domain. All data presented as a part of this research were measured with Z-weighting (un-weighted) from 12.5Hz to 20kHz along the frequency axis, in 1/3 octave bands, evaluated statistically and in equivalent sound level. Measuring musical performances can be a very subjective process. Therefore, this research proceeded under some strategically chosen conditions and limitations. The measurements were made with each musician playing at several different intensities of musical performance. Chosen musical genres were classical, pop and jazz for the selected musical instruments. To obtain data representative of real world conditions, musical instrument measurements were made mostly in professional recording studios by professional players. The results seek to define the spectral and amplitude domain occupied by these instruments when playing typical works.

  8. Secondary School Teachers' Approaches to Teaching Composition Using Digital Technology

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wise, Stuart

    2016-01-01

    The music industry in the 21 century uses digital technology in a wide range of applications including in performance, in composition and in recording and publishing. In this article, I consider how the impact of digital technologies may be affecting pedagogical processes adopted by secondary music teachers, particularly in the area of…

  9. Seeing Music--Hearing Art

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stephens, Pam

    2007-01-01

    In this article, the author explores the digital artwork of Brian Evans, a composer-artist who creates visualizations of sound. Through the years Evans' love for music and visual art led him to explore ways to work concurrently with image and sound. Digital technology proved to be such a means. Digital technology is based upon the transcription of…

  10. Strings in General Music: An Experience with Multiple Sequencing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Martin, Jeffrey

    2012-01-01

    Instrumental performance that approximates real-world models is one way in which a general music curriculum can encourage high levels of engagement and potential for lifelong musical activity. Although guitars, keyboards, and various folk instruments are useful for this purpose, orchestral instruments can also provide significant solo and ensemble…

  11. Music: Comprehensive Musicianship Program. Grade 6.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Burton, Leon H., Ed.; Thomson, William, Ed.

    Forty-nine music lessons for use in sixth grade classes are presented. A number of these lessons feature songs and musical instruments from or about Hawaii, and lessons stress learning about tempos, accents, meters, notes, and rhythm patterns. The lessons introduce the history of instruments such as the ukulele, recorder, rhythm instruments, and…

  12. A View of Current Evaluative Practices in Instrumental Music Teacher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Peterson, Amber Dahlén

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine how instrumental music educator skills are being evaluated in current undergraduate programs. While accrediting organizations mandate certain elements of these programs, they provide limited guidance on what evaluative approaches should be used. Instrumental music teacher educators in the College Music…

  13. Instrument Modeling and Synthesis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Horner, Andrew B.; Beauchamp, James W.

    During the 1970s and 1980s, before synthesizers based on direct sampling of musical sounds became popular, replicating musical instruments using frequency modulation (FM) or wavetable synthesis was one of the “holy grails” of music synthesis. Synthesizers such as the Yamaha DX7 allowed users great flexibility in mixing and matching sounds, but were notoriously difficult to coerce into producing sounds like those of a given instrument. Instrument design wizards practiced the mysteries of FM instrument design.

  14. The Electronic Valve Instrument (EVI), an electronic musical wind controller for playing synthesizers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Steiner, Nyle A.

    2004-05-01

    The Electronic Valve Instrument (EVI) is an electronic musical wind instrument with playing techniques similar to that of a trumpet. Invented by Nyle Steiner in the early 1970's, it was designed to give the performer control of dynamics from breath pressure and the ability to make a humanly generated vibrato. Other musical paramaters can be controlled as well. It has a playing range of seven octaves (similar to that of a piano). When musical lines are played using this instrument (controller) connected to an electronic music synthesizer, the sound is much more natural sounding and expressive than when a normal musical keyboard is used. The evolution of this instrument from the pre-Midi era to it latest Midi configuration, principles of operation, synthesizer programming, and its wide use in movie and TV scoring will be discussed. The EVI has played featured musical lines in many major movie soundtracks and TV shows such as Apocalypse Now, Witness, Dead Poets Society, Fatal Attraction, No Way Out, Gorillas in the Mist, and many others. The EVI design has also been adapted as an Electronic Woodwind Instrument (EWI) by Nyle Steiner and has been manufactured and sold worldwide by the AKAI Co. in Japan.

  15. Affinity for Music: A Study of the Role of Emotion in Musical Instrument Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    StGeorge, Jennifer; Holbrook, Allyson; Cantwell, Robert

    2014-01-01

    For many people, the appeal of music lies in its connection to human emotions. A significant body of research has explored the emotions that are experienced through either the formal structure of music or through its symbolic messages. Yet in the instrumental music education field, this emotional connection is rarely examined. In this article, it…

  16. Musical Performance Anxiety and the Relationship between Learning Styles and the Instrument and Singing Fields

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zahal, Onur

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study is to determine the relationship between musical performance anxiety, learning styles, and the field of instrument and solo singing music teacher candidates. Musical performance anxiety has been investigated at various musical events, such as performance during exams, singing and playing on stage, or in front of judges for an…

  17. An Instrument for Every Child: A Study on Long-Term Effects of Extended Music Education in German Primary Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Krupp-Schleußner, Valerie; Lehmann-Wermser, Andreas

    2018-01-01

    Does extended music education during primary school foster long-term musical participation? What other factors contribute to long-term musical participation? In our study on "Impacts and Long-Term Effects of Musical Participation," we investigate how the German programme "An Instrument for Every Child (JeKi)," which fosters the…

  18. Experimenting with string musical instruments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    LoPresto, Michael C.

    2012-03-01

    What follows are several investigations involving string musical instruments developed for and used in a Science of Sound & Light course. The experiments make use of a guitar, orchestral string instruments and data collection and graphing software. They are designed to provide students with concrete examples of how mathematical formulae, when used in physics, represent reality that can actually be observed, in this case, the operation of string musical instruments.

  19. 37 CFR 385.10 - General.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ....10 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights COPYRIGHT ROYALTY BOARD, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS RATES AND TERMS... AND DISTRIBUTING OF PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL PHONORECORDS Interactive Streaming and Limited Downloads... interactive streams and limited downloads of musical works by subscription and nonsubscription digital music...

  20. Evaluating musical instruments

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Campbell, D. Murray

    Scientific measurements of sound generation and radiation by musical instruments are surprisingly hard to correlate with the subtle and complex judgments of instrumental quality made by expert musicians.

  1. Musical Intonation of Wind Instruments and Temperature

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zendri, G.; Valdan, M.; Gratton, L. M.; Oss, S.

    2015-01-01

    Wind musical instruments are affected in their intonation by temperature. We show how to account for these effects in a simple experiment, and provide results in languages accessible to both physics and music professionals.

  2. Musical intonation of wind instruments and temperature

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zendri, G.; Valdan, M.; Gratton, L. M.; Oss, S.

    2015-05-01

    Wind musical instruments are affected in their intonation by temperature. We show how to account for these effects in a simple experiment, and provide results in languages accessible to both physics and music professionals.

  3. Extrinsic Motivators Affecting Fourth-Grade Students' Interest and Enrollment in an Instrumental Music Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vasil, Martina

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate fourth-grade students' extrinsic motivators for joining and continuing in a school instrumental music program. Three research questions were investigated: (a) What extrinsic motivators have influenced fourth-grade students' initial interest and continuing participation in an instrumental music program?…

  4. Concept Teaching in Instrumental Music Education: A Literature Review

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tan, Leonard

    2017-01-01

    This article is a review of research literature on the teaching of concepts in instrumental music education. It is organized in four parts (a) the value of concept teaching in large instrumental ensembles, (b) time spent teaching concepts during rehearsals, (c) approaches to concept teaching, and (d) implications for music education. Research has…

  5. Teachers' Use of Digital Technology in Secondary Music Education: Illustrations of Changing Classrooms

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wise, Stuart; Greenwood, Janinka; Davis, Niki

    2011-01-01

    The music industry in the 21st century uses digital technology in a wide range of applications including performance, composition and in recording and publishing. Much of this digital technology is freely available via downloads from the internet, as part of software included with computers when they are purchased and via applications that are…

  6. Digital Resource Exchange About Music (DREAM): Phase 2 Usability Testing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Upitis, Rena; Boese, Karen; Abrami, Philip C.; Anwar, Zaeem

    2015-01-01

    The Digital Resource Exchange About Music (DREAM) is a virtual space for exchanging information about digital learning tools. The purpose of the present study was to determine how users responded to DREAM in the first four months after its public release. This study is the second phase of usability research on DREAM, and was conducted to guide…

  7. Music@Home: A novel instrument to assess the home musical environment in the early years

    PubMed Central

    Stewart, Lauren; Müllensiefen, Daniel; Franco, Fabia

    2018-01-01

    The majority of children under the age of 5 appear to show spontaneous enjoyment of singing, being exposed to music and interacting with musical instruments, but whether variations in engaging in such activities in the home could contribute to developmental outcomes is still largely unknown. Critically, researchers lack a comprehensive instrument with good psychometric properties to assess the home musical environment from infancy to the preschool years. To address this gap, this paper presents two studies that describe the development and validation of the Music@Home questionnaire, which comprises two versions: Infant and Preschool. In Study 1, an initial pool of items was generated and administered to a wide audience of parents (n = 287 for the Infant, n = 347 for the Preschool version). Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify different dimensions comprising the home musical environment of both infants and pre-schoolers, and to reduce the initial pool of items to a smaller number of meaningful items. In Study 2, convergent and divergent validity and internal and test-retest reliability of the new instrument were established, using data from a different sample of participants (n = 213 for the Infant, n = 213 for the Preschool version). The second study also investigated associations between the Music@Home and musical characteristics of the parents, such as their musical education and personal engagement with music. Overall, the Music@Home constitutes a novel, valid and reliable instrument that allows for the systematic assessment of distinct aspects of the home musical environment in families with children under the age of 5. Furthermore, the Infant and Preschool versions of the Music@Home present differential associations with musical characteristics of the parents opening a new area of inquiry into how musical exposure and interaction in the home may vary across different developmental stages. PMID:29641607

  8. Strike Up the Score: Deriving Searchable and Playable Digital Formats from Sheet Music; Smart Objects and Open Archives; Building the Archives of the Future: Advanced in Preserving Electronic Records at the National Archives and Records Administration; From the Digitized to the Digital Library.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Choudhury, G. Sayeed; DiLauro, Tim; Droettboom, Michael; Fujinaga, Ichiro; MacMillan, Karl; Nelson, Michael L.; Maly, Kurt; Thibodeau, Kenneth; Thaller, Manfred

    2001-01-01

    These articles describe the experiences of the Johns Hopkins University library in digitizing their collection of sheet music; motivation for buckets, Smart Object, Dumb Archive (SODA) and the Open Archives Initiative (OAI), and initial experiences using them in digital library (DL) testbeds; requirements for archival institutions, the National…

  9. PubMed Central

    DIRVEN, R.; JACOBI, I.; BREKEL, M.W.M.

    2015-01-01

    SUMMARY This study investigated whether trachea pressures during brass instrument play of laryngectomised patients are within the range of those measured during tracheoesophageal voicing, and whether application of an automatic speaking valve can 'free' both hands to play a brass instrument. Objective assessment of voicing and music playing parameters was carried out in 2 laryngectomised patients with a low-pressure indwelling voice-prosthesis able to play brass instruments (tenor horn and slide trombone): sound pressure levels in dB, maximum phonation time in seconds and trachea pressures in mmHg; videofluoroscopy, stroboscopy and digital high speed endoscopy to assess neoglottis vibration and opening. The dynamic range of the voice in the patients was 29 and 20 dB, and maximum phonation time was 22 and 19 sec, respectively; intratracheal pressures during voicing varied from 7 mmHg for the softest /a/ to 49 mmHg for the loudest /a/. For brass instrument play, the intratracheal pressures varied from 14 mmHg for the softest tone to 48 mmHg for the loudest tone. Imaging confirmed earlier findings that the neoglottis is closing and vibrating during voicing and remains 'open' without vibrations during music play, indicating good neoglottis control and innervation. From these objective measurements, we can conclude that trachea pressures during brass instrument play are within physiological ranges for tracheoesophageal voicing with a low-pressure indwelling voice-prosthesis. Furthermore, it was shown that application of a stable baseplate for retaining an automatic speaking valve and an additional customisable 'neck brace' makes bimanual play possible again. PMID:26246666

  10. [Study of music electroacupuncture].

    PubMed

    Zhang, Jin; Zhang, Yi-hong; Bai, Yan

    2005-08-01

    To explore characteristics and advantages of music electroacupuncture instrument. Investigate clinical therapeutic effect and action mechanisms of the music electroacupuncture instrument, the relation of music therapy with improving looks and genes, and the links of music therapy with theories on 14 channels to prove its characteristics and advantages. Music electroacupuncture can overcome the decline of late therapeutic effects of pulse electroacupuncture and its disadvantages, beat of the local tissue of electroacupuncture. It is a generation of electroacupuncture of a new type.

  11. Podcast Creation as Transformative Music Engagement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bolden, Benjamin; Nahachewsky, James

    2015-01-01

    This article reports a qualitative study that examined students' experiences of creating podcasts within an undergraduate music education course. Future music educators used digital media technology to assemble and share reflections on significant interactions with music throughout their lives, combining spoken narrative and musical excerpts…

  12. Tuning Features of Chinese Folk Song Singing: A Case Study of Hua'er Music.

    PubMed

    Yang, Yang; Welch, Graham; Sundberg, Johan; Himonides, Evangelos

    2015-07-01

    The learning and teaching of different singing styles, such as operatic and Chinese folk singing, was often found to be very challenging in professional music education because of the complexity of varied musical properties and vocalizations. By studying the acoustical and musical parameters of the singing voice, this study identified distinctive tuning characteristics of a particular folk music in China-Hua'er music-to inform the ineffective folk singing practices, which were hampered by the neglect of inherent tuning issues in music. Thirteen unaccompanied folk song examples from four folk singers were digitally audio recorded in a sound studio. Using an analyzing toolkit consisting of Praat, PeakFit, and MS Excel, the fundamental frequencies (F0) of these song examples were extracted into sets of "anchor pitches" mostly used, which were further divided into 253 F0 clusters. The interval structures of anchor pitches within each song were analyzed and then compared across 13 examples providing parameters that indicate the tuning preference of this particular singing style. The data analyses demonstrated that all singers used a tuning pattern consisting of five major anchor pitches suggesting a nonequal-tempered bias in singing. This partly verified the pentatonic scale proposed in previous empirical research but also argued a potential misunderstanding of the studied folk music scale that failed to take intrinsic tuning issues into consideration. This study suggests that, in professional music training, any tuning strategy should be considered in terms of the reference pitch and likely tuning systems. Any accompanying instruments would need to be tuned to match the underlying tuning bias. Copyright © 2015 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Instrumental Music for Dyslexics: A Teaching Handbook. Second Edition.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oglethorpe, Sheila

    This book is a guide for music teachers whose students of instrumental keyboard music include those with dyslexia. Chapter 1 is on recognizing dyslexia, including primary and secondary symptoms, multisensory teaching, and teaching to strengths. Chapter 2 focuses on communication between pupil and teacher with sections on music as communication and…

  14. Toward Convergence: Adapting Music Education to Contemporary Society and Participatory Culture

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tobias, Evan S.

    2013-01-01

    Knowing how students engage with music outside school music programs can help music educators and their programs evolve. This article offers a look at music teaching and learning in terms of how people are increasingly interacting with music in participatory ways that involve digital technologies and media. This participatory culture offers a…

  15. New paradigms for musical control-A decade of development at the MIT Media Lab

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Paradiso, Joseph A.

    2004-05-01

    As electronic musical instruments liberate the action and energy of control from physical sound production, they are free to mutate into many different forms-the constraints on instrument design have shifted from physics to ergonomics, applications, and aesthetics. Low-cost sensors enable stimuli of all types to act as input, and with a computer interposed between action and sound production, essentially any sonic or musical dynamic can be mapped onto any gesture or activity with an increasingly high degree of interpretation or ``mapping,'' Accordingly, the notion of a musical instrument is being redefined, and as possibilities broaden, some researchers and artists are striving to break boundaries while others work to quantify and understand expanded metrics for musical interaction. Over the past decade, the author and his colleagues have adapted a wealth of sensor technologies and developed many interaction paradigms to scratch away at the evolving frontier of electronic musical instruments [J. Paradiso, ``Electronic music interfaces: new ways to play,'' IEEE Spectrum 34(12), 18-30 (1997)]. This presentation will review the status of electronic music controllers, provide a snapshot of current issues that the field is facing, and present various examples of new musical interfaces developed at the MIT Media Lab.

  16. Parallel Simulation of Subsonic Fluid Dynamics on a Cluster of Workstations.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1994-11-01

    inside wind musical instruments. Typical simulations achieve $80\\%$ parallel efficiency (speedup/processors) using 20 HP-Apollo workstations. Detailed...TERMS AI, MIT, Artificial Intelligence, Distributed Computing, Workstation Cluster, Network, Fluid Dynamics, Musical Instruments 17. SECURITY...for example, the flow of air inside wind musical instruments. Typical simulations achieve 80% parallel efficiency (speedup/processors) using 20 HP

  17. The Effects of Participation in School Instrumental Music Programs on Student Academic Achievement and School Attendance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Davenport, Kevin O.

    2010-01-01

    This study examined whether or not students that participated in a school sponsored instrumental music program had higher academic achievement and attendance than students that did not participate in a school sponsor instrumental music program. Units of measurement included standardized test scores and attendance, without taking into consideration…

  18. A Survey of Florida High School Instrumental Music Programs: Rationale for the Inclusion of Jazz Ensemble Experience in Music Teacher Training

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hinkle, Jonathan R.

    2011-01-01

    During the past 60 years, jazz music has slowly become recognized as a genre worthy of study in high school music programs throughout the United States. Only a few researchers have analyzed large samples of jazz-related instruction in instrumental music programs, and of these studies no data were collected to investigate the inclusion of jazz in…

  19. Verbal learning in the context of background music: no influence of vocals and instrumentals on verbal learning

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background Whether listening to background music enhances verbal learning performance is still a matter of dispute. In this study we investigated the influence of vocal and instrumental background music on verbal learning. Methods 226 subjects were randomly assigned to one of five groups (one control group and 4 experimental groups). All participants were exposed to a verbal learning task. One group served as control group while the 4 further groups served as experimental groups. The control group learned without background music while the 4 experimental groups were exposed to vocal or instrumental musical pieces during learning with different subjective intensity and valence. Thus, we employed 4 music listening conditions (vocal music with high intensity: VOC_HIGH, vocal music with low intensity: VOC_LOW, instrumental music with high intensity: INST_HIGH, instrumental music with low intensity: INST_LOW) and one control condition (CONT) during which the subjects learned the word lists. Since it turned out that the high and low intensity groups did not differ in terms of the rated intensity during the main experiment these groups were lumped together. Thus, we worked with 3 groups: one control group and two groups, which were exposed to background music (vocal and instrumental) during verbal learning. As dependent variable, the number of learned words was used. Here we measured immediate recall during five learning sessions (recall 1 – recall 5) and delayed recall for 15 minutes (recall 6) and 14 days (recall 7) after the last learning session. Results Verbal learning improved during the first 5 recall sessions without any strong difference between the control and experimental groups. Also the delayed recalls were similar for the three groups. There was only a trend for attenuated verbal learning for the group passively listened to vocals. This learning attenuation diminished during the following learning sessions. Conclusions The exposure to vocal or instrumental background music during encoding did not influence verbal learning. We suggest that the participants are easily able to cope with this background stimulation by ignoring this information channel in order to focus on the verbal learning task. PMID:24670048

  20. CREATION OF MUSIC WITH FIBER REINFORCED CONCRETE

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kato, Hayato; Takeuchi, Masaki; Ogura, Naoyuki; Kitahara, Yukiko; Okamoto, Takahisa

    This research focuses on the Fiber Reinforcement Concrete(FRC) and its performance on musical tones. Thepossibility of future musical instruments made of this concrete is discussed. Recently, the technical properties of FRC had been improved and the different production styles, such as unit weight of binding material and volume of fiber in the structure, hardly affects the results of the acoustics. However, the board thickness in the FRC instruments is directly related with the variety of musical tone. The FRC musical effects were compared with those produced with wood on wind instruments. The sounds were compared with those produced with woodwind instruments. The sound pressure level was affected by the material and it becomes remarkably notorious in the high frequency levels. These differences had great influence on the spectrum analysis of the tone in the wind instruments and the sensory test. The results from the sensory test show dominant performances of brightness, beauty and power in the FRC instruments compared with those made of wood.

  1. Music mixing preferences of cochlear implant recipients: a pilot study.

    PubMed

    Buyens, Wim; van Dijk, Bas; Moonen, Marc; Wouters, Jan

    2014-05-01

    Music perception and appraisal are generally poor in cochlear implant recipients. Simple musical structures, lyrics that are easy to follow, and clear rhythm/beat have been reported among the top factors to enhance music enjoyment. The present study investigated the preference for modified relative instrument levels in music with normal-hearing and cochlear implant subjects. In experiment 1, test subjects were given a mixing console and multi-track recordings to determine their most enjoyable audio mix. In experiment 2, a preference rating experiment based on the preferred relative level settings in experiment 1 was performed. Experiment 1 was performed with four postlingually deafened cochlear implant subjects, experiment 2 with ten normal-hearing and ten cochlear implant subjects. A significant difference in preference rating was found between normal-hearing and cochlear implant subjects. The latter preferred an audio mix with larger vocals-to-instruments ratio. In addition, given an audio mix with clear vocals and attenuated instruments, cochlear implant subjects preferred the bass/drum track to be louder than the other instrument tracks. The original audio mix in real-world music might not be suitable for cochlear implant recipients. Modifying the relative instrument level settings potentially improves music enjoyment.

  2. Predicting Preservice Music Teachers' Performance Success in Instrumental Courses Using Self-Regulated Study Strategies and Predictor Variables

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ersozlu, Zehra N.; Nietfeld, John L.; Huseynova, Lale

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which self-regulated study strategies and predictor variables predict performance success in instrumental performance college courses. Preservice music teachers (N = 123) from a music education department in two state universities in Turkey completed the Music Self-Regulated Studying…

  3. School Music and Society: A Content Analysis of the Midwestern Conference on School Vocal and Instrumental Music, 1946-1996

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    West, Chad

    2013-01-01

    This article provides an analysis of the session content presented in the first fifty years (1946-1996) of the (Michigan) state music education conference," The Midwestern Conference on School Vocal and Instrumental Music." The purpose of this study was to examine instructional techniques, technology, social/societal, and multicultural…

  4. An Investigation of the Relationships between Mathematics and Music Skills of Students Participating in Successful High School Instrumental Music Programs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Deppe, Scott

    2012-01-01

    This exploratory phenomenological study was designed to investigate the relationships between mathematics and music skills of students participating in successful high school instrumental music programs. The participants of this study were purposefully selected and included one math educator or math department chairperson and the band or orchestra…

  5. Steganography -- The New Intelligence Threat

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2004-01-01

    Information can be embedded within text files, digital music and videos, and digital photographs by simply changing bits and bytes. HOW IT WORKS...International Airport could be embedded in Brittany Spears’ latest music release in MP3 format. The wide range of steganography capabilities has been

  6. The Effects of Music on Microsurgical Technique and Performance: A Motion Analysis Study.

    PubMed

    Shakir, Afaaf; Chattopadhyay, Arhana; Paek, Laurence S; McGoldrick, Rory B; Chetta, Matthew D; Hui, Kenneth; Lee, Gordon K

    2017-05-01

    Music is commonly played in operating rooms (ORs) throughout the country. If a preferred genre of music is played, surgeons have been shown to perform surgical tasks quicker and with greater accuracy. However, there are currently no studies investigating the effects of music on microsurgical technique. Motion analysis technology has recently been validated in the objective assessment of plastic surgery trainees' performance of microanastomoses. Here, we aimed to examine the effects of music on microsurgical skills using motion analysis technology as a primary objective assessment tool. Residents and fellows in the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery program were recruited to complete a demographic survey and participate in microsurgical tasks. Each participant completed 2 arterial microanastomoses on a chicken foot model, one with music playing, and the other without music playing. Participants were blinded to the study objectives and encouraged to perform their best. The order of music and no music was randomized. Microanastomoses were video recorded using a digitalized S-video system and deidentified. Video segments were analyzed using ProAnalyst motion analysis software for automatic noncontact markerless video tracking of the needle driver tip. Nine residents and 3 plastic surgery fellows were tested. Reported microsurgical experience ranged from 1 to 10 arterial anastomoses performed (n = 2), 11 to 100 anastomoses (n = 9), and 101 to 500 anastomoses (n = 1). Mean age was 33 years (range, 29-36 years), with 11 participants right-handed and 1 ambidextrous. Of the 12 subjects tested, 11 (92%) preferred music in the OR. Composite instrument motion analysis scores significantly improved with playing preferred music during testing versus no music (paired t test, P <0.001). Improvement with music was significant even after stratifying scores by order in which variables were tested (music first vs no music first), postgraduate year, and number of anastomoses (analysis of variance, P < 0.01). Preferred music in the OR may have a positive effect on trainees' microsurgical performance; as such, trainees should be encouraged to participate in setting the conditions of the OR to optimize their comfort and, possibly, performance. Moreover, motion analysis technology is a useful tool with a wide range of applications for surgical education and outcomes optimization.

  7. The Five-String Banjo in the Music Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smith, Kenneth H.

    2011-01-01

    The banjo is an instrument of unique image and sound. It has a long history in North America from its arrival on slave ships from North Africa to its contemporary use in jazz and popular music. Adding the instrument to the general music classroom can open new realms of timbre and new avenues of exploration into the instruments of cultures around…

  8. The Aristocrat of Bands: A Historical Investigation of the Tennessee State University Instrumental Music Program and Its Directors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McDonald, Reginald A.

    2009-01-01

    Instrumental music education, as it evolved in the segregated African American communities and their educational institutions, remains an under-investigated area of historical research. As a partial remedy to that circumstance, this study sought to document one of the more noteworthy of such accounts, the history of instrumental music ensembles at…

  9. Digital Preservation and Deep Infrastructure; Dublin Core Metadata Initiative Progress Report and Workplan for 2002; Video Gaming, Education and Digital Learning Technologies: Relevance and Opportunities; Digital Collections of Real World Objects; The MusArt Music-Retrieval System: An Overview; eML: Taking Mississippi Libraries into the 21st Century.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Granger, Stewart; Dekkers, Makx; Weibel, Stuart L.; Kirriemuir, John; Lensch, Hendrik P. A.; Goesele, Michael; Seidel, Hans-Peter; Birmingham, William; Pardo, Bryan; Meek, Colin; Shifrin, Jonah; Goodvin, Renee; Lippy, Brooke

    2002-01-01

    One opinion piece and five articles in this issue discuss: digital preservation infrastructure; accomplishments and changes in the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative in 2001 and plans for 2002; video gaming and how it relates to digital libraries and learning technologies; overview of a music retrieval system; and the online version of the…

  10. An abstract approach to music.

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kaper, H. G.; Tipei, S.

    1999-04-19

    In this article we have outlined a formal framework for an abstract approach to music and music composition. The model is formulated in terms of objects that have attributes, obey relationships, and are subject to certain well-defined operations. The motivation for this approach uses traditional terms and concepts of music theory, but the approach itself is formal and uses the language of mathematics. The universal object is an audio wave; partials, sounds, and compositions are special objects, which are placed in a hierarchical order based on time scales. The objects have both static and dynamic attributes. When we realize amore » composition, we assign values to each of its attributes: a (scalar) value to a static attribute, an envelope and a size to a dynamic attribute. A composition is then a trajectory in the space of aural events, and the complex audio wave is its formal representation. Sounds are fibers in the space of aural events, from which the composer weaves the trajectory of a composition. Each sound object in turn is made up of partials, which are the elementary building blocks of any music composition. The partials evolve on the fastest time scale in the hierarchy of partials, sounds, and compositions. The ideas outlined in this article are being implemented in a digital instrument for additive sound synthesis and in software for music composition. A demonstration of some preliminary results has been submitted by the authors for presentation at the conference.« less

  11. The effect of pitch, rhythm, and familiarity on working memory and anxiety as measured by digit recall performance.

    PubMed

    Silverman, Michael J

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to isolate and quantitatively evaluate the effects of pitch and rhythm of unfamiliar and familiar melodies on working memory and anxiety as measured by sequential digit recall performance. Participants (N = 60) listened to 6 treatment conditions each consisting of 9 randomized monosyllabic digits. The digits were paired with (a) a familiar melody and pitch only, (b) a familiar melody and rhythm only, (c) a familiar melody with both pitch and rhythm, (d) an unfamiliar melody with pitch only, (e) an unfamiliar melody with rhythm only, and (f) an unfamiliar melody with both pitch and rhythm. The 6 different treatments were counterbalanced using a Latin square design in an attempt to control for order effects. Participants rated their state anxiety on a Likert-type scale before, midway through, and after the digits test. No statistically significant order, learning, or practice effects were found. A 3-way repeated-measures ANOVA indicated a statistically significant difference in digit recall performance across musical element conditions and groups. Results indicated that music majors outperformed nonmusic majors on the digit recall task. Participants were able to recall digits from the rhythm condition most accurately while recalling digits from pitch only and both pitch and rhythm conditions the least accurately. Graphic analysis of treatment as a function of sequential position indicated digit recall was best during conditions of primacy and recency. No main effects were found for the familiarity condition. Additionally, no main effects or interactions were found for the anxiety variable. The results of this study are congruent with existing working memory and music literature suggesting that pairing information with rhythm can facilitate recall, music majors outperform non-music majors, and recall accuracy is best in positions of primacy and recency. Implications for practice in therapy and education are made as well as suggestions for future research.

  12. A technical study of alloy compositions of "brass" wind musical instruments (1651-1867) utilizing non-destructive X-ray fluorescence

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bacon, Alice Louise

    This thesis represents a new interdisciplinary approach to the conservation, care and curatorial study of 'brass' wind musical instruments. It attempts to combine metallurgical, chronological and historical aspects for a selection of instruments. The research consists of the systematic study of seventy-seven musical instruments, by known makers, using standardised non-destructive energy dispersive x-ray fluorescence (XRF). Such compositional data are virtually non-existent for historical 'brass' instruments in Britain and what few technical data that do exist are sporadic in quantity and quality. The development of brass instruments is interwoven with the history of brass making, but because there are a limited number of appropriate examples such links can be difficult to identify. This thesis describes the development of brass production from the cementation process to the commercial production of zinc and modern brass. Its relationship to the musical instrument industry in Britain is linked with historical evidence. It will be shown that innovation and known historical metallurgical achievements are reflected in the compositional changes of the alloys used for musical instruments. This thesis focuses on specific named brass wind musical instrument makers. This thesis sets out to investigate the extent to which a single analytical technique such as non-destructive analysis utilising XRF could be useful in the curatorial and conservation care of musical instruments. The results of the analyses revealed new aspects to the use of metals for making musical instruments. They give new information on approximate alloy compositions and, in particular, the results have shown that in the seventeenth-century in England, a ternary alloy of copper/tin/zinc was used, and that it was, perhaps, only superseded by brass (copper/zinc alloy) in the eighteenth century. It has been possible to arrange the results into a chronology of alloys particularly reflecting the change from the use of cementation brass to the direct method for making brass. By this means it is possible to postulate a date for the composition of a musical instrument of unknown maker and date. The idea for this thesis originated in the Horniman Museum, London, where the author of this thesis is Head of Collections Conservation and Care. However this study is augmented by instruments from other institutions. In this manner it has been possible to construct a chronology from the earliest inscribed and dated instrument by Augustine Dudley in 1651 to the demise of Charles Pace's small craftsman workshop in 1854 and his death in 1867.

  13. The Importance of Music: A National Plan for Music Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Department for Education, 2011

    2011-01-01

    England is a world leader in music education. Provision has existed locally for over 50 years. Recent developments have added national funding to the picture so that all pupils have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument. The number accessing regular weekly instrumental tuition has grown from 438,772 (8.4%) in 2005 to a projected figure of…

  14. Predictors of continued playing or singing--from childhood and adolescence to adult years.

    PubMed

    Theorell, T; Lennartsson, A-K; Madison, G; Mosing, M A; Ullén, F

    2015-03-01

    Many individuals play an instrument or sing during childhood, but they often stop later in life. This study surveyed adults representative of the Swedish population about musical activities during childhood. We asked 3820 adults (65% women) aged from 27 to 54 from the Swedish Twin Registry, who took extra music lessons to those provided at school, to fill in a web-based questionnaire. Factors analysed were the age they started studying music, the instrument they played, kind of teaching, institution and educational content, number of lessons and perceived characteristics of the lessons, the music environment during their childhood years and their preferred music genre. All variables were dichotomised. Factors strongly associated with continued playing or singing were male sex, young starting age, cultural family background, self-selected instrument, attending music classes and more than once a week, church-related or private education, pop, rock or classical music, playing by ear and improvisation. Several significant predictors determined whether a child continued to sing or play an instrument as an adult and many could be externally influenced, such as starting at a young age, taking music classes more than once a week, improvisation and the type of music they played. ©2014 Foundation Acta Paediatrica. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  15. Tool-assisted rhythmic drumming in palm cockatoos shares key elements of human instrumental music

    PubMed Central

    Heinsohn, Robert; Zdenek, Christina N.; Cunningham, Ross B.; Endler, John A.; Langmore, Naomi E.

    2017-01-01

    All human societies have music with a rhythmic “beat,” typically produced with percussive instruments such as drums. The set of capacities that allows humans to produce and perceive music appears to be deeply rooted in human biology, but an understanding of its evolutionary origins requires cross-taxa comparisons. We show that drumming by palm cockatoos (Probosciger aterrimus) shares the key rudiments of human instrumental music, including manufacture of a sound tool, performance in a consistent context, regular beat production, repeated components, and individual styles. Over 131 drumming sequences produced by 18 males, the beats occurred at nonrandom, regular intervals, yet individual males differed significantly in the shape parameters describing the distribution of their beat patterns, indicating individual drumming styles. Autocorrelation analyses of the longest drumming sequences further showed that they were highly regular and predictable like human music. These discoveries provide a rare comparative perspective on the evolution of rhythmicity and instrumental music in our own species, and show that a preference for a regular beat can have other origins before being co-opted into group-based music and dance. PMID:28782005

  16. Try It for a Semester! Give Your Students a Crack at Learning an Instrument

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Edman, Steve; Press, Doreen; Howk-Hanley, Mary

    2005-01-01

    Unlikely as it might seem, a simple request from music teachers to borrow musical instruments can be the beginning of a productive teaching and learning experience for students at their school. With a set of stringed and band instruments from their local music store, every student at a given grade level can have the chance to perform on an…

  17. The Impact of Instrumental Music Learning on Attainment at Age 16: A Pilot Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hallam, Susan; Rogers, Kevin

    2016-01-01

    There is increasing international evidence that playing a musical instrument has a positive impact on attainment at school but little research has been undertaken in the UK. This study addresses this drawing on data on attainment at age 11 and 16 relating to 608 students, 115 of whom played a musical instrument. The fndings showed that the young…

  18. Musics of Oceania

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kennedy, Raymond F.

    1972-01-01

    Article examines the music and musical instruments of an area commonly referred to as the South Sea Isles. Author also points out the musical function and cultural meaning of specific musical styles. (RK)

  19. Background Music and the Learning Environment: Borrowing from other Disciplines

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Griffin, Michael

    2006-01-01

    Human beings have always enjoyed a special relationship with the organisation of audible sound we call music. Through the passage of time, the roles and functions of music have represented manifold expressions to people, and in the present day music is ubiquitous and readily available to all who seek it. Recent advances in digital music technology…

  20. Music-Games: A Case Study of Their Impact

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cassidy, Gianna G.; Paisley, Anna M. J. M.

    2013-01-01

    Music-games present a highly pervasive new platform to create, perform, appreciate and transmit music through peer and online communities (e.g., Peppler, Downton, Lindsay, & Hay, 2011). While learners are increasingly engaged with such digital music participation outside the classroom, evidence indicates learners are increasingly disengaged…

  1. Are Musical Instrument Gender Associations Changing?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Abeles, Hal

    2009-01-01

    The researcher sought to examine gender associations across three decades to determine if changes in the sex stereotyping of musical instruments has occurred. First, the study examined the paired comparison gender-instrument rankings of 180 college students. The results confirmed a reduction of instrument gender associations reported in the 1990s.…

  2. The Music Industry Conference Guide for Music Educators. A Supplement to the Music Educators Journal.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Music Educators Journal, 1988

    1988-01-01

    This supplement is a comprehensive guide to the music industry designed for music teachers. Included are tips for contacting music businesses and suggestions on ordering music, robes, instruments, computer software, and other supplies. Includes an annotated directory of Music Industry Conference members. (JDH)

  3. The Case for Musical Instrument Training in Cerebral Palsy for Neurorehabilitation

    PubMed Central

    2016-01-01

    Recent imaging studies in cerebral palsy (CP) have described several brain structural changes, functional alterations, and neuroplastic processes that take place after brain injury during early development. These changes affect motor pathways as well as sensorimotor networks. Several of these changes correlate with behavioral measures of motor and sensory disability. It is now widely acknowledged that management of sensory deficits is relevant for rehabilitation in CP. Playing a musical instrument demands the coordination of hand movements with integrated auditory, visual, and tactile feedback, in a process that recruits multiple brain regions. These multiple demands during instrument playing, together with the entertaining character of music, have led to the development and investigation of music-supported therapies, especially for rehabilitation with motor disorders resulting from brain damage. We review scientific evidence that supports the use of musical instrument playing for rehabilitation in CP. We propose that active musical instrument playing may be an efficient means for triggering neuroplastic processes necessary for the development of sensorimotor skills in patients with early brain damage. We encourage experimental research on neuroplasticity and on its impact on the physical and personal development of individuals with CP. PMID:27867664

  4. The Case for Musical Instrument Training in Cerebral Palsy for Neurorehabilitation.

    PubMed

    Alves-Pinto, Ana; Turova, Varvara; Blumenstein, Tobias; Lampe, Renée

    2016-01-01

    Recent imaging studies in cerebral palsy (CP) have described several brain structural changes, functional alterations, and neuroplastic processes that take place after brain injury during early development. These changes affect motor pathways as well as sensorimotor networks. Several of these changes correlate with behavioral measures of motor and sensory disability. It is now widely acknowledged that management of sensory deficits is relevant for rehabilitation in CP. Playing a musical instrument demands the coordination of hand movements with integrated auditory, visual, and tactile feedback, in a process that recruits multiple brain regions. These multiple demands during instrument playing, together with the entertaining character of music, have led to the development and investigation of music-supported therapies, especially for rehabilitation with motor disorders resulting from brain damage. We review scientific evidence that supports the use of musical instrument playing for rehabilitation in CP. We propose that active musical instrument playing may be an efficient means for triggering neuroplastic processes necessary for the development of sensorimotor skills in patients with early brain damage. We encourage experimental research on neuroplasticity and on its impact on the physical and personal development of individuals with CP.

  5. Mapping Phonetic Features for Voice-Driven Sound Synthesis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Janer, Jordi; Maestre, Esteban

    In applications where the human voice controls the synthesis of musical instruments sounds, phonetics convey musical information that might be related to the sound of the imitated musical instrument. Our initial hypothesis is that phonetics are user- and instrument-dependent, but they remain constant for a single subject and instrument. We propose a user-adapted system, where mappings from voice features to synthesis parameters depend on how subjects sing musical articulations, i.e. note to note transitions. The system consists of two components. First, a voice signal segmentation module that automatically determines note-to-note transitions. Second, a classifier that determines the type of musical articulation for each transition based on a set of phonetic features. For validating our hypothesis, we run an experiment where subjects imitated real instrument recordings with their voice. Performance recordings consisted of short phrases of saxophone and violin performed in three grades of musical articulation labeled as: staccato, normal, legato. The results of a supervised training classifier (user-dependent) are compared to a classifier based on heuristic rules (user-independent). Finally, from the previous results we show how to control the articulation in a sample-concatenation synthesizer by selecting the most appropriate samples.

  6. Music Engineering as a Novel Strategy for Enhancing Music Enjoyment in the Cochlear Implant Recipient.

    PubMed

    Kohlberg, Gavriel D; Mancuso, Dean M; Chari, Divya A; Lalwani, Anil K

    2015-01-01

    Enjoyment of music remains an elusive goal following cochlear implantation. We test the hypothesis that reengineering music to reduce its complexity can enhance the listening experience for the cochlear implant (CI) listener. Normal hearing (NH) adults (N = 16) and CI listeners (N = 9) evaluated a piece of country music on three enjoyment modalities: pleasantness, musicality, and naturalness. Participants listened to the original version along with 20 modified, less complex, versions created by including subsets of the musical instruments from the original song. NH participants listened to the segments both with and without CI simulation processing. Compared to the original song, modified versions containing only 1-3 instruments were less enjoyable to the NH listeners but more enjoyable to the CI listeners and the NH listeners with CI simulation. Excluding vocals and including rhythmic instruments improved enjoyment for NH listeners with CI simulation but made no difference for CI listeners. Reengineering a piece of music to reduce its complexity has the potential to enhance music enjoyment for the cochlear implantee. Thus, in addition to improvements in software and hardware, engineering music specifically for the CI listener may be an alternative means to enhance their listening experience.

  7. Music: Instrumental Techniques, Strings.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ryan, Philip

    A course in music which emphasizes harmony is presented. The approach used is a laboratory one in which pupils will develop skill in playing orchestral string instruments, sing, listen to, read and compose music with emphasis on elementary concepts of harmony. Course objectives include: (1) The student will select the title of a familiar melody…

  8. Music: Instrumental Techniques, Woodwinds.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Baker, Melvin

    A course in introduction to music emphasizing modes and forms is presented. The approach used is a laboratory approach in which pupils will develop skill in playing wood-wind instruments, sing, listen to, read and compose music with emphasis on identification of elementary concepts of mode and form. Course objectives include: (1) pupil will select…

  9. The Effects of Altering Environmental and Instrumental Context on the Performance of Memorized Music

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mishra, Jennifer; Backlin, William

    2007-01-01

    Three experiments investigated whether musical memory was context dependent. Instrumental musicians memorized music in one context and recalled in either the same or a different context. Contexts included atypical performing environments (Experiment 1: lobby/conference room) or commonly encountered environments (Experiment 2: practice room,…

  10. Instrumental Techniques--Band, Course Numbers: Music: 5642.45, 5643.45.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sutton, Mack

    An introduction to music emphasizing harmony, this course provides a laboratory approach in which pupils will develop skill in playing brass and woodwind instruments, sing, listen to, read and compose music with emphasis on elementary concepts of harmony. This handbook provides, in outline format, the following: Course Description; Course…

  11. Using Longitudinal Scales Assessment for Instrumental Music Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Simon, Samuel H.

    2014-01-01

    In music education, current assessment trends emphasize student reflection, tracking progress over time, and formative as well as summative measures. This view of assessment requires instrumental music educators to modernize their approaches without interfering with methods that have proven to be successful. To this end, the Longitudinal Scales…

  12. Influence of musical instruments on tooth positions.

    PubMed

    Herman, E

    1981-08-01

    A 2-year longitudinal investigation was conducted at five New York City junior high schools on 11- to 13-year-old children starting instrumental music education to determine what tooth movement, if any, resulted from the playing of certain musical instruments. Questionnaires, interviews, oral examinations, and dental casts were used at the start of instrumental study, after one year, and then after a second year. Statistically significant anterior tooth movements occurred in an overwhelming majority of the instrumentalists, while negligible movements were recorded for the controls over this period. As a result of this study, certain recommendations can be made by dentists when they are asked to suggest instruments which are dentally suited for children. In most cases they can suggest more than one instrument which would be of benefit dentally to the individual child, especially in the increase or reduction of overjet and overbite. The playing of the correct musical instrument can serve as an adjunct to the dentist or orthodontist in trying to accomplish certain tooth movements.

  13. Clinical and Epidemiological Correlates of Task-Specific Dystonia in a Large Cohort of Brazilian Music Players.

    PubMed

    Moura, Rita C; de Carvalho Aguiar, Patrícia Maria; Bortz, Graziela; Ferraz, Henrique Ballalai

    2017-01-01

    Musician's dystonia is a task-specific dystonia (TSD) worldwide disabling disorder, and most of the affected individuals may have severe difficulty to play their instrument. Many professional music players may have to quit working as a player. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics and frequency of TSD in Brazilian music players and to promote awareness of this condition among musicians. We visited orchestras and music schools delivering lectures on TSD and about the scope of our survey. Musicians were invited to answer a questionnaire, and those with possible neurological dysfunction associated with musical performance were recorded by video while playing the instrument. We visited 51 orchestras and music schools in 19 Brazilian cities between March 2013 and March 2015. We collected 2,232 questionnaires, and 72 subjects with suspicion of dystonia were video recorded during specific tasks and evaluated regarding motor impairment. Forty-nine individuals (2.2%) were diagnosed as having TSD (mean age 36.4 years; 92% male). The instruments most associated with TSD were acoustic guitar (36.7%) and brass instruments (30.6%). We concluded that Brazilian TSD music players are mainly male, classical music professionals, around 30 years of age, with arms, hands, or oromandibular muscles affected. TSD is a neurological condition that can impair musical performance and should receive more attention from musicians, teachers, and health professionals.

  14. An advanced real-time digital signal processing system for linear systems emulation, with special emphasis on network and acoustic response characterization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gaydecki, Patrick; Fernandes, Bosco

    2003-11-01

    A fast digital signal processing (DSP) system is described that can perform real-time emulation of a wide variety of linear audio-bandwidth systems and networks, such as reverberant spaces, musical instrument bodies and very high order filter networks. The hardware design is based upon a Motorola DSP56309 operating at 110 million multiplication-accumulations per second and a dual-channel 24 bit codec with a maximum sampling frequency of 192 kHz. High level software has been developed to express complex vector frequency responses as both infinite impulse response (IIR) and finite impulse response (FIR) coefficients, in a form suitable for real-time convolution by the firmware installed in the DSP system memory. An algorithm has also been devised to express IIR filters as equivalent FIR structures, thereby obviating the potential instabilities associated with recursive equations and negating the traditional deficiencies of FIR filters respecting equivalent analogue designs. The speed and dynamic range of the system is such that, when sampling at 48 kHz, the frequency response can be specified to a spectral precision of 22 Hz when sampling at 10 kHz, this resolution increases to 0.9 Hz. Moreover, it is also possible to control the phase of any frequency band with a theoretical precision of 10-5 degrees in all cases. The system has been applied in the study of analogue filter networks, real-time Hilbert transformation, phase-shift systems and musical instrument body emulation, where it is providing valuable new insights into the understanding of psychoacoustic mechanisms.

  15. Functional neural changes associated with acquired amusia across different stages of recovery after stroke.

    PubMed

    Sihvonen, Aleksi J; Särkämö, Teppo; Ripollés, Pablo; Leo, Vera; Saunavaara, Jani; Parkkola, Riitta; Rodríguez-Fornells, Antoni; Soinila, Seppo

    2017-09-12

    Brain damage causing acquired amusia disrupts the functional music processing system, creating a unique opportunity to investigate the critical neural architectures of musical processing in the brain. In this longitudinal fMRI study of stroke patients (N = 41) with a 6-month follow-up, we used natural vocal music (sung with lyrics) and instrumental music stimuli to uncover brain activation and functional network connectivity changes associated with acquired amusia and its recovery. In the acute stage, amusic patients exhibited decreased activation in right superior temporal areas compared to non-amusic patients during instrumental music listening. During the follow-up, the activation deficits expanded to comprise a wide-spread bilateral frontal, temporal, and parietal network. The amusics showed less activation deficits to vocal music, suggesting preserved processing of singing in the amusic brain. Compared to non-recovered amusics, recovered amusics showed increased activation to instrumental music in bilateral frontoparietal areas at 3 months and in right middle and inferior frontal areas at 6 months. Amusia recovery was also associated with increased functional connectivity in right and left frontoparietal attention networks to instrumental music. Overall, our findings reveal the dynamic nature of deficient activation and connectivity patterns in acquired amusia and highlight the role of dorsal networks in amusia recovery.

  16. Neutrons and music: Imaging investigation of ancient wind musical instruments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Festa, G.; Tardino, G.; Pontecorvo, L.; Mannes, D. C.; Senesi, R.; Gorini, G.; Andreani, C.

    2014-10-01

    A set of seven musical instruments and two instruments cares from the 'Fondo Antico della Biblioteca del Sacro Convento' in Assisi, Italy, were investigated through neutron and X-ray imaging techniques. Historical and scientific interests around ancient musical instruments motivate an intense research effort for their characterization using non-destructive and non-invasive techniques. X-ray and neutron tomography/radiography were applied to the study of composite material samples containing wood, hide and metals. The study was carried out at the NEUTRA beamline, PSI (Paul Scherrer Institute, Switzerland). Results of the measurements provided new information on the composite and multi-scale structure, such as: the internal structure of the samples, position of added materials like metals, wood fiber displays, deformations, presence of adhesives and their spatial distribution and novel insight about construction methods to guide the instruments' restoration process.

  17. Modeling Flue Pipes: Subsonic Flow, Lattice Boltzmann, and Parallel Distributed Computers.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1995-01-01

    Abstract The problem of simulating the hydrodynamics and the acoustic waves inside wind musical instruments such as the recorder, the organ, and the ute...inside wind musical instruments such as the recorder, the organ, and the ute is considered. The problem is attacked by developing suitable local...applications such as the simulation of uid dynamics inside wind musical instruments. In the past, he has also worked on numerical methods for ordinary di

  18. Memory for music in Alzheimer's disease: unforgettable?

    PubMed

    Baird, Amee; Samson, Séverine

    2009-03-01

    The notion that memory for music can be preserved in patients with Alzheimer's Disease (AD) has been raised by a number of case studies. In this paper, we review the current research examining musical memory in patients with AD. In keeping with models of memory described in the non-musical domain, we propose that various forms of musical memory exist, and may be differentially impaired in AD, reflecting the pattern of neuropathological changes associated with the condition. Our synthesis of this literature reveals a dissociation between explicit and implicit musical memory functions. Implicit, specifically procedural musical memory, or the ability to play a musical instrument, can be spared in musicians with AD. In contrast, explicit musical memory, or the recognition of familiar or unfamiliar melodies, is typically impaired. Thus, the notion that music is unforgettable in AD is not wholly supported. Rather, it appears that the ability to play a musical instrument may be unforgettable in some musicians with AD.

  19. Making music in a group: synchronization and shared experience.

    PubMed

    Overy, Katie

    2012-04-01

    To consider the full impact of musical learning on the brain, it is important to study the nature of everyday, non-expert forms of musical behavior alongside expert instrumental training. Such informal forms of music making tend to include social interaction, synchronization, body movements, and positive shared experiences. Here, I propose that when designing music intervention programs for scientific purposes, such features may have advantages over instrumental training, depending on the specific research aims, contexts, and measures. With reference to a selection of classroom approaches to music education and to the shared affective motion experience (SAME) model of emotional responses to music, I conclude that group learning may be particularly valuable in music pedagogy. © 2012 New York Academy of Sciences.

  20. Instrumentational complexity of music genres and why simplicity sells.

    PubMed

    Percino, Gamaliel; Klimek, Peter; Thurner, Stefan

    2014-01-01

    Listening habits are strongly influenced by two opposing aspects, the desire for variety and the demand for uniformity in music. In this work we quantify these two notions in terms of instrumentation and production technologies that are typically involved in crafting popular music. We assign an 'instrumentational complexity value' to each music style. Styles of low instrumentational complexity tend to have generic instrumentations that can also be found in many other styles. Styles of high complexity, on the other hand, are characterized by a large variety of instruments that can only be found in a small number of other styles. To model these results we propose a simple stochastic model that explicitly takes the capabilities of artists into account. We find empirical evidence that individual styles show dramatic changes in their instrumentational complexity over the last fifty years. 'New wave' or 'disco' quickly climbed towards higher complexity in the 70s and fell back to low complexity levels shortly afterwards, whereas styles like 'folk rock' remained at constant high instrumentational complexity levels. We show that changes in the instrumentational complexity of a style are related to its number of sales and to the number of artists contributing to that style. As a style attracts a growing number of artists, its instrumentational variety usually increases. At the same time the instrumentational uniformity of a style decreases, i.e. a unique stylistic and increasingly complex expression pattern emerges. In contrast, album sales of a given style typically increase with decreasing instrumentational complexity. This can be interpreted as music becoming increasingly formulaic in terms of instrumentation once commercial or mainstream success sets in.

  1. Musical Creativity in Slovenian Elementary Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rozman, Janja Crcinovic

    2009-01-01

    Background: The Slovenian music education curriculum for the first years of elementary school emphasises the following musical activities in the classroom: singing, playing instruments, listening to music, movement to music and musical creativity. In the field of musical creativity, there are two activities where students can be original and…

  2. Technology and Music Education in a Digitized, Disembodied, Posthuman World

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thwaites, Trevor

    2014-01-01

    Digital forms of sound manipulation are eroding traditional methods of sound development and transmission, causing a disjuncture in the ontology of music. Sound, the ambient phenomenon, is becoming disrupted and decentred by the struggles between long established controls, beliefs and desires as well as controls from within technologized contexts.…

  3. The Use of Digital Tools by Independent Music Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Upitis, Rena; Abrami, Philip C.; Boese, Karen

    2016-01-01

    The present paper explores two aspects of independent music teachers' views and practices: (a) their views on the importance of self-regulation and (b) how they use tools available on mobile devices to enhance their students' learning. A survey involving 1,468 Canadian teachers revealed that most teachers are comfortable using digital technology.…

  4. 37 CFR 201.19 - Royalties and statements of account under compulsory license for making and distributing...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    .... 201.19 Section 201.19 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights COPYRIGHT OFFICE, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS... musical works, including by means of a digital phonorecord delivery. (2) An Annual Statement of Account is... distribute phonorecords of nondramatic musical works. (3) For the purposes of this section, a “digital...

  5. 37 CFR 201.19 - Royalties and statements of account under compulsory license for making and distributing...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    .... 201.19 Section 201.19 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights COPYRIGHT OFFICE, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS... musical works, including by means of a digital phonorecord delivery. (2) An Annual Statement of Account is... distribute phonorecords of nondramatic musical works. (3) For the purposes of this section, a “digital...

  6. 37 CFR 201.19 - Royalties and statements of account under compulsory license for making and distributing...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    .... 201.19 Section 201.19 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights COPYRIGHT OFFICE, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS... musical works, including by means of a digital phonorecord delivery. (2) An Annual Statement of Account is... distribute phonorecords of nondramatic musical works. (3) For the purposes of this section, a “digital...

  7. 37 CFR 201.19 - Royalties and statements of account under compulsory license for making and distributing...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    .... 201.19 Section 201.19 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights COPYRIGHT OFFICE, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS... musical works, including by means of a digital phonorecord delivery. (2) An Annual Statement of Account is... distribute phonorecords of nondramatic musical works. (3) For the purposes of this section, a “digital...

  8. Preservice Music Teachers' Attitudes toward Popular Music in the Music Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Springer, D. Gregory; Gooding, Lori F.

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine preservice music educators' attitudes toward popular music in the music classroom. On a survey instrument designed by the investigators, participants ("N" = 82) rated (a) the effectiveness of popular music in addressing the National Standards for Music Education, (b) the appropriateness of popular…

  9. Music and the Brain in Childhood Development. Review of Research.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Strickland, Susan J.

    2002-01-01

    Reviews literature on effects of music on the brain in childhood development. Areas include: (1) early synaptic growth; (2) nature versus nurture; (3) background music; (4) musical practice; (5) music learning and cognitive skills; (6) transfer of music learning; (7) musical instrument practice; (8) children and music; and (9) transfer effects.…

  10. Timbral Sharpness and Modulations in Frequency and Amplitude: Implications for the Fusion of Musical Sounds.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Goad, Pamela Joy

    The fusion of musical voices is an important aspect of musical blend, or the mixing of individual sounds. Yet, little research has been done to explicitly determine the factors involved in fusion. In this study, the similarity of timbre and modulation were examined for their contribution to the fusion of sounds. It is hypothesized that similar timbres will fuse better than dissimilar timbres, and, voices with the same kind of modulation will fuse better than voices of different modulations. A perceptually-based measure, known as sharpness was investigated as a measure of timbre. The advantages of using sharpness are that it is based on hearing sensitivities and masking phenomena of inner ear processing. Five musical instrument families were digitally recorded in performances across a typical playing range at two extreme dynamic levels. Analyses reveal that sharpness is capable of uncovering subtle changes in timbre including those found in musical dynamics, instrument design, and performer-specific variations. While these analyses alone are insufficient to address fusion, preliminary calculations of timbral combinations indicate that sharpness has the potential to predict the fusion of sounds used in musical composition. Three experiments investigated the effects of modulation on the fusion of a harmonic major sixth interval. In the first experiment using frequency modulation, stimuli varied in deviation about a mean fundamental frequency and relative modulation phase between the two tones. Results showed smaller frequency deviations promoted fusion and relative phase differences had a minimal effect. In a second experiment using amplitude modulation, stimuli varied in deviation about a mean amplitude level and relative phase of modulation. Results showed smaller amplitude deviations promoted better fusion, but unlike frequency modulation, relative phase differences were also important. In a third experiment, frequency modulation, amplitude modulation and mixed modulation were arranged in all possible voicings. Results showed frequency modulation in the lower voice and less variance in amplitude envelopes contributed to an increase in fusion. The theory that similar modulations would promote better fusion was only marginally supported. For these experiments, results revealed differences depending on modulation type and that a lesser amount of modulation fosters greater fusion.

  11. Instrumentalism in the Field of Music Education? Are We All Humanists?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Varkoy, Oivind

    2007-01-01

    Oivind Varkoy discusses instrumentalism as a trend in educational politics and pedagogical thinking. Instrumentalism implies looking upon both school subjects and humans as instruments, as tools or means for reaching another goal or end. The discussion is related to philosophy of music education by focusing on aspects of philosophies of humankind,…

  12. The effect of vocal and instrumental music on cardio respiratory variables, energy expenditure and exertion levels during sub maximal treadmill exercise.

    PubMed

    Savitha, D; Sejil, T V; Rao, Shwetha; Roshan, C J; Roshan, C J

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of vocal and instrumental music on various physiological parameters during submaximal exercise. Each subject underwent three sessions of exercise protocol without music, with vocal music, and instrumental versions of same piece of music. The protocol consisted of 10 min treadmill exercise at 70% HR(max) and 20 min of recovery. Minute to minute heart rate and breath by breath recording of respiratory parameters, rate of energy expenditure and perceived exertion levels were measured. Music, irrespective of the presence or absence of lyrics, enabled the subjects to exercise at a significantly lower heart rate and oxygen consumption, reduced the metabolic cost and perceived exertion levels of exercise (P < 0.05). There was faster recovery of systolic and diastolic blood pressures and exertion levels during the post exercise period. Music having a relaxant effect could have probably increased the parasympathetic activation leading to these effects.

  13. POLOCAM: a millimeter wavelength cryogenic polarimeter prototype for MUSIC-POL

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Laurent, Glenn T.; Vaillancourt, John E.; Savini, Giorgio; Ade, Peter A. R.; Beland, Stephane; Glenn, Jason; Hollister, Matthew I.; Maloney, Philip R.; Sayers, Jack

    2012-09-01

    As a proof-of-concept, we have constructed and tested a cryogenic polarimeter in the laboratory as a prototype for the MUSIC instrument (Multiwavelength Sub/millimeter Kinetic Inductance Camera). The POLOCAM instrument consists of a rotating cryogenic polarization modulator (sapphire half-waveplate) and polarization analyzer (lithographed copper polarizers deposited on a thin film) placed into the optical path at the Lyot stop (4K cold pupil stop) in a cryogenic dewar. We present an overview of the project, design and performance results of the POLOCAM instrument (including polarization efficiencies and instrumental polarization), as well as future application to the MUSIC-POL instrument.

  14. Impact of Noise Reduction Algorithm in Cochlear Implant Processing on Music Enjoyment.

    PubMed

    Kohlberg, Gavriel D; Mancuso, Dean M; Griffin, Brianna M; Spitzer, Jaclyn B; Lalwani, Anil K

    2016-06-01

    Noise reduction algorithm (NRA) in speech processing strategy has positive impact on speech perception among cochlear implant (CI) listeners. We sought to evaluate the effect of NRA on music enjoyment. Prospective analysis of music enjoyment. Academic medical center. Normal-hearing (NH) adults (N = 16) and CI listeners (N = 9). Subjective rating of music excerpts. NH and CI listeners evaluated country music piece on three enjoyment modalities: pleasantness, musicality, and naturalness. Participants listened to the original version and 20 modified, less complex versions created by including subsets of musical instruments from the original song. NH participants listened to the segments through CI simulation and CI listeners listened to the segments with their usual speech processing strategy, with and without NRA. Decreasing the number of instruments was significantly associated with increase in the pleasantness and naturalness in both NH and CI subjects (p < 0.05). However, there was no difference in music enjoyment with or without NRA for either NH listeners with CI simulation or CI listeners across all three modalities of pleasantness, musicality, and naturalness (p > 0.05): this was true for the original and the modified music segments with one to three instruments (p > 0.05). NRA does not affect music enjoyment in CI listener or NH individual with CI simulation. This suggests that strategies to enhance speech processing will not necessarily have a positive impact on music enjoyment. However, reducing the complexity of music shows promise in enhancing music enjoyment and should be further explored.

  15. Effects of Music Listening on Cortisol Levels and Propofol Consumption during Spinal Anesthesia

    PubMed Central

    Koelsch, Stefan; Fuermetz, Julian; Sack, Ulrich; Bauer, Katrin; Hohenadel, Maximilian; Wiegel, Martin; Kaisers, Udo X.; Heinke, Wolfgang

    2011-01-01

    Background: This study explores effects of instrumental music on the hormonal system (as indicated by serum cortisol and adrenocorticotropic hormone), the immune system (as indicated by immunoglobulin A) and sedative drug requirements during surgery (elective total hip joint replacement under spinal anesthesia with light sedation). This is the first study investigating this issue with a double-blind design using instrumental music. Methodology/Principal Findings: Patients (n = 40) were randomly assigned either to a music group (listening to instrumental music), or to a control group (listening to a non-musical placebo stimulus). Both groups listened to the auditory stimulus about 2 h before, and during the entire intra-operative period (during the intra-operative light sedation, subjects were able to respond lethargically to verbal commands). Results indicate that, during surgery, patients of the music group had a lower propofol consumption, and lower cortisol levels, compared to the control group. Conclusion/Significance: Our data show that listening to music during surgery under regional anesthesia has effects on cortisol levels (reflecting stress-reducing effects) and reduces sedative requirements to reach light sedation. PMID:21716581

  16. Bi-Musicality and Dialogical Musicality: Influences of Javanese Gamelan Participation on Western Instrumental Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Haddon, Elizabeth

    2016-01-01

    This qualitative research examines the influence of learning Javanese gamelan on aspects of musicianship, attitudes and approaches relating to the learning and performance of Western instruments experienced by a sample of UK university music students. In addition to benefits to musicianship, students delineated positive developments in attitudes…

  17. Insights and Opinions of College Students on Classical Piano Instrumental Music

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pelayo, Jose Maria G., III

    2013-01-01

    Classical Piano Instrumental Music has been used for meditation hitherto. This study tried to discover the insights and opinions of individuals with no formal musical training and how it may affect their mood, emotions, feelings, imagination, attitude, perception in life, and personality. The researcher conducted this study in order to determine…

  18. Effects of Style, Tempo, and Performing Medium on Children's Music Preference.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    LeBlanc, Albert

    1981-01-01

    Fifth-graders listened to a tape incorporating fast and slow vocal and instrumental excerpts within the generic styles of rock/pop, country, older jazz, newer jazz, art music, and band music. A preference hierarchy emerged favoring the popular styles. Across pooled styles, faster tempos and instrumentals were slightly preferred. (Author/SJL)

  19. A Comparison of the Basic Song Repertoire of Vocal/Choral and Instrumental Music Education Majors.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Prickett, Carol A.; Bridges, Madeline S.

    2000-01-01

    Explores whether the basic song repertoire of vocal/choral music education majors is significantly better than instrumental music education majors. Participants attempted to identify 25 standard songs. Reveals no significant difference between the two groups, indicating that neither had developed a strong repertoire of songs. (CMK)

  20. Mobile Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) for the Treatment of Epilepsy: Development of Digital Therapeutics Comprising Behavioral and Music-Based Interventions for Neurological Disorders

    PubMed Central

    Afra, Pegah; Bruggers, Carol S.; Sweney, Matthew; Fagatele, Lilly; Alavi, Fareeha; Greenwald, Michael; Huntsman, Merodean; Nguyen, Khanhly; Jones, Jeremiah K.; Shantz, David; Bulaj, Grzegorz

    2018-01-01

    Digital health technologies for people with epilepsy (PWE) include internet-based resources and mobile apps for seizure management. Since non-pharmacological interventions, such as listening to specific Mozart's compositions, cognitive therapy, psychosocial and educational interventions were shown to reduce epileptic seizures, these modalities can be integrated into mobile software and delivered by mobile medical apps as digital therapeutics. Herein, we describe: (1) a survey study among PWE about preferences to use mobile software for seizure control, (2) a rationale for developing digital therapies for epilepsy, (3) creation of proof-of-concept mobile software intended for use as an adjunct digital therapeutic to reduce seizures, and (4) broader applications of digital therapeutics for the treatment of epilepsy and other chronic disorders. A questionnaire was used to survey PWE with respect to preferred features in a mobile app for seizure control. Results from the survey suggested that over 90% of responders would be interested in using a mobile app to manage their seizures, while 75% were interested in listening to specific music that can reduce seizures. To define digital therapeutic for the treatment of epilepsy, we designed and created a proof-of-concept mobile software providing digital content intended to reduce seizures. The rationale for all components of such digital therapeutic is described. The resulting web-based app delivered a combination of epilepsy self-care, behavioral interventions, medication reminders and the antiseizure music, such as the Mozart's sonata K.448. To improve long-term patient engagement, integration of mobile medical app with music and multimedia streaming via smartphones, tablets and computers is also discussed. This work aims toward development and regulatory clearance of software as medical device (SaMD) for seizure control, yielding the adjunct digital therapeutic for epilepsy, and subsequently a drug-device combination product together with specific antiseizure medications. Mobile medical apps, music, therapeutic video games and their combinations with prescription medications present new opportunities to integrate pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for PWE, as well as those living with other chronic disorders, including depression and pain. PMID:29780310

  1. Mobile Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) for the Treatment of Epilepsy: Development of Digital Therapeutics Comprising Behavioral and Music-Based Interventions for Neurological Disorders.

    PubMed

    Afra, Pegah; Bruggers, Carol S; Sweney, Matthew; Fagatele, Lilly; Alavi, Fareeha; Greenwald, Michael; Huntsman, Merodean; Nguyen, Khanhly; Jones, Jeremiah K; Shantz, David; Bulaj, Grzegorz

    2018-01-01

    Digital health technologies for people with epilepsy (PWE) include internet-based resources and mobile apps for seizure management. Since non-pharmacological interventions, such as listening to specific Mozart's compositions, cognitive therapy, psychosocial and educational interventions were shown to reduce epileptic seizures, these modalities can be integrated into mobile software and delivered by mobile medical apps as digital therapeutics. Herein, we describe: (1) a survey study among PWE about preferences to use mobile software for seizure control, (2) a rationale for developing digital therapies for epilepsy, (3) creation of proof-of-concept mobile software intended for use as an adjunct digital therapeutic to reduce seizures, and (4) broader applications of digital therapeutics for the treatment of epilepsy and other chronic disorders. A questionnaire was used to survey PWE with respect to preferred features in a mobile app for seizure control. Results from the survey suggested that over 90% of responders would be interested in using a mobile app to manage their seizures, while 75% were interested in listening to specific music that can reduce seizures. To define digital therapeutic for the treatment of epilepsy, we designed and created a proof-of-concept mobile software providing digital content intended to reduce seizures. The rationale for all components of such digital therapeutic is described. The resulting web-based app delivered a combination of epilepsy self-care, behavioral interventions, medication reminders and the antiseizure music, such as the Mozart's sonata K.448. To improve long-term patient engagement, integration of mobile medical app with music and multimedia streaming via smartphones, tablets and computers is also discussed. This work aims toward development and regulatory clearance of software as medical device (SaMD) for seizure control, yielding the adjunct digital therapeutic for epilepsy, and subsequently a drug-device combination product together with specific antiseizure medications. Mobile medical apps, music, therapeutic video games and their combinations with prescription medications present new opportunities to integrate pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for PWE, as well as those living with other chronic disorders, including depression and pain.

  2. Structural and functional plasticity specific to musical training with wind instruments.

    PubMed

    Choi, Uk-Su; Sung, Yul-Wan; Hong, Sujin; Chung, Jun-Young; Ogawa, Seiji

    2015-01-01

    Numerous neuroimaging studies have shown structural and functional changes resulting from musical training. Among these studies, changes in primary sensory areas are mostly related to motor functions. In this study, we looked for some similar functional and structural changes in other functional modalities, such as somatosensory function, by examining the effects of musical training with wind instruments. We found significant changes in two aspects of neuroplasticity, cortical thickness, and resting-state neuronal networks. A group of subjects with several years of continuous musical training and who are currently playing in university wind ensembles showed differences in cortical thickness in lip- and tongue-related brain areas vs. non-music playing subjects. Cortical thickness in lip-related brain areas was significantly thicker and that in tongue-related areas was significantly thinner in the music playing group compared with that in the non-music playing group. Association analysis of lip-related areas in the music playing group showed that the increase in cortical thickness was caused by musical training. In addition, seed-based correlation analysis showed differential activation in the precentral gyrus and supplementary motor areas (SMA) between the music and non-music playing groups. These results suggest that high-intensity training with specific musical instruments could induce structural changes in related anatomical areas and could also generate a new functional neuronal network in the brain.

  3. Structural and functional plasticity specific to musical training with wind instruments

    PubMed Central

    Choi, Uk-Su; Sung, Yul-Wan; Hong, Sujin; Chung, Jun-Young; Ogawa, Seiji

    2015-01-01

    Numerous neuroimaging studies have shown structural and functional changes resulting from musical training. Among these studies, changes in primary sensory areas are mostly related to motor functions. In this study, we looked for some similar functional and structural changes in other functional modalities, such as somatosensory function, by examining the effects of musical training with wind instruments. We found significant changes in two aspects of neuroplasticity, cortical thickness, and resting-state neuronal networks. A group of subjects with several years of continuous musical training and who are currently playing in university wind ensembles showed differences in cortical thickness in lip- and tongue-related brain areas vs. non-music playing subjects. Cortical thickness in lip-related brain areas was significantly thicker and that in tongue-related areas was significantly thinner in the music playing group compared with that in the non-music playing group. Association analysis of lip-related areas in the music playing group showed that the increase in cortical thickness was caused by musical training. In addition, seed-based correlation analysis showed differential activation in the precentral gyrus and supplementary motor areas (SMA) between the music and non-music playing groups. These results suggest that high-intensity training with specific musical instruments could induce structural changes in related anatomical areas and could also generate a new functional neuronal network in the brain. PMID:26578939

  4. Music experience influences laparoscopic skills performance.

    PubMed

    Boyd, Tanner; Jung, Inkyung; Van Sickle, Kent; Schwesinger, Wayne; Michalek, Joel; Bingener, Juliane

    2008-01-01

    Music education affects the mathematical and visuo-spatial skills of school-age children. Visuo-spatial abilities have a significant effect on laparoscopic suturing performance. We hypothesize that prior music experience influences the performance of laparoscopic suturing tasks. Thirty novices observed a laparoscopic suturing task video. Each performed 3 timed suturing task trials. Demographics were recorded. A repeated measures linear mixed model was used to examine the effects of prior music experience on suturing task time. Twelve women and 18 men completed the tasks. When adjusted for video game experience, participants who currently played an instrument performed significantly faster than those who did not (P<0.001). The model showed a significant sex by instrument interaction. Men who had never played an instrument or were currently playing an instrument performed better than women in the same group (P=0.002 and P<0.001). There was no sex difference in the performance of participants who had played an instrument in the past (P=0.29). This study attempted to investigate the effect of music experience on the laparoscopic suturing abilities of surgical novices. The visuo-spatial abilities used in laparoscopic suturing may be enhanced in those involved in playing an instrument.

  5. Music preferences of mechanically ventilated patients participating in a randomized controlled trial.

    PubMed

    Heiderscheit, Annie; Breckenridge, Stephanie J; Chlan, Linda L; Savik, Kay

    2014-01-01

    Mechanical ventilation (MV) is a life-saving measure and supportive modality utilized to treat patients experiencing respiratory failure. Patients experience pain, discomfort, and anxiety as a result of being mechanically ventilated. Music listening is a non-pharmacological intervention used to manage these psychophysiological symptoms associated with mechanical ventilation. The purpose of this secondary analysis was to examine music preferences of 107 MV patients enrolled in a randomized clinical trial that implemented a patient-directed music listening protocol to help manage the psychophysiological symptom of anxiety. Music data presented includes the music genres and instrumentation patients identified as their preferred music. Genres preferred include: classical, jazz, rock, country, and oldies. Instrumentation preferred include: piano, voice, guitar, music with nature sounds, and orchestral music. Analysis of three patients' preferred music received throughout the course of the study is illustrated to demonstrate the complexity of assessing MV patients and the need for an ongoing assessment process.

  6. Music preferences of mechanically ventilated patients participating in a randomized controlled trial

    PubMed Central

    Heiderscheit, Annie; Breckenridge, Stephanie J.; Chlan, Linda L.; Savik, Kay

    2014-01-01

    Mechanical ventilation (MV) is a life-saving measure and supportive modality utilized to treat patients experiencing respiratory failure. Patients experience pain, discomfort, and anxiety as a result of being mechanically ventilated. Music listening is a non-pharmacological intervention used to manage these psychophysiological symptoms associated with mechanical ventilation. The purpose of this secondary analysis was to examine music preferences of 107 MV patients enrolled in a randomized clinical trial that implemented a patient-directed music listening protocol to help manage the psychophysiological symptom of anxiety. Music data presented includes the music genres and instrumentation patients identified as their preferred music. Genres preferred include: classical, jazz, rock, country, and oldies. Instrumentation preferred include: piano, voice, guitar, music with nature sounds, and orchestral music. Analysis of three patients’ preferred music received throughout the course of the study is illustrated to demonstrate the complexity of assessing MV patients and the need for an ongoing assessment process. PMID:25574992

  7. Music appreciation and music listening in prelingual and postlingually deaf adult cochlear implant recipients.

    PubMed

    Moran, Michelle; Rousset, Alexandra; Looi, Valerie

    2016-01-01

    To explore the music appreciation of prelingually deaf adults using cochlear implants (CIs). Cohort study. Adult CI recipients were recruited based on hearing history and asked to complete the University of Canterbury Music Listening Questionnaire (UCMLQ) to assess each individual's music listening and appreciation. Results were compared to previous responses to the UCMLQ from a large cohort of postlingually deaf CI recipients. Fifteen prelingually deaf and 15 postlingually deaf adult cochlear implant recipients. No significant differences were found between the prelingual and postlingual participants for amount of music listening or music listening enjoyment with their CI. Sound quality of common instruments was favourable for both groups, with no significant difference in the pleasantness/naturalness of instrument sounds between the groups. Prelingually deaf CI recipients rated themselves as significantly less able to follow a melody line and identify instrument styles compared to their postlingual peers. The results suggest that the pre- and postlingually deaf CI recipients demonstrate equivalent levels of music appreciation. This finding is of clinical importance, as CI clinicians should be actively encouraging all of their recipients to explore music listening as a part of their rehabilitation.

  8. Portuguese Guitar

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Inacio, Octavio

    When referring to Portuguese traditional music, fado inevitably comes to mind. In this particular style of Portuguese music a singer is accompanied by two instruments: a classical guitar (more commonly known as viola) and a pear-shaped plucked chordophone, with six courses of double strings - the Portuguese guitar. The characteristic sonority of this instrument is a great part of what makes fado so distinguishable from any other style of traditional music in Europe. While from an ethnological and a musicological perspective this instrument has gained the attention of a handful of researchers (de Oliveira 2000; Cabral 1998), the scientific study of the vibroacoustic dynamics of these instruments is very recent. Fortunately, as with most other instruments, decades of refining craftsmanship have provided Portuguese guitars of excellent quality. Even if still unknown to the greater part of the musical world, the sonority, timbre and dynamical range of the Portuguese guitar continue to seduce many new listeners.

  9. Comparison of different methods for eliciting exercise-to-music for clients with Alzheimer's disease.

    PubMed

    Cevasco, Andrea M; Grant, Roy E

    2003-01-01

    Many of the noted problems associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) sometimes can be delayed, retarded, or even reversed with proper exercise and interaction with the environment. An overwhelming body of research efforts has revealed that music activity brings about the greatest degree of responsiveness, including exercise, in clients with AD; yet, specific techniques which elicit the greatest amount of physical responses during the music activities remain unidentified. The purpose of this study was two-fold: comparing two methods of intervention and comparing responses to vocal versus instrumental music during exercise and exercise with instruments. In Experiment 1 the authors compared 2 treatment conditions to facilitate exercise during music activities: (a) verbalizing the movement for each task once, one beat before commencing, followed by visual cueing for the remainder of the task; (b) verbal and visual cueing for each revolution or change in rhythm for the duration of the task. Data collection over 38 sessions consisted of recording the participation of each client at 30-second intervals for the duration of each treatment condition, indicating at each interval whether the client was participating in the designated movement (difficult), participating in exercise approximating the designated movement (easy), or not participating. Results indicated that the continuous verbal cueing/easy treatment elicited significantly greater participation than one verbal cue/difficult treatment, p <.05. Furthermore, the approximation/precise response (easy) resulted in significantly greater responses than the precise response (difficult), p < .001. In Experiment 2 the responses to types of music, vocal versus instrumental, during types of activities, exercise with and without instruments, were examined. Data were collected over 26 sessions, 52 activities, in the same 2 assisted living facilities as those in Experiment 1, but one year later Results indicated that both the type of activity and the type of music had some effect on participation. Also, data indicated participation in exercise to instrumental music was significantly greater than exercise with instruments to vocal music, p <.05.

  10. Code-Switching Musicians: An Exploratory Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Isbell, Daniel S.; Stanley, Ann Marie

    2018-01-01

    There are populations of musicians who demonstrate considerable success-making music in formal school music ensembles and also in their own rock, digital, and ethnic groups in the larger musical community. We suggest helpful insights into the phenomenon of switching between various ways of being musical can be gleaned from the linguistic theory of…

  11. Music listening for maintaining attention of older adults with cognitive impairments.

    PubMed

    Gregory, Dianne

    2002-01-01

    Twelve older adults with cognitive impairments who were participants in weekly community-based group music therapy sessions, 6 older adults in an Alzheimer's caregivers' group, and 6 college student volunteers listened to a 3.5 minute prepared audiotape of instrumental excerpts of patriotic selections. The tape consisted of 7 excerpts ranging from 18 s to 34 s in duration. Each music excerpt was followed by a 7-9 s period of silence, a "wait" excerpt. Listeners were instructed to move a Continuous Response Digital Interface (CRDI) to the name of the music excerpt depicted on the CRDI overlay when they heard a music excerpt. Likewise, they were instructed to move the dial to the word "WAIT" when there was no music. They were also instructed to maintain the dial position for the duration of each music or silence excerpt. Statistical analysis indicated no significant differences between the caregivers' and the college students' group means for total dial changes, correct and incorrect recognitions, correct and incorrect responses to silence excerpts, and reaction times. The mean scores of these 2 groups were combined and compared with the mean scores of the group of elderly adults with cognitive impairments. The mean total dial changes were significantly lower for the listeners with cognitive impairments, resulting in significant differences in all of the other response categories except incorrect recognitions. In addition, their mean absence of response to silence excerpts was significantly higher than their mean absence of responding to music excerpts. Their mean reaction time was significantly slower than the comparison group's reaction time. To evaluate training effects, 10 of the original 12 music therapy participants repeated the listening task with assistance from the therapist (treatment) immediately following the first listening (baseline). A week later the order was reversed for the 2 listening trials. Statistical and graphic analysis of responses between first and second baseline responses indicate significant improvement in responses to silence and music excerpts over the 2 sessions. Applications of the findings to music listening interventions for maintaining attention, eliciting social interaction between clients or caregivers and their patients, and evaluating this population's affective responses to music are discussed.

  12. Achievement Identification and Evaluation of Musically Gifted Children in Lower Music School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arsic, Anica

    2016-01-01

    Music schools are specific educational institutions which teach children to understand musical language, the rules of musical writing and how to play an instrument. It is assumed that children who enroll in music school have a certain level of "musicality," i.e. possess musical ability. Starting from this premise, in this paper we wanted…

  13. Clinical and Epidemiological Correlates of Task-Specific Dystonia in a Large Cohort of Brazilian Music Players

    PubMed Central

    Moura, Rita C.; de Carvalho Aguiar, Patrícia Maria; Bortz, Graziela; Ferraz, Henrique Ballalai

    2017-01-01

    Musician’s dystonia is a task-specific dystonia (TSD) worldwide disabling disorder, and most of the affected individuals may have severe difficulty to play their instrument. Many professional music players may have to quit working as a player. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics and frequency of TSD in Brazilian music players and to promote awareness of this condition among musicians. We visited orchestras and music schools delivering lectures on TSD and about the scope of our survey. Musicians were invited to answer a questionnaire, and those with possible neurological dysfunction associated with musical performance were recorded by video while playing the instrument. We visited 51 orchestras and music schools in 19 Brazilian cities between March 2013 and March 2015. We collected 2,232 questionnaires, and 72 subjects with suspicion of dystonia were video recorded during specific tasks and evaluated regarding motor impairment. Forty-nine individuals (2.2%) were diagnosed as having TSD (mean age 36.4 years; 92% male). The instruments most associated with TSD were acoustic guitar (36.7%) and brass instruments (30.6%). We concluded that Brazilian TSD music players are mainly male, classical music professionals, around 30 years of age, with arms, hands, or oromandibular muscles affected. TSD is a neurological condition that can impair musical performance and should receive more attention from musicians, teachers, and health professionals. PMID:28321203

  14. Music Engineering as a Novel Strategy for Enhancing Music Enjoyment in the Cochlear Implant Recipient

    PubMed Central

    Kohlberg, Gavriel D.; Mancuso, Dean M.; Chari, Divya A.; Lalwani, Anil K.

    2015-01-01

    Objective. Enjoyment of music remains an elusive goal following cochlear implantation. We test the hypothesis that reengineering music to reduce its complexity can enhance the listening experience for the cochlear implant (CI) listener. Methods. Normal hearing (NH) adults (N = 16) and CI listeners (N = 9) evaluated a piece of country music on three enjoyment modalities: pleasantness, musicality, and naturalness. Participants listened to the original version along with 20 modified, less complex, versions created by including subsets of the musical instruments from the original song. NH participants listened to the segments both with and without CI simulation processing. Results. Compared to the original song, modified versions containing only 1–3 instruments were less enjoyable to the NH listeners but more enjoyable to the CI listeners and the NH listeners with CI simulation. Excluding vocals and including rhythmic instruments improved enjoyment for NH listeners with CI simulation but made no difference for CI listeners. Conclusions. Reengineering a piece of music to reduce its complexity has the potential to enhance music enjoyment for the cochlear implantee. Thus, in addition to improvements in software and hardware, engineering music specifically for the CI listener may be an alternative means to enhance their listening experience. PMID:26543322

  15. It's not what you play, it's how you play it: Timbre affects perception of emotion in music

    PubMed Central

    Hailstone, Julia C.; Omar, Rohani; Henley, Susie M. D.; Frost, Chris; Kenward, Michael G.; Warren, Jason D.

    2009-01-01

    Salient sensory experiences often have a strong emotional tone, but the neuropsychological relations between perceptual characteristics of sensory objects and the affective information they convey remain poorly defined. Here we addressed the relationship between sound identity and emotional information using music. In two experiments, we investigated whether perception of emotions is influenced by altering the musical instrument on which the music is played, independently of other musical features. In the first experiment, 40 novel melodies each representing one of four emotions (happiness, sadness, fear, or anger) were each recorded on four different instruments (an electronic synthesizer, a piano, a violin, and a trumpet), controlling for melody, tempo, and loudness between instruments. Healthy participants (23 young adults aged 18–30 years, 24 older adults aged 58–75 years) were asked to select which emotion they thought each musical stimulus represented in a four-alternative forced-choice task. Using a generalized linear mixed model we found a significant interaction between instrument and emotion judgement with a similar pattern in young and older adults (p < .0001 for each age group). The effect was not attributable to musical expertise. In the second experiment using the same melodies and experimental design, the interaction between timbre and perceived emotion was replicated (p < .05) in another group of young adults for novel synthetic timbres designed to incorporate timbral cues to particular emotions. Our findings show that timbre (instrument identity) independently affects the perception of emotions in music after controlling for other acoustic, cognitive, and performance factors. PMID:19391047

  16. Peer Learning in Instrumental Practicing

    PubMed Central

    Nielsen, Siw G.; Johansen, Guro G.; Jørgensen, Harald

    2018-01-01

    In higher music education (HME), the notion of “private teaching, private learning” has a long tradition, where the learning part rests on the student's individual practicing between instrumental lessons. However, recent research suggests that collaborative learning among peers is beneficial in several aspects, such as sense of belonging, motivation and self-efficacy. This is consistent with the concept of vicarious learning. In this study, we conducted a survey among bachelor music students in church music, performance or music education programs enrolled in a music academy (N = 96), where parts of the questionnaire addressed peer learning and peer's influence on the students's instrumental practicing, and the degree of satisfaction with their practicing. These issues were seen in relation to gender, musical genre and study program. Overall, the students reported engaging in peer learning related to their instrumental practicing, to various degrees. This involved discussing practicing matters with peers, and practicing together with peers. However, student's reports of their views on peer learning, show that they perceive it more beneficial than the amount of time reported doing it would indicate. No significant gender differences were found, but students within improvised music/jazz engaged the most in peer learning, and church music students the least. Neither the degree of engaging in peer learning nor reported influence from peers correlated significantly with the degree of satisfaction. We discuss whether a general dissatisfaction is caused by being in a competitive learning environment combined with a privatized culture for learning. Finally, we suggest that collaborative forums for instrumental practicing within HME institutions can function as constructive and supportive arenas to enhance students learning and inner motivation. PMID:29599738

  17. Re-Engaging Marginalized Youth through Digital Music Production: Performance, Audience and Evaluation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brader, Andy; Luke, Allan

    2013-01-01

    This article presents two case studies of marginalized youth experimenting with digital music production in flexible education settings. The cases were drawn from a 3-year study of alternative assessment in flexible learning centres for youth who have left formal schooling in Queensland, Australia. The educational issues are framed by reference to…

  18. 37 CFR 201.19 - Royalties and statements of account under compulsory license for making and distributing...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    .... 201.19 Section 201.19 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights U.S. COPYRIGHT OFFICE, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS... musical works, including by means of a digital phonorecord delivery. (2) An Annual Statement of Account is... distribute phonorecords of nondramatic musical works. (3) For the purposes of this section, a “digital...

  19. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry characterization of the varnish and glue of an ancient 18th century double bass.

    PubMed

    Caruso, Francesco; Orecchio, Santino; Cicero, Maria Grazia; Di Stefano, Cosimo

    2007-04-20

    A GC-MS investigation is conducted on the double bass "Panormus", property of Conservatorio di Musica "Vincenzo Bellini" in Palermo. The most important components of the varnish (fatty acids) and of the glue (proteinaceous amino acids), with which the musical instrument was treated in the past, are determined. The analyses are carried out by prior derivatization of fatty acids by acidic methanol and of amino acids by acidic methanol and trifluoroacetic anhydride (TFAA). Analytes identification is achieved by direct comparison with several reference materials and the use of a digitized library.

  20. Sex-Types and Instrument Selection: The Effect of Gender Schemas on Fifth Graders' Instrument Choices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wiedenfeld, Laura M.

    2012-01-01

    Since the mid-1970s, music education researchers studied and followed musicians' and non-musicians' views of music instrument gender stereotypes and associations. To understand instrument gender stereotypes, one must first understand the difference between sex and gender and gender's role in society. This research aims to study the views of…

  1. Investigation of Music Student Efficacy as Influenced by Age, Experience, Gender, Ethnicity, and Type of Instrument Played in South Carolina

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    White, Norman

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this research study was to quantitatively examine South Carolina high school instrumental music students' self-efficacy as measured by the Generalized Self-Efficacy (GSE) instrument (Schwarzer & Jerusalem, 1993). The independent variables of age, experience, gender, ethnicity, and type of instrument played) were correlated with…

  2. Instrumentational Complexity of Music Genres and Why Simplicity Sells

    PubMed Central

    Percino, Gamaliel; Klimek, Peter; Thurner, Stefan

    2014-01-01

    Listening habits are strongly influenced by two opposing aspects, the desire for variety and the demand for uniformity in music. In this work we quantify these two notions in terms of instrumentation and production technologies that are typically involved in crafting popular music. We assign an ‘instrumentational complexity value’ to each music style. Styles of low instrumentational complexity tend to have generic instrumentations that can also be found in many other styles. Styles of high complexity, on the other hand, are characterized by a large variety of instruments that can only be found in a small number of other styles. To model these results we propose a simple stochastic model that explicitly takes the capabilities of artists into account. We find empirical evidence that individual styles show dramatic changes in their instrumentational complexity over the last fifty years. ‘New wave’ or ‘disco’ quickly climbed towards higher complexity in the 70s and fell back to low complexity levels shortly afterwards, whereas styles like ‘folk rock’ remained at constant high instrumentational complexity levels. We show that changes in the instrumentational complexity of a style are related to its number of sales and to the number of artists contributing to that style. As a style attracts a growing number of artists, its instrumentational variety usually increases. At the same time the instrumentational uniformity of a style decreases, i.e. a unique stylistic and increasingly complex expression pattern emerges. In contrast, album sales of a given style typically increase with decreasing instrumentational complexity. This can be interpreted as music becoming increasingly formulaic in terms of instrumentation once commercial or mainstream success sets in. PMID:25551631

  3. The Relationship between Musical Instrumental Performance Skills and Postsecondary Musical Independence (How Important Are Scales, Etudes, Solos, Sight-Reading, Improvisation, Etc.?)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bobbett, Gordon C.; And Others

    This study examines the relationships among a variety of secondary/postsecondary experiences and activities and postsecondary students' musical independence (MI). The paper reports on the impact Instrumental Performance Skills (IPSs) have on the students" MI development during private lessons, band rehearsal, and individual practicing. The study…

  4. Building Your Instrumental Music Program in an Urban School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mixon, Kevin

    2005-01-01

    MENC has recently, recapitulated its vision of "Music for All" in its strategic plan, which warns that "30 to 50 per cent of new teachers who work in urban areas leave the field in their first three years of service.'' This undoubtedly affects instrumental music instruction for urban children. Collegial sharing is one solution to problems…

  5. Responding to Culture in the Instrumental Music Programme: A Teacher's Journey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Abril, Carlos R.

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of this case study was to examine how one music teacher responds to student's cultural backgrounds through a middle school instrumental music programme in the US. The study sought to uncover the events, situations and circumstances that served as catalysts for curricular change and the rationales that gave it purpose. It also examined…

  6. Benefits of a Classroom Based Instrumental Music Program on Verbal Memory of Primary School Children: A Longitudinal Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rickard, Nikki S.; Vasquez, Jorge T.; Murphy, Fintan; Gill, Anneliese; Toukhsati, Samia R.

    2010-01-01

    Previous research has demonstrated a benefit of music training on a number of cognitive functions including verbal memory performance. The impact of school-based music programs on memory processes is however relatively unknown. The current study explored the effect of increasing frequency and intensity of classroom-based instrumental training…

  7. Musical Expression: An Observational Study of Instrumental Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Karlsson, Jessika; Juslin, Patrik N.

    2008-01-01

    Research has shown that both music students and teachers think that expression is important. Yet, we know little about how expression is taught to students. Such knowledge is needed in order to enhance teaching of expression. The aim of this study was thus to explore the nature of instrumental music teaching in its natural context, with a focus on…

  8. The Effect of Teaching Experience and Specialty (Vocal or Instrumental) on Vocal Health Ratings of Music Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hackworth, Rhonda S.

    2010-01-01

    The current study sought to determine the relationship among music teachers' length of teaching experience, specialty (vocal or instrumental), and ratings of behaviors and teaching activities related to vocal health. Participants (N = 379) were experienced (n = 208) and preservice (n = 171) music teachers, further categorized by specialty, either…

  9. Lived Experiences of Secondary Instrumental Music Teachers Who Teach Students with Learning Disabilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vinciguerra, Salvatore

    2016-01-01

    Very little research is published on teaching music to students with learning disabilities. Nevertheless, federal law mandates that instruction of such students take place in all public schools. The purpose of this study was to investigate the lived experiences of four secondary instrumental music teachers who teach five students with learning…

  10. Music: Instrumental Techniques, Conducting.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Grozan, Carl

    A course in introduction to the conducting of music groups of voices or instruments is presented. The approach used is a laboratory approach in which pupils will develop skills in score reading, physical gestures, rehearsal techniques, transpositions, voice and instrument ranges. Course objectives include: (1) The pupil will identify all…

  11. [Musical Inactivity - A Risk Factor? A Short Questionnaire to Assess Musical Activity (MusA)].

    PubMed

    Fernholz, Isabel; Menzel, Juliane; Jabusch, Hans-Christian; Gembris, Heiner; Fischer, Felix; Kendel, Friederike; Kreutz, Gunter; Schmidt, Alexander; Willich, Stefan N; Weikert, Cornelia

    2018-02-27

    There is only a limited number of studies on associations between musical activity and health issues. It seems that musical activity has physiological and psychological benefits, as well as effects on the mental capacity, but this has been studied only in a few clinical and epidemiological studies. One reason might be that no appropriate survey instrument assessing musical activity is available. Here we provide an overview of survey instruments that assess musicality and musical activity. One focus is the presentation of a newly developed German questionnaire (MusA), which assesses musical activity (active music making and music reception) and was specifically developed for the "German National Cohort", a German health study. Through literature research, questionnaires were identified that assess musicality and / or musical activity. A new German questionnaire was developed from a panel of experts and tested in a small study (n=121, women and men age 18-70 years). In the literature research, 3 questionnaires were identified which focus on musicality and musical activity with different aspects (Gold-MSI, MUSE, MEQ). All 3 instruments may be characterized as large psychometric scales, which especially assess aspects of musicality in the English language. The Gold-MSI is additionally available in German. None of the existing questionnaires covers musical activities in detail. A new short German questionnaire consisting of 9 questions with a maximum filling time of 3-5 min has been developed. There are few questionnaires available for assessing musicality and musical activity with different aspects. The newly developed MusA in the German language focuses on the assessment of musical activity and is intended to be used in larger, population-based as well as clinical studies, to examine music activities and listening to music as independent factors in connection with prevention and therapy of chronic diseases. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  12. Choice and Effects of Instrument Sound in Aural Training

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Loh, Christian Sebastian

    2007-01-01

    A musical note produced through the vibration of a single string is psychoacoustically simpler/purer than that produced via multiple-strings vibration. Does the psychoacoustics of instrument sound have any effect on learning outcomes in music instruction? This study investigated the effect of two psychoacoustically distinct instrument sounds on…

  13. The Exquisite Recorder

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Reynolds, Geoffrey A.; Gottschalk, Thomas

    2009-01-01

    This article provides general music teachers with resources they can use in their class to: (1) introduce the instrument to their students; (2) energize and reshape their students' attitudes toward the instrument; (3) show older students who are very musical recorder and low flute players who share their love of the instruments through podcasts…

  14. Experimenting with brass musical instruments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lo Presto, Michael C.

    2003-07-01

    With the aid of microcomputer hardware and software for the introductory physics laboratory, I have developed several experiments dealing with the properties of brass musical instruments that could be used when covering sound anywhere from an introductory physics laboratory to a course in musical acoustics, or even independent studies. The results of these experiments demonstrate in a quantitative fashion the effects of the mouthpiece and bell on the frequencies of the sound waves and thus the musical pitches produced. Most introductory sources only discuss these effects qualitatively.

  15. Music therapy assessment for severely emotionally disturbed children: a pilot study.

    PubMed

    Layman, Deborah L; Hussey, David L; Laing, Sarah J

    2002-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to pilot a music therapy assessment instrument for severely emotionally disturbed children. The subjects in this pilot were 20 children, 13 male and 7 female, at a residential treatment center in Cleveland, Ohio. After conducting an extensive literature review, the authors developed a music therapy assessment instrument measuring 4 relevant domains: behavioral/social functioning, emotional responsiveness, language/communication abilities, and music skills. Responses were coded into 3 categories: defensive/withdrawn, target behavior, and disruptive/intrusive. Results demonstrated that subjects displayed significantly more behaviors in the disruptive/intrusive domain. High inter-rater reliability scores of 91.5% for percent agreement and .808 for Cohen's kappa were achieved utilizing this assessment instrument.

  16. Assessment of Whole-Class Instrumental Music Learning in England and the United States of America: An International Comparative Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Johnson, Daniel; Fautley, Martin

    2017-01-01

    Despite ostensibly sharing a common language, music education terminology as used in England and the United States has many different practical meanings and corresponding connotations. In this comparative study, the authors consider these differences in relation to whole-class learning of instrumental music, a comparative newcomer to the English…

  17. Another Perspective: The iPad Is a REAL Musical Instrument

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Williams, David A.

    2014-01-01

    This article looks at the iPad's role as a musical instrument through the lens of a live performance ensemble that performs primarily on iPads. It also offers an overview of a pedagogical model used by this ensemble, which emphasizes musician autonomy in small groups, where music is learned primarily through aural means and concerts are…

  18. Parents' Musical Habitus and Its Effects on a Child's Involvement in an Elementary Orchestra Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wasilewski, Suzanne Hattala

    2017-01-01

    Since the implementation of the New York State Common Core Standards, two primary problems have arisen for elementary instrumental music teachers. First, instrumental music teachers' time to work with students is diminishing. The demands of the rigorous curriculums developed to teach the Common Core Standards create a climate where English…

  19. Applications of Course Management Systems in School Administration: Music Teacher Assessment through the Use of Digital Portfolios

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mergen, Izzet

    2013-01-01

    This researcher had two purposes. The investigator's purpose in this action research was to develop a working prototype of a music teacher digital portfolio within the Moodle environment, which included artifacts, as they relate to New York State's Annual Performance Review (APPR) legislation. The regulation on teacher evaluation is New York State…

  20. The Theremin in the Emergence of Electronic Music

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Glinsky, Albert Vincent

    1992-01-01

    This study examines the invention and history of the Theremin electronic musical instrument in relation to the emergence of electronic music. After Lee De Forest invented the oscillator in 1915, revolutionizing the radio industry, Russian inventor Leon Theremin (born Lev Sergeyevich Termen, 1896), utilized this technology in 1919 to develop the first fully functional electronic musical instrument. Named after its inventor, the Theremin employed a unique operational configuration. Without touching the instrument, the player controlled pitch through relative proximity of the right hand to a vertical antenna, and volume through similar movements of the left hand in relation to a horizontal antenna. The instrument employed a heterodyne, or beat frequency system, and boasted a range of three to four octaves. On the invitation of Lenin, Theremin travelled throughout Russia, successfully demonstrating his instrument, and came to Europe in 1927, where his sensational presentations caused considerable excitement in Germany, France and England. Critics hailed his instrument as a revolution in music, and he quickly garnered international recognition. Later in 1927 Theremin travelled to the United States where he remained until 1938. His years in the U.S. brought public, professional and corporate support, and in 1929 he sold the patent rights to his instrument to the Radio Corporation of America which manufactured and sold 500 instruments between 1929 and 1931. The inventor collaborated with Leopold Stokowski on the development of a fingerboard Theremin which the conductor employed in the Philadelphia Orchestra from 1929 to 1931. Theremin performed as soloist with the New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra and the Cleveland Orchestra, and frequently presented coast to coast broadcasts with his instrument. He attracted a loyal following of students, a few of whom performed extensively on his instrument across the U.S. and Europe. In his later years in America, Theremin concentrated his efforts on the development of improved instruments, and various capacitive and photoelectric systems for industrial clients. In 1938 he returned to the Soviet Union. Theremin's instrument was an important catalyst in the crystallization of early electronic music and instruments.

  1. Neural networks for simultaneous classification and parameter estimation in musical instrument control

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, Michael; Freed, Adrian; Wessel, David

    1992-08-01

    In this report we present our tools for prototyping adaptive user interfaces in the context of real-time musical instrument control. Characteristic of most human communication is the simultaneous use of classified events and estimated parameters. We have integrated a neural network object into the MAX language to explore adaptive user interfaces that considers these facets of human communication. By placing the neural processing in the context of a flexible real-time musical programming environment, we can rapidly prototype experiments on applications of adaptive interfaces and learning systems to musical problems. We have trained networks to recognize gestures from a Mathews radio baton, Nintendo Power GloveTM, and MIDI keyboard gestural input devices. In one experiment, a network successfully extracted classification and attribute data from gestural contours transduced by a continuous space controller, suggesting their application in the interpretation of conducting gestures and musical instrument control. We discuss network architectures, low-level features extracted for the networks to operate on, training methods, and musical applications of adaptive techniques.

  2. The role of physics in shaping music

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Townsend, Peter

    2015-07-01

    Physics and technology have played a major role in shaping the development, performance, interpretation and composition of music for many centuries. From the twentieth century, electronics and communications have provided recording and broadcasting that gives access to worldwide music and performers of many musical genres. Early scientific influence came via improved or totally new instruments, plus larger and better concert halls. Instrument examples range from developments of violins or pianos to keyed and valved wood wind and brass that offer chromatic performance. New sounds appeared by inventions of totally new instruments, such as the saxophone or the Theremin, to all the modern electronic influence on keyboards and synthesisers. Electronic variants of guitars are effectively new instruments that have spawned totally original musical styles. All such advances have encouraged more virtuosic performance, larger halls, a wider range of audiences and a consequent demand and ability of composers to meet the new challenges. Despite this immense impact, the role of physics and technology over the last few centuries has mostly been ignored, although it was often greater than any links to arts or culture. Recorded and broadcast music has enhanced our expectations on performance and opened gateways to purely electronically generated sounds, of the now familiar electronic keyboards and synthesisers. This brief review traces some of the highlights in musical evolution that were enabled by physics and technology and their impact on the musical scene. The pattern from the past is clear, and so some of the probable advances in the very near future are also predicted. Many are significant as they will impinge on our appreciation of both current and past music, as well as compositional styles. Mention is made of the difference in sound between live and recorded music and the reasons why none of us ever have precisely the same musical experience twice, even from the same recording. Similarly, it is impossible to appreciate earlier music from the same perspective as occurred when it was first composed and performed, or indeed from later interpretations.

  3. Math and Music: Harmonious Connections.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Garland, Trudi Hammel; Kahn, Charity Vaughan

    Mathematics can be used to analyze musical rhythms, to study the sound waves that produce musical notes, to explain why instruments are tuned, and to compose music. This book explores the relationship between mathematics and music through proportions, patterns, Fibonacci numbers or the Golden Ratio, geometric transformations, trigonometric…

  4. Teaching Popular Music: Investigating Music Educators' Perceptions and Preparation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Springer, D. Gregory

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate in-service music teachers' perceptions of popular music in the classroom and to examine their own preparation to teach popular music. A sample of music teachers, drawn from two regional chapters of the American Orff-Schulwerk Association, completed a researcher-designed survey instrument. Results…

  5. Music Copyright Law in Education. Fastback 368.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Woody, Robert Henley, III; Woody, Robert Henley, II

    This booklet focuses on how copyright law applies to music in education, but the information is not restricted to the music specialist. Instrumental and vocal music specialists must rely on copyrighted material. Without sheet music, an ensemble could not rehearse or perform. But classroom teachers also use music when they sing songs with or play…

  6. The Influence of Distracting Familiar Vocal Music on Cognitive Performance of Introverts and Extraverts

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Avila, Christina; Furnham, Adrian; McClelland, Alastair

    2012-01-01

    This study investigates the effect of familiar musical distractors on the cognitive performance of introverts and extraverts. Participants completed a verbal, numerical and logic test in three music conditions: vocal music, instrumental music and silence. It was predicted that introverts would perform worse with vocal music, better with…

  7. Music and Hearing Aids—An Introduction

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Modern digital hearing aids have provided improved fidelity over those of earlier decades for speech. The same however cannot be said for music. Most modern hearing aids have a limitation of their “front end,” which comprises the analog-to-digital (A/D) converter. For a number of reasons, the spectral nature of music as an input to a hearing aid is beyond the optimal operating conditions of the “front end” components. Amplified music tends to be of rather poor fidelity. Once the music signal is distorted, no amount of software manipulation that occurs later in the circuitry can improve things. The solution is not a software issue. Some characteristics of music that make it difficult to be transduced without significant distortion include an increased sound level relative to that of speech, and the crest factor- the difference in dB between the instantaneous peak of a signal and its RMS value. Clinical strategies and technical innovations have helped to improve the fidelity of amplified music and these include a reduction of the level of the input that is presented to the A/D converter. PMID:23258616

  8. Music and hearing aids--an introduction.

    PubMed

    Chasin, Marshall

    2012-09-01

    Modern digital hearing aids have provided improved fidelity over those of earlier decades for speech. The same however cannot be said for music. Most modern hearing aids have a limitation of their "front end," which comprises the analog-to-digital (A/D) converter. For a number of reasons, the spectral nature of music as an input to a hearing aid is beyond the optimal operating conditions of the "front end" components. Amplified music tends to be of rather poor fidelity. Once the music signal is distorted, no amount of software manipulation that occurs later in the circuitry can improve things. The solution is not a software issue. Some characteristics of music that make it difficult to be transduced without significant distortion include an increased sound level relative to that of speech, and the crest factor- the difference in dB between the instantaneous peak of a signal and its RMS value. Clinical strategies and technical innovations have helped to improve the fidelity of amplified music and these include a reduction of the level of the input that is presented to the A/D converter.

  9. Instrument-related Skin Disorders in Musicians.

    PubMed

    Patruno, Cataldo; Napolitano, Maddalena; La Bella, Serena; Ayala, Fabio; Balato, Nicola; Cantelli, Mariateresa; Balato, Anna

    2016-01-01

    Among artists, musicians may suffer from occupational skin problems; notwithstanding, these conditions have been rarely reviewed. The characteristics of individual performer and the type of instrument will determine the kind of disease. Moreover, the hours that the musician spent to advance artistic skill may influence the severity. The frequency and risk factors of instrument-related skin disorders in musicians from southern Italy were analyzed. An observational study was conducted in 628 musicians. A questionnaire including questions related to age, sex, instrument played, musical activity, previous or current skin disorders, and impact of skin symptoms on music making was submitted. Of 628 musicians, 199 (31.7%) reported suffering from at least 1 skin disease. Cutaneous diseases likely directly correlated with the use of the musical instrument were found in 129 (20.5%) of the 628 subjects. In particular, different patterns of irritant contact dermatitis were found. Skin conditions may be a significant problem in professional instrumentalists. They are mainly related to musical activity. Preventive measures should be established.

  10. [Young musicians: do they need prevention ?].

    PubMed

    Schlumpf, U

    2013-02-13

    Recent cross-sectional studies in children of most music schools show that there is a continuously increasing development of musculoskeletal symptoms and disorders due to an asymmetry of posture which is given by the kind of the musical instrument played by the pupils. An ergonomic adaptation of music instruments according to body size, but also specific muscular training, a consequent warm up before playing and rigorous time management can help to avoid these overuse or repetitive strain syndromes that often interfere with the ability to play the instrument as usual.

  11. Achievement Goals, Learning Strategies and Instrumental Performance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nielsen, Siw Graabraek

    2008-01-01

    The current study is a survey of the achievement goals of music students and the manner in which their strategies and instrumental performance relate to these goals. In the context of advanced instrumental learning, the rationale for the present study was to contribute to the literature on motivation in music students, and thereby, help teachers…

  12. Teaching with Autoharps in the 21st Century

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Birnie, Rebecca A.

    2014-01-01

    The excitement of playing an instrument is one of the greatest motivating forces in teaching general music to students. The autoharp, which may be long forgotten in the general music classrooms of the 21st century, is an ideal instrument to "re-introduce" to students. The teaching of a traditional folk instrument provides advantages for…

  13. Gender Differences in Musical Instrument Choice

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hallam, Susan; Rogers, Lynne; Creech, Andrea

    2008-01-01

    Historically, there have been differences in the musical instruments played by boys and girls, with girls preferring smaller, higher-pitched instruments. This article explores whether these gender preferences have continued at a time when there is greater gender equality in most aspects of life in the UK. Data were collected from the 150 Music…

  14. MUSIC TEMPO'S EFFECT ON EXERCISE PERFORMANCE: COMMENT ON DYER AND McKUNE.

    PubMed

    Nakamura, Priscila Missaki

    2015-06-01

    Dyer and McKune (2013) stated that music tempo has no influence on performance, physiological, and psychophysical variables in well-trained cyclists during high intensity endurance tasks. However, there are important limitations in the methodology of the study. The participants' music preferences and tempo change were not well measured. It is not possible to affirm that music tempo does not influence athletes' performance. Potential areas of future research include: (a) use of instruments to assess the qualities of music; (b) standardizing music of tempo according to exercise type (e.g., running, cycling, etc.); (c) considering training level of the participants (i.e., athletes and non-athletes); and (d) use of instruments to assess concentration during exercise.

  15. Gender Associations for Musical Instruments in Nursery Children: The Effect of Sound and Image

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Marshall, Nigel; Shibazaki, Kagari

    2013-01-01

    This paper reports on the results of a study carried out with 105 children, aged between three and four years in three nursery units in London and Surrey, UK. The aim of this study was to explore the level of association which young children have between various musical instruments, musical styles and a particular gender. However, we also aimed to…

  16. A Case Study of an Instrumental Music Program and Its Influence on the Culture of a School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Womack, Anthony Terence

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this case study was to examine how participation in a school-based instrumental music program contributed to the culture of a suburban high school. The questions guiding the research were: (1) How and why are multiple music programs supported by staff, students, parents and the community at this school? (2) What are the benefits of…

  17. Characteristics of Independent Music Teachers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Upitis, Rena; Abrami, Philip C.; Brook, Julia; Boese, Karen; King, Matthew

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of the present study was to learn about the characteristics of independent music teachers, their beliefs about music teaching, and their studio practices. A self-report survey included questions about the teachers' (a) background experiences, (b) pedagogical approaches, (c) use of digital technologies, and (d) professional development…

  18. Music Education in A Digital World.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Reninger, Rosemary D.

    2000-01-01

    Discusses past and present uses of technology in the music classroom focusing on tools such as videotapes and MIDI software. Considers the future of technology in music education, training alternatives for teachers, and the importance of practicing and keeping abreast of technological advances. Addresses funding issues involved in using…

  19. The effect of musical practice on gesture/sound pairing.

    PubMed

    Proverbio, Alice M; Attardo, Lapo; Cozzi, Matteo; Zani, Alberto

    2015-01-01

    Learning to play a musical instrument is a demanding process requiring years of intense practice. Dramatic changes in brain connectivity, volume, and functionality have been shown in skilled musicians. It is thought that music learning involves the formation of novel audio visuomotor associations, but not much is known about the gradual acquisition of this ability. In the present study, we investigated whether formal music training enhances audiovisual multisensory processing. To this end, pupils at different stages of education were examined based on the hypothesis that the strength of audio/visuomotor associations would be augmented as a function of the number of years of conservatory study (expertise). The study participants were violin and clarinet students of pre-academic and academic levels and of different chronological ages, ages of acquisition, and academic levels. A violinist and a clarinetist each played the same score, and each participant viewed the video corresponding to his or her instrument. Pitch, intensity, rhythm, and sound duration were matched across instruments. In half of the trials, the soundtrack did not match (in pitch) the corresponding musical gestures. Data analysis indicated a correlation between the number of years of formal training (expertise) and the ability to detect an audiomotor incongruence in music performance (relative to the musical instrument practiced), thus suggesting a direct correlation between knowing how to play and perceptual sensitivity.

  20. The musicality of non-musicians: an index for assessing musical sophistication in the general population.

    PubMed

    Müllensiefen, Daniel; Gingras, Bruno; Musil, Jason; Stewart, Lauren

    2014-01-01

    Musical skills and expertise vary greatly in Western societies. Individuals can differ in their repertoire of musical behaviours as well as in the level of skill they display for any single musical behaviour. The types of musical behaviours we refer to here are broad, ranging from performance on an instrument and listening expertise, to the ability to employ music in functional settings or to communicate about music. In this paper, we first describe the concept of 'musical sophistication' which can be used to describe the multi-faceted nature of musical expertise. Next, we develop a novel measurement instrument, the Goldsmiths Musical Sophistication Index (Gold-MSI) to assess self-reported musical skills and behaviours on multiple dimensions in the general population using a large Internet sample (n = 147,636). Thirdly, we report results from several lab studies, demonstrating that the Gold-MSI possesses good psychometric properties, and that self-reported musical sophistication is associated with performance on two listening tasks. Finally, we identify occupation, occupational status, age, gender, and wealth as the main socio-demographic factors associated with musical sophistication. Results are discussed in terms of theoretical accounts of implicit and statistical music learning and with regard to social conditions of sophisticated musical engagement.

  1. The Musicality of Non-Musicians: An Index for Assessing Musical Sophistication in the General Population

    PubMed Central

    Müllensiefen, Daniel; Gingras, Bruno; Musil, Jason; Stewart, Lauren

    2014-01-01

    Musical skills and expertise vary greatly in Western societies. Individuals can differ in their repertoire of musical behaviours as well as in the level of skill they display for any single musical behaviour. The types of musical behaviours we refer to here are broad, ranging from performance on an instrument and listening expertise, to the ability to employ music in functional settings or to communicate about music. In this paper, we first describe the concept of ‘musical sophistication’ which can be used to describe the multi-faceted nature of musical expertise. Next, we develop a novel measurement instrument, the Goldsmiths Musical Sophistication Index (Gold-MSI) to assess self-reported musical skills and behaviours on multiple dimensions in the general population using a large Internet sample (n = 147,636). Thirdly, we report results from several lab studies, demonstrating that the Gold-MSI possesses good psychometric properties, and that self-reported musical sophistication is associated with performance on two listening tasks. Finally, we identify occupation, occupational status, age, gender, and wealth as the main socio-demographic factors associated with musical sophistication. Results are discussed in terms of theoretical accounts of implicit and statistical music learning and with regard to social conditions of sophisticated musical engagement. PMID:24586929

  2. Status of Optical Disk Standards and Copy Protection Technology

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2000-01-01

    Technology (IT), the Consumer Electronics (CE) and the Content Providers such as the Motion Picture Association (MPA) and Secure Digital Music ...and Access Control. On audio recording, Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) is leading the effort. 10 Besides these organizations, a world wide...coordinating orgainzation which ia working with the Information Technology Inductry Association (ITI), the Content Providers such as the Motion Picture

  3. Measuring Supportive Music and Imagery Interventions: The Development of the Music Therapy Self-Rating Scale.

    PubMed

    Meadows, Anthony; Burns, Debra S; Perkins, Susan M

    2015-01-01

    Previous research has demonstrated modest benefits from music-based interventions, specifically music and imagery interventions, during cancer care. However, little attention has been paid to measuring the benefits of music-based interventions using measurement instruments specifically designed to account for the multidimensional nature of music-imagery experiences. The purpose of this study was to describe the development of, and psychometrically evaluate, the Music Therapy Self-Rating Scale (MTSRS) as a measure for cancer patients engaged in supportive music and imagery interventions. An exploratory factor analysis using baseline data from 76 patients who consented to participate in a music-based intervention study during chemotherapy. Factor analysis of 14 items revealed four domains: Awareness of Body, Emotionally Focused, Personal Resources, and Treatment Specific. Internal reliability was excellent (Cronbach alphas ranging from 0.75 to 0.88) and construct and divergent-discriminant validity supported. The MTSRS is a psychometrically sound, brief instrument that captures essential elements of patient experience during music and imagery interventions. © the American Music Therapy Association 2015. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  4. Musical Chemistry: Integrating Chemistry and Music--A Nine-Part Tutorial for Generating Music from Chemical Processes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kumbar, Mahadev

    2007-01-01

    This paper synopsizes a series of nine tutorials investigating how various chemical processes can be shown to have musical aspects. Both chemistry and music share a common language: mathematics. Interesting music can be created as chemical reactions--mediated by instrumentation and mathematics (e.g., spectrometry and discrete Fourier…

  5. Nevada Academic Standards in the Arts: Music.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nevada State Dept. of Education, Carson City.

    Nevada's nine academic standards in music education call for specific educational outcomes in grades 3 and 5, as well as in middle school and secondary school. Nevada's standards relate to singing, playing instruments, listening to music, writing and reading music, and cultural and historical connections in music. The standards present performance…

  6. Is there an association between temporomandibular disorders and playing a musical instrument? A review of literature.

    PubMed

    Attallah, M M; Visscher, C M; van Selms, M K A; Lobbezoo, F

    2014-07-01

    Temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) have a multifactorial etiology. Among others, parafunctions and oral habits have been suggested as important initiating and perpetuating factors. Playing a musical instrument that loads the masticatory system, like wind instruments and the violin or viola, has been suggested to be part of this group of etiological factors. However, the evidence base for this suggestion is lacking. Therefore, the aim of this study was to review the literature on the possible association between playing a musical instrument and developing and/or having a TMD. A PubMed search, using the query ['Music'(Mesh) AND 'Craniomandibular Disorders'(Mesh)], yielded 19 articles, 14 of which were included in this review. Six of 14 papers had a case-control or pre-test-post-test design; the remaining eight papers were case reports of expert opinions. The former papers were analysed and tabulated according to the PICO (Patient/population-Intervention-Control/comparison-Outcome/results) system; the latter ones were only summarised and tabulated. All articles with a case-control or pre-test-post-test design suggested a possible association between TMD and playing a musical instrument, especially the violin and viola. However, no clear-cut conclusion could be drawn as to whether playing a musical instrument is directly associated with TMD, or only in combination with other factors. More and better research on this topic is needed, as to enable a better counselling and possibly even a better treatment of the suffering musician. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  7. Auditory learning through active engagement with sound: biological impact of community music lessons in at-risk children

    PubMed Central

    Kraus, Nina; Slater, Jessica; Thompson, Elaine C.; Hornickel, Jane; Strait, Dana L.; Nicol, Trent; White-Schwoch, Travis

    2014-01-01

    The young nervous system is primed for sensory learning, facilitating the acquisition of language and communication skills. Social and linguistic impoverishment can limit these learning opportunities, eventually leading to language-related challenges such as poor reading. Music training offers a promising auditory learning strategy by directing attention to meaningful acoustic elements of the soundscape. In light of evidence that music training improves auditory skills and their neural substrates, there are increasing efforts to enact community-based programs to provide music instruction to at-risk children. Harmony Project is a community foundation that has provided free music instruction to over 1000 children from Los Angeles gang-reduction zones over the past decade. We conducted an independent evaluation of biological effects of participating in Harmony Project by following a cohort of children for 1 year. Here we focus on a comparison between students who actively engaged with sound through instrumental music training vs. students who took music appreciation classes. All children began with an introductory music appreciation class, but midway through the year half of the children transitioned to the instrumental training. After the year of training, the children who actively engaged with sound through instrumental music training had faster and more robust neural processing of speech than the children who stayed in the music appreciation class, observed in neural responses to a speech sound /d/. The neurophysiological measures found to be enhanced in the instrumentally-trained children have been previously linked to reading ability, suggesting a gain in neural processes important for literacy stemming from active auditory learning. Despite intrinsic constraints on our study imposed by a community setting, these findings speak to the potential of active engagement with sound (i.e., music-making) to engender experience-dependent neuroplasticity and may inform the development of strategies for auditory learning. PMID:25414631

  8. Auditory learning through active engagement with sound: biological impact of community music lessons in at-risk children.

    PubMed

    Kraus, Nina; Slater, Jessica; Thompson, Elaine C; Hornickel, Jane; Strait, Dana L; Nicol, Trent; White-Schwoch, Travis

    2014-01-01

    The young nervous system is primed for sensory learning, facilitating the acquisition of language and communication skills. Social and linguistic impoverishment can limit these learning opportunities, eventually leading to language-related challenges such as poor reading. Music training offers a promising auditory learning strategy by directing attention to meaningful acoustic elements of the soundscape. In light of evidence that music training improves auditory skills and their neural substrates, there are increasing efforts to enact community-based programs to provide music instruction to at-risk children. Harmony Project is a community foundation that has provided free music instruction to over 1000 children from Los Angeles gang-reduction zones over the past decade. We conducted an independent evaluation of biological effects of participating in Harmony Project by following a cohort of children for 1 year. Here we focus on a comparison between students who actively engaged with sound through instrumental music training vs. students who took music appreciation classes. All children began with an introductory music appreciation class, but midway through the year half of the children transitioned to the instrumental training. After the year of training, the children who actively engaged with sound through instrumental music training had faster and more robust neural processing of speech than the children who stayed in the music appreciation class, observed in neural responses to a speech sound /d/. The neurophysiological measures found to be enhanced in the instrumentally-trained children have been previously linked to reading ability, suggesting a gain in neural processes important for literacy stemming from active auditory learning. Despite intrinsic constraints on our study imposed by a community setting, these findings speak to the potential of active engagement with sound (i.e., music-making) to engender experience-dependent neuroplasticity and may inform the development of strategies for auditory learning.

  9. Music Software and Young Children: Fun and Focused Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Peters, G. David

    2009-01-01

    Readers have experienced the acceleration in music technology developments in recent years. The ease with which students and teacher can access digital audio files, video clips of music performances, and online instructional resources is impressive. Creativity "environments" were developed in a game-like format for children to experiment with…

  10. Musicking Online: Organizing Reference Sources in the Digital Age

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Szeto, Kimmy

    2012-01-01

    Online music research resources took center stage at the second plenary session "Wrangling the Information Universe: Moving From Institutional Portals to a Shared Resource for Online Music Sources" held on Friday, February 17, 2012, at the Music Library Association (MLA) 2012 Annual Meeting in Dallas, Texas. The Reference Sources…

  11. Mindfulness, Attention, and Flow during Music Listening: An Empirical Investigation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Diaz, Frank M.

    2013-01-01

    This study investigated the effects of a brief mindfulness meditation induction technique on perceived attention, aesthetic response, and flow during music listening as measured by Continuous Response Digital Interface (CRDI) and questionnaire. Participants were students enrolled in music classes or ensembles at a comprehensive university in the…

  12. Playing-related musculoskeletal problems in children learning instrumental music: the association between problem location and gender, age, and music exposure factors.

    PubMed

    Ranelli, Sonia; Straker, Leon; Smith, Anne

    2011-09-01

    Playing-related musculoskeletal problems (PRMP) are common in adult musicians, and risk factors include gender, music exposure, and particularly instrument type. Emerging evidence suggests PRMP are common in children and adolescents and that risk factors may be similar. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of PRMP, both symptoms and disorders, and PRMP location in children and adolescents as well as the associations with gender, age, and music exposure factors such as type and number of instruments and playing time. This study surveyed 731 children (460 females), aged 7 to 17 years, studying instrumental music in government schools in Perth, Australia. Lifetime and monthly symptoms, monthly disorders (inability to play an instrument as usual), and PRMP location were examined. Chi-squared analyses were used to evaluate associations between gender, age, music exposure, and PRMP outcomes. Logistic regression evaluated the independent association of these potential risk factors with PRMP prevalence and location. RESULTS) Sixty-seven percent of students reported PRMP symptoms at some point, 56% reported them within the last month, and 30% reported an inability to play as usual within the last month. After adjustment for gender and age, the type of instrument played (upper and lower strings, woodwind, and brass) was significantly associated with all PRMP (p<0.005) and playing three instruments was protective against monthly symptoms (OR 0.43, p=0.05). The right (24%) and left (23%) hand/elbow and neck (16%) were the most commonly reported PRMP locations, with females affected significantly more than males Prevalence of PRMP increased with age for neck (p<0.001), mid-back (p=0.007), low back (p<0.001), right hand/elbow (p=0.008), and mouth (p=0.011). PRMP prevalence for the left hand/elbow and right and left shoulders demonstrated high rates across all childhood ages. Odds ratios for the risk of PRMP in different locations varied by instrument played. The high prevalence and location of PRMP are important issues for child and adolescent instrumentalists. Gender, age, and music exposure are associated with PRMP risk and need to be addressed to ensure musicians' personal well-being and musical longevity.

  13. Action-perception coupling in violinists.

    PubMed

    Kajihara, Takafumi; Verdonschot, Rinus G; Sparks, Joseph; Stewart, Lauren

    2013-01-01

    The current study investigates auditory-motor coupling in musically trained participants using a Stroop-type task that required the execution of simple finger sequences according to aurally presented number sequences (e.g., "2," "4," "5," "3," "1"). Digital remastering was used to manipulate the pitch contour of the number sequences such that they were either congruent or incongruent with respect to the resulting action sequence. Conservatoire-level violinists showed a strong effect of congruency manipulation (increased response time for incongruent vs. congruent trials), in comparison to a control group of non-musicians. In Experiment 2, this paradigm was used to determine whether pedagogical background would influence this effect in a group of young violinists. Suzuki trained violinists differed significantly from those with no musical background, while traditionally trained violinists did not. The findings extend previous research in this area by demonstrating that obligatory audio-motor coupling is directly related to a musicians' expertise on their instrument of study and is influenced by pedagogy.

  14. Determining the Attitudes of Undergraduate Students Having Vocational Music Education towards Individual Instrument Course According to Different Variables

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uluçay, Taner

    2017-01-01

    This study was carried out in order to determine attitudes of undergraduate students who studied music vocationally towards the individual instrument course according to the variables of grade, gender, individual instrument and graduated high school type. The research data were obtained from 102 undergraduate students studying in Erzincan…

  15. The Magic of Rhythm Instruments: Developing Musical Awareness in Young Children

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Connors, Abigail

    2006-01-01

    Young children are natural-born musicians and rhythm instruments provide a wonderful bridge between a toddler's innate need to make noise and a child's true musical awareness and expressiveness. Rhythm instrument activities are so easy. With most of them, the child is simply copying one motion at a time. There is nothing to remember. Another…

  16. Approaches of High School Instrumental Music Educators in Response to Student Challenges

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Edgar, Scott N.

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this multiple instrumental case study was to explore approaches of four high school instrumental music educators assuming the role of facilitative teacher in responding to challenges affecting the social and emotional well-being of their students. This study utilized the framework of social emotional learning as a lens to view the…

  17. Teacher Educators' Visions of Pedagogical Training within Instrumental Higher Music Education. A Case in Finland

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Juntunen, Marja-Leena

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the visions of teacher educators of instrumental pedagogy (n = 12) in higher music education regarding "good" teaching and instrumental student teacher preparation. The theoretical basis for the study was research on teachers' visions (Hammerness, 2006): teachers' own conceptions of ideal teaching…

  18. A group music intervention using percussion instruments with familiar music to reduce anxiety and agitation of institutionalized older adults with dementia.

    PubMed

    Sung, Huei-chuan; Lee, Wen-li; Li, Tzai-li; Watson, Roger

    2012-06-01

    This experimental study aimed to evaluate the effects of a group music intervention on anxiety and agitation of institutionalized older adults with dementia. A total of 60 participants were randomly assigned to an experimental or a control group. The experimental group received a 30-min music intervention using percussion instruments with familiar music in a group setting in mid afternoon twice weekly for 6 weeks, whereas the control group received usual care with no music intervention. The Rating of Anxiety in Dementia scale was used to assess anxiety, and Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory was used to assess agitation at baseline, week 4 and week 6. Repeated measures analysis of covariance indicated that older adults who received a group music intervention had a significantly lower anxiety score than those in the control group while controlling for pre-test score and cognitive level (F = 8.98, p = 0.004). However, the reduction of agitation between two groups was not significantly different. Anxiety and agitation are common in older adults with dementia and have been reported by caregivers as challenging care problems. An innovative group music intervention using percussion instruments with familiar music as a cost-effective approach has the potential to reduce anxiety and improve psychological well-being of those with dementia. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  19. Music Education for Adults: A Swedish Perspective.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lindholm, Inge

    1987-01-01

    Provides a brief review of the recent history of music education in Sweden. Details the reforms instituted in recent years focusing on the development of municipal music schools and related programs designed to provide free or low-cost instrumental music. (JDH)

  20. The Perceptions of Cooperating Teachers Regarding the Skills and Knowledge of Student Teachers Working in Beginning and Middle School Instrumental Music Classrooms

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hoch, Christopher David

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to obtain the perceptions of cooperating teachers in beginning and middle school instrumental music regarding their student teachers' skills and knowledge both at the beginning and at the end of the student teaching experience. The related research has focused primarily on two areas of music teacher education. Program…

  1. Live interactive computer music performance practice

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wessel, David

    2002-05-01

    A live-performance musical instrument can be assembled around current lap-top computer technology. One adds a controller such as a keyboard or other gestural input device, a sound diffusion system, some form of connectivity processor(s) providing for audio I/O and gestural controller input, and reactive real-time native signal processing software. A system consisting of a hand gesture controller; software for gesture analysis and mapping, machine listening, composition, and sound synthesis; and a controllable radiation pattern loudspeaker are described. Interactivity begins in the set up wherein the speaker-room combination is tuned with an LMS procedure. This system was designed for improvisation. It is argued that software suitable for carrying out an improvised musical dialog with another performer poses special challenges. The processes underlying the generation of musical material must be very adaptable, capable of rapid changes in musical direction. Machine listening techniques are used to help the performer adapt to new contexts. Machine learning can play an important role in the development of such systems. In the end, as with any musical instrument, human skill is essential. Practice is required not only for the development of musically appropriate human motor programs but for the adaptation of the computer-based instrument as well.

  2. The effect of paired pitch, rhythm, and speech on working memory as measured by sequential digit recall.

    PubMed

    Silverman, Michael J

    2007-01-01

    Educational and therapeutic objectives are often paired with music to facilitate the recall of information. The purpose of this study was to isolate and determine the effect of paired pitch, rhythm, and speech on undergraduate's memory as measured by sequential digit recall performance. Participants (N = 120) listened to 4 completely counterbalanced treatment conditions each consisting of 9 randomized monosyllabic digits paired with speech, pitch, rhythm, and the combination of pitch and rhythm. No statistically significant learning or order effects were found across the 4 trials. A 3-way repeated-measures ANOVA indicated a statistically significant difference in digit recall performance across treatment conditions, positions, groups, and treatment by position. No other comparisons resulted in statistically significant differences. Participants were able to recall digits from the rhythm condition most accurately while recalling digits from the speech and pitch only conditions the least accurately. Consistent with previous research, the music major participants scored significantly higher than non-music major participants and the main effect associated with serial position indicated that recall performance was best during primacy and recency positions. Analyses indicated an interaction between serial position and treatment condition, also a result consistent with previous research. The results of this study suggest that pairing information with rhythm can facilitate recall but pairing information with pitch or the combination of pitch and rhythm may not enhance recall more than speech when participants listen to an unfamiliar musical selection only once. Implications for practice in therapy and education are made as well as suggestions for future research.

  3. The Microfluidic Jukebox

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tan, Say Hwa; Maes, Florine; Semin, Benoît; Vrignon, Jérémy; Baret, Jean-Christophe

    2014-04-01

    Music is a form of art interweaving people of all walks of life. Through subtle changes in frequencies, a succession of musical notes forms a melody which is capable of mesmerizing the minds of people. With the advances in technology, we are now able to generate music electronically without relying solely on physical instruments. Here, we demonstrate a musical interpretation of droplet-based microfluidics as a form of novel electronic musical instruments. Using the interplay of electric field and hydrodynamics in microfluidic devices, well controlled frequency patterns corresponding to musical tracks are generated in real time. This high-speed modulation of droplet frequency (and therefore of droplet sizes) may also provide solutions that reconciles high-throughput droplet production and the control of individual droplet at production which is needed for many biochemical or material synthesis applications.

  4. Making Simple Folk Instruments for Children.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cline, Dallas

    1980-01-01

    Instructions are provided for making these simple musical instruments from inexpensive materials: an Indian bull-roarer; bottle chimes; a ham can guitar; flower pot, box, and steel drums; a xylophone; a musical sawhorse; rattles; a melody box; and a box thumb harp. (SJL)

  5. Young Pianists Exploring Improvisation Using Interactive Music Technology

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rowe, Victoria; Triantafyllaki, Angeliki; Anagnostopoulou, Xristina

    2015-01-01

    The use of music technology in the enhancement of young pianists' musical improvisations has been scarcely explored in instrumental music teaching and learning research. In the present study, 19 piano pupils aged 6-10 from the UK and Greece used an interactive improvisation system called Musical Interaction Relying On Reflexion (MIROR)-Impro for…

  6. Foundation, Organization, and Purpose of the National Consortium for Computer-Based Musical Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hofstetter, Fred T.

    1976-01-01

    This paper begins with a look at the present state of computer applications to music education. Instructional systems for instrumental music, music fundamentals, ear-training, set theory, composition, analysis, information retrieval, automated music printing and computer-managed instruction are discussed. The functions of the NCCBMI are described.…

  7. Music Teacher Educators' Visions of Music Teacher Preparation in Finland, Norway and Sweden

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thorgersen, Cecilia Ferm; Johansen, Geir; Juntunen, Marja-Leena

    2016-01-01

    In this study we investigated the visions of 12 music teacher educators who teach pedagogical courses called instrumental pedagogy and classroom music pedagogy in three music academies in Finland, Norway and Sweden. The data were collected through individual, semi-structured qualitative interviews. Drawing on Hammerness' concept of "teachers'…

  8. Unit Planning Grids for Music: Grade 9-12 Advanced.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Delaware State Dept. of Education, Dover.

    This unit planning grid outlines the expectations of Delaware high school students for advanced music studies. The grid identifies nine standards for music: (1) students will sing, independently and with others, a varied repertoire of music; (2) students will perform on instruments, independently and with others, a varied repertoire of music; (3)…

  9. Unit Planning Grids for Music: Grade 9-12 Basic.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Delaware State Dept. of Education, Dover.

    This unit planning grid outlines the expectations of Delaware high school students for basic music studies. The grid identifies nine standards for music: (1) students will sing, independently and with others, a varied repertoire of music; (2) students will perform on instruments, independently and with others, a varied repertoire of music; (3)…

  10. Social and Musical Objectives or Experiences School Music Teachers Anticipate Their Students Will Achieve as a Result of Attending a Summer Music Camp

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Richards, Eric W.

    2011-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate specific social and musical objectives or experiences school music teachers anticipate their students will achieve as a result of attending a summer music camp. A survey instrument was developed to collect demographic data and responses to questions regarding 14 specific musical and social variables.…

  11. The lightbulb project: New music for new percussion instruments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Baumbusch, Brian

    This thesis is about the process behind building, tuning, and composing music for a new set of metallophones called the "Lightbulb" instruments. This project began in 2011 and has continued to expand over the past two years: the first piece to be written for the instruments is titled Prana, and this thesis describes how the process of building and tuning the instruments informed the compositional process behind Prana. The premiere of Prana led to the formation of the Lightbulb Ensemble, which performs on these new instruments. The instruments and the group continue to develop.

  12. What Constitutes a Phrase in Sound-Based Music? A Mixed-Methods Investigation of Perception and Acoustics.

    PubMed

    Olsen, Kirk N; Dean, Roger T; Leung, Yvonne

    2016-01-01

    Phrasing facilitates the organization of auditory information and is central to speech and music. Not surprisingly, aspects of changing intensity, rhythm, and pitch are key determinants of musical phrases and their boundaries in instrumental note-based music. Different kinds of speech (such as tone- vs. stress-languages) share these features in different proportions and form an instructive comparison. However, little is known about whether or how musical phrasing is perceived in sound-based music, where the basic musical unit from which a piece is created is commonly non-instrumental continuous sounds, rather than instrumental discontinuous notes. This issue forms the target of the present paper. Twenty participants (17 untrained in music) were presented with six stimuli derived from sound-based music, note-based music, and environmental sound. Their task was to indicate each occurrence of a perceived phrase and qualitatively describe key characteristics of the stimulus associated with each phrase response. It was hypothesized that sound-based music does elicit phrase perception, and that this is primarily associated with temporal changes in intensity and timbre, rather than rhythm and pitch. Results supported this hypothesis. Qualitative analysis of participant descriptions showed that for sound-based music, the majority of perceived phrases were associated with intensity or timbral change. For the note-based piano piece, rhythm was the main theme associated with perceived musical phrasing. We modeled the occurrence in time of perceived musical phrases with recurrent event 'hazard' analyses using time-series data representing acoustic predictors associated with intensity, spectral flatness, and rhythmic density. Acoustic intensity and timbre (represented here by spectral flatness) were strong predictors of perceived musical phrasing in sound-based music, and rhythm was only predictive for the piano piece. A further analysis including five additional spectral measures linked to timbre strengthened the models. Overall, results show that even when little of the pitch and rhythm information important for phrasing in note-based music is available, phrasing is still perceived, primarily in response to changes of intensity and timbre. Implications for electroacoustic music composition and music recommender systems are discussed.

  13. What Constitutes a Phrase in Sound-Based Music? A Mixed-Methods Investigation of Perception and Acoustics

    PubMed Central

    Olsen, Kirk N.; Dean, Roger T.; Leung, Yvonne

    2016-01-01

    Phrasing facilitates the organization of auditory information and is central to speech and music. Not surprisingly, aspects of changing intensity, rhythm, and pitch are key determinants of musical phrases and their boundaries in instrumental note-based music. Different kinds of speech (such as tone- vs. stress-languages) share these features in different proportions and form an instructive comparison. However, little is known about whether or how musical phrasing is perceived in sound-based music, where the basic musical unit from which a piece is created is commonly non-instrumental continuous sounds, rather than instrumental discontinuous notes. This issue forms the target of the present paper. Twenty participants (17 untrained in music) were presented with six stimuli derived from sound-based music, note-based music, and environmental sound. Their task was to indicate each occurrence of a perceived phrase and qualitatively describe key characteristics of the stimulus associated with each phrase response. It was hypothesized that sound-based music does elicit phrase perception, and that this is primarily associated with temporal changes in intensity and timbre, rather than rhythm and pitch. Results supported this hypothesis. Qualitative analysis of participant descriptions showed that for sound-based music, the majority of perceived phrases were associated with intensity or timbral change. For the note-based piano piece, rhythm was the main theme associated with perceived musical phrasing. We modeled the occurrence in time of perceived musical phrases with recurrent event ‘hazard’ analyses using time-series data representing acoustic predictors associated with intensity, spectral flatness, and rhythmic density. Acoustic intensity and timbre (represented here by spectral flatness) were strong predictors of perceived musical phrasing in sound-based music, and rhythm was only predictive for the piano piece. A further analysis including five additional spectral measures linked to timbre strengthened the models. Overall, results show that even when little of the pitch and rhythm information important for phrasing in note-based music is available, phrasing is still perceived, primarily in response to changes of intensity and timbre. Implications for electroacoustic music composition and music recommender systems are discussed. PMID:27997625

  14. An investigation of prior knowledge in Automatic Music Transcription systems.

    PubMed

    Cazau, Dorian; Revillon, Guillaume; Krywyk, Julien; Adam, Olivier

    2015-10-01

    Automatic transcription of music is a long-studied research field with many operational systems available commercially. In this paper, a generic transcription system able to host various prior knowledge parameters has been developed, followed by an in-depth investigation of their impact on music transcription. Explicit links between musical knowledge and algorithmic formalism have been made. Musical knowledge covers classes of timbre, musicology, and playing style of an instrument repertoire. An evaluation sound corpus gathering musical pieces played by human performers from three different instrument repertoires, namely, classical piano, steel-string acoustic guitar, and the marovany zither from Madagascar, has been developed. The different components of musical knowledge have been successively incorporated in a complete transcription system, consisting mainly of a Probabilistic Latent Component Analysis algorithm post-processed with a Hidden Markov Model, and their impact on transcription results have been comparatively evaluated.

  15. Digital music exposure reliably induces temporary threshold shift in normal-hearing human subjects.

    PubMed

    Le Prell, Colleen G; Dell, Shawna; Hensley, Brittany; Hall, James W; Campbell, Kathleen C M; Antonelli, Patrick J; Green, Glenn E; Miller, James M; Guire, Kenneth

    2012-01-01

    One of the challenges for evaluating new otoprotective agents for potential benefit in human populations is the availability of an established clinical paradigm with real-world relevance. These studies were explicitly designed to develop a real-world digital music exposure that reliably induces temporary threshold shift (TTS) in normal-hearing human subjects. Thirty-three subjects participated in studies that measured effects of digital music player use on hearing. Subjects selected either rock or pop music, which was then presented at 93 to 95 (n = 10), 98 to 100 (n = 11), or 100 to 102 (n = 12) dBA in-ear exposure level for a period of 4 hr. Audiograms and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) were measured before and after music exposure. Postmusic tests were initiated 15 min, 1 hr 15 min, 2 hr 15 min, and 3 hr 15 min after the exposure ended. Additional tests were conducted the following day and 1 week later. Changes in thresholds after the lowest-level exposure were difficult to distinguish from test-retest variability; however, TTS was reliably detected after higher levels of sound exposure. Changes in audiometric thresholds had a "notch" configuration, with the largest changes observed at 4 kHz (mean = 6.3 ± 3.9 dB; range = 0-14 dB). Recovery was largely complete within the first 4 hr postexposure, and all subjects showed complete recovery of both thresholds and DPOAE measures when tested 1 week postexposure. These data provide insight into the variability of TTS induced by music-player use in a healthy, normal-hearing, young adult population, with music playlist, level, and duration carefully controlled. These data confirm the likelihood of temporary changes in auditory function after digital music-player use. Such data are essential for the development of a human clinical trial protocol that provides a highly powered design for evaluating novel therapeutics in human clinical trials. Care must be taken to fully inform potential subjects in future TTS studies, including protective agent evaluations, that some noise exposures have resulted in neural degeneration in animal models, even when both audiometric thresholds and DPOAE levels returned to pre-exposure values.

  16. Examination of Strategies Fine Arts High School Students Use during the Practice and Learning of Instrumental Music

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uygun, Mehtap Aydiner; Kilinçer, Özlem

    2017-01-01

    Like every field of learning, it is important to use various strategies in instrumental music to learn it easily and permanently and to attain the skills to learn independently. This requires determining the strategies used by students studying instrument education. The purpose of this study was to examine the strategies fine arts high school…

  17. Experimenting with woodwind instruments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lo Presto, Michael C.

    2007-05-01

    Simple experiments involving musical instruments of the woodwind family can be used to demonstrate the basic physics of vibrating air columns in resonance tubes using nothing more than straightforward measurements and data collection hardware and software. More involved experimentation with the same equipment can provide insight into the effects of holes in the tubing and other factors that make simple tubes useful as musical instruments.

  18. The Music Industry as a Vehicle for Economic Analysis

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Klein, Christopher C.

    2015-01-01

    Issues arising in the music industry in response to the availability of digital music files provide an opportunity for exposing undergraduate students to economic analyses rarely covered in the undergraduate economics curriculum. Three of these analyses are covered here: the optimal copyright term, the effect of piracy or illegal file sharing, and…

  19. Music Careers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Alfaro, Daniel

    1977-01-01

    Careers in the music field for Hispanos are available for the industrious, competitive, and talented person. Among the careers are: composer, orchestrator-arranger, church musician, conductor, teacher, music librarian, tuner-technician, copyist, and instrument repairer. (NQ)

  20. When Instrumentalists Sing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wallace, Katherine

    2014-01-01

    This study was designed to investigate the impact that choral singing has on instrumental students' development as musicians. Instrumental music students (N = 23) enrolled in a choral elective module at a tertiary music conservatory completed an eight-item questionnaire. Descriptive answers were collated and interpreted revealing six…

  1. Improved effectiveness of performance monitoring in amateur instrumental musicians☆

    PubMed Central

    Jentzsch, Ines; Mkrtchian, Anahit; Kansal, Nayantara

    2014-01-01

    Here we report a cross-sectional study investigating the influence of instrumental music practice on the ability to monitor for and respond to processing conflicts and performance errors. Behavioural and electrophysiological indicators of response monitoring in amateur musicians with various skill levels were collected using simple conflict tasks. The results show that instrumental musicians are better able than non-musicians to detect conflicts and errors as indicated by systematic increases in the amplitude of the error-related negativity and the N200 with increasing levels of instrumental practice. Also, high levels of musical training were associated with more efficient and less reactive responses after experience of conflicts and errors as indicated by reduced post-error interference and post-conflict processing adjustments. Together, the present findings suggest that playing a musical instrument might improve the ability to monitor our behavior and adjust our responses effectively when needed. As these processes are amongst the first to be affected by cognitive aging, our evidence could promote musical activity as a realistic intervention to slow or even prevent age-related decline in frontal cortex mediated executive functioning. PMID:24056298

  2. Music psychopathology. VI. The course objective instrumental performance characteristics with psychiatric inpatients.

    PubMed

    Steinberg, R; Fani, M; Raith, L

    1992-01-01

    The impairment of musical expression due to mental disease is reversible with growing remission. This finding resulted from follow-up examinations of instrumental playings assessed by means of a polarity profile with 60 psychiatric inpatients and 14 controls. A follow-up comparison of objective performance characteristics as defined by careful analysis of the recordings did not reveal a meaningful variation. This is taken as a strong indication that even in severe psychopathologic alterations, learned motor patterns of music performance are fairly stable. A simple reduction in playing irregularities cannot explain the systematic influence of psychopathology on musical expression.

  3. By the Book: An Annotated Bibliography of Music-Based Picture Books.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sotherden, Emily

    2002-01-01

    Provides an annotated bibliography of music related picture books that can be used in the music classroom. Discusses the benefits of using picture books for all ages. Includes books in ten categories, such as instruments, ensembles, and styles of music. (CMK)

  4. Personal and Professional Characteristics of Music Educators: One Size Does Not Fit All.

    PubMed

    Doherty, Mary Lynn; van Mersbergen, Miriam

    2017-01-01

    The prevalence of voice disorders among various educator groups is well known, and voice disorders among music educators are higher than the general classroom educators. Music educators vary with respect to behavioral and personality factors, personal characteristics, type of music taught, job-specific environment, and governmental professional expectations. This study aims to identify risk factors for voice disorders in a heterogeneous population of music educators. An online survey was conducted with 213 respondents. Survey questions addressed demographics, level of education, years of music teaching experience, specialty training, primary teaching assignments and instrument, vocal health behaviors, and diagnoses of voice disorders. Summary statistics and group comparisons are reported. Those whose primary instrument was voice reported a greater frequency of voice disorders. Female and older music educators also had a higher prevalence of voice disorders. Music educators are a heterogeneous group of individuals who require more careful consideration in the prevention and treatment of occupational voice problems. Copyright © 2017 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Design of an efficient music-speech discriminator.

    PubMed

    Tardón, Lorenzo J; Sammartino, Simone; Barbancho, Isabel

    2010-01-01

    In this paper, the problem of the design of a simple and efficient music-speech discriminator for large audio data sets in which advanced music playing techniques are taught and voice and music are intrinsically interleaved is addressed. In the process, a number of features used in speech-music discrimination are defined and evaluated over the available data set. Specifically, the data set contains pieces of classical music played with different and unspecified instruments (or even lyrics) and the voice of a teacher (a top music performer) or even the overlapped voice of the translator and other persons. After an initial test of the performance of the features implemented, a selection process is started, which takes into account the type of classifier selected beforehand, to achieve good discrimination performance and computational efficiency, as shown in the experiments. The discrimination application has been defined and tested on a large data set supplied by Fundacion Albeniz, containing a large variety of classical music pieces played with different instrument, which include comments and speeches of famous performers.

  6. Preparing for Success: A Practical Guide for Young Musicians

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hallam, Susan; Gaunt, Helena

    2012-01-01

    If you are interested in performance, music therapy, music production, arts administration, instrument making, music teaching or research, and whatever music tradition you come from, this book will prepare you for success. It tells you about today's music business and gives expert advice that will help you get to where you want to be. It shows you…

  7. Digital music exposure reliably induces temporary threshold shift (TTS) in normal hearing human subjects

    PubMed Central

    Le Prell, C. G.; Dell, S.; Hensley, B.; Hall, J. W.; Campbell, K. C. M.; Antonelli, P. J.; Green, G. E.; Miller, J. M.; Guire, K.

    2012-01-01

    Objectives One of the challenges for evaluating new otoprotective agents for potential benefit in human populations is availability of an established clinical paradigm with real world relevance. These studies were explicitly designed to develop a real-world digital music exposure that reliably induces temporary threshold shift (TTS) in normal hearing human subjects. Design Thirty-three subjects participated in studies that measured effects of digital music player use on hearing. Subjects selected either rock or pop music, which was then presented at 93–95 (n=10), 98–100 (n=11), or 100–102 (n=12) dBA in-ear exposure level for a period of four hours. Audiograms and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) were measured prior to and after music exposure. Post-music tests were initiated 15 min, 1 hr 15 min, 2 hr 15 min, and 3 hr 15 min after the exposure ended. Additional tests were conducted the following day and one week later. Results Changes in thresholds after the lowest level exposure were difficult to distinguish from test-retest variability; however, TTS was reliably detected after higher levels of sound exposure. Changes in audiometric thresholds had a “notch” configuration, with the largest changes observed at 4 kHz (mean=6.3±3.9dB; range=0–13 dB). Recovery was largely complete within the first 4 hours post-exposure, and all subjects showed complete recovery of both thresholds and DPOAE measures when tested 1-week post-exposure. Conclusions These data provide insight into the variability of TTS induced by music player use in a healthy, normal-hearing, young adult population, with music playlist, level, and duration carefully controlled. These data confirm the likelihood of temporary changes in auditory function following digital music player use. Such data are essential for the development of a human clinical trial protocol that provides a highly powered design for evaluating novel therapeutics in human clinical trials. Care must be taken to fully inform potential subjects in future TTS studies, including protective agent evaluations, that some noise exposures have resulted in neural degeneration in animal models, even when both audiometric thresholds and DPOAE levels returned to pre-exposure values. PMID:22885407

  8. 37 CFR 255.8 - Public performances of sound recordings and musical works.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ..., LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPYRIGHT ARBITRATION ROYALTY PANEL RULES AND PROCEDURES ADJUSTMENT OF ROYALTY PAYABLE... sound recording or the musical work embodied therein, including by means of a digital transmission...

  9. 37 CFR 255.8 - Public performances of sound recordings and musical works.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ..., LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPYRIGHT ARBITRATION ROYALTY PANEL RULES AND PROCEDURES ADJUSTMENT OF ROYALTY PAYABLE... sound recording or the musical work embodied therein, including by means of a digital transmission...

  10. 37 CFR 255.8 - Public performances of sound recordings and musical works.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ..., LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPYRIGHT ARBITRATION ROYALTY PANEL RULES AND PROCEDURES ADJUSTMENT OF ROYALTY PAYABLE... sound recording or the musical work embodied therein, including by means of a digital transmission...

  11. 37 CFR 255.8 - Public performances of sound recordings and musical works.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ..., LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPYRIGHT ARBITRATION ROYALTY PANEL RULES AND PROCEDURES ADJUSTMENT OF ROYALTY PAYABLE... sound recording or the musical work embodied therein, including by means of a digital transmission...

  12. 37 CFR 255.8 - Public performances of sound recordings and musical works.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ..., LIBRARY OF CONGRESS COPYRIGHT ARBITRATION ROYALTY PANEL RULES AND PROCEDURES ADJUSTMENT OF ROYALTY PAYABLE... sound recording or the musical work embodied therein, including by means of a digital transmission...

  13. Instrumental-Music Study and Student Achievement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Heninger, Benjamin Thomas

    2017-01-01

    This quantitative study explained relationships among independent variables that included instrumental music participation and achievement on a standardized test by participants in the ninth grade at a western Wisconsin high school. The ACT "Aspire" (2017) test is a vertically articulated, standards-based system of assessments. Subtest…

  14. Multicultural Music Instruction in the Elementary School: What Can Be Achieved?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Edwards, Kay L.

    1998-01-01

    Investigates fourth-grade students' achievement following a model unit on American Indian music that utilized four different instructional approaches. Suggests implications for instruction with American Indian music regarding instructional approach, authenticity of instrument materials, learning from a native guest artist, and music teacher…

  15. Saturday Morning Music: A Preservice Elementary Workshop.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Palmer, Mary

    1986-01-01

    An exploratory music program, scheduled for a month of Saturday mornings for children in kindergarten, is described. The program is intended to provide preservice teaching experiences for college music education students. Classes are action-oriented and include varied experiences in singing, playing instruments, moving to music, listening, and…

  16. DISCO: An object-oriented system for music composition and sound design

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kaper, H. G.; Tipei, S.; Wright, J. M.

    2000-09-05

    This paper describes an object-oriented approach to music composition and sound design. The approach unifies the processes of music making and instrument building by using similar logic, objects, and procedures. The composition modules use an abstract representation of musical data, which can be easily mapped onto different synthesis languages or a traditionally notated score. An abstract base class is used to derive classes on different time scales. Objects can be related to act across time scales, as well as across an entire piece, and relationships between similar objects can replicate traditional music operations or introduce new ones. The DISCO (Digitalmore » Instrument for Sonification and Composition) system is an open-ended work in progress.« less

  17. Can Indian classical instrumental music reduce pain felt during venepuncture?

    PubMed

    Balan, Rajiv; Bavdekar, S B; Jadhav, Sandhya

    2009-05-01

    Local anesthetic agent is not usually used to reduce pain experienced by children undergoing venepuncture. This study was undertaken to determine comparative efficacy of local anesthetic cream, Indian classical instrumental music and placebo, in reducing pain due to venepuncture in children. Children aged 5-12 yr requiring venepuncture were enrolled in a prospective randomized clinical trial conducted at a tertiary care center. They were randomly assigned to 3 groups: local anesthetic (LA), music or placebo (control) group. Eutactic mixture of local anesthetic agents (EMLA) and Indian classical instrumental music (raaga-Todi) were used in the first 2 groups, respectively. Pain was assessed independently by parent, patient, investigator and an independent observer at the time of insertion of the cannula (0 min) and at 1- and 5 min after the insertion using a Visual Analog Scale (VAS). Kruskal- Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests were used to assess the difference amongst the VAS scores. Fifty subjects were enrolled in each group. Significantly higher VAS scores were noted in control (placebo) group by all the categories of observers (parent, patient, investigator, independent observer) at all time points. The VAS scores obtained in LA group were lowest at all time points. However, the difference between VAS scores in LA group were significantly lower than those in music group only at some time-points and with some categories of observers (parent: 1 min; investigator: 0-, 1-, 5 min and independent observer: 5 min). Pain experienced during venepuncture can be significantly reduced by using EMLA or Indian classical instrumental music. The difference between VAS scores with LA and music is not always significant. Hence, the choice between EMLA and music could be dictated by logistical factors.

  18. No Effect of Music on Anxiety and Pain During Transrectal Prostate Biopsies: A Randomized Trial.

    PubMed

    Packiam, Vignesh T; Nottingham, Charles U; Cohen, Andrew J; Eggener, Scott E; Gerber, Glenn S

    2018-07-01

    To investigate the effect of ambient music on anxiety and pain in men undergoing prostate biopsies. Between September 2015 and June 2016, men undergoing office transrectal prostate biopsy at our institution were randomly assigned to music (n = 85) or control (n = 97) groups. We examined clinical characteristics, pathologic variables, and baseline anxiety using the Trait Instrument of State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Primary outcomes included anxiety assessed by State Instrument of STAI (STAI-S) and pain using a visual analog scale. There were no significant differences in baseline characteristics between the music and control groups, including median age, prostate-specific antigen, use of magnetic resonance imaging-guided biopsies, or Trait Instrument of State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. The majority (93%) of patients indicated they desired music in their prebiopsy survey. There were no significant differences in STAI-S (33.7 ± 8.9 vs 34.4 ± 9.9, P = .6), pain score (2.3 ± 2.1 vs 2.0 ± 2.1, P = .3), or vital signs between the music and control groups, respectively. There were also no differences in STAI-S, visual analog scale, or vital signs between groups when stratified by age, prostate-specific antigen, or number of previous biopsies. Men who received music were more likely to request music for future prostate biopsy, compared to men who did not (93% vs 83%, P = .07, respectively). This randomized study showed no difference in anxiety or pain scores for patients who had ambient music during transrectal prostate biopsy. Future studies are needed to discern the influence of details including method of music delivery, music type, and utilization of adjunct relaxation tools. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. The Impact of Scholastic Instrumental Music and Scholastic Chess Study on the Standardized Test Scores of Students in Grades Three, Four, and Five

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Martinez, Edwin E.

    2012-01-01

    This study examines the impact of instrumental music study and group chess lessons on the standardized test scores of suburban elementary public school students (grades three through five) in Levittown, New York. The study divides the students into the following groups and compares the standardized test scores of each: a) instrumental music…

  20. Donald Albert Kehrberg, "An Investigation of the Relationships between Musical Aptitude, General Music Achievement, Attitude toward Music, School Music Participation, School Music Achievement, and Students' outside-of-School Environment in a Rural Ethnic Community." A Review.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Krueger, Reynold J.

    1989-01-01

    Critiques a doctoral dissertation that examined the relationships between out-of-school factors and five musical characteristics. Praises the care taken in research design, data collection and analysis, and writing the paper. Suggests that further research is needed on the design and validation of an instrument for measuring music attitude. (LS)

  1. A Stereo Music Preprocessing Scheme for Cochlear Implant Users.

    PubMed

    Buyens, Wim; van Dijk, Bas; Wouters, Jan; Moonen, Marc

    2015-10-01

    Listening to music is still one of the more challenging aspects of using a cochlear implant (CI) for most users. Simple musical structures, a clear rhythm/beat, and lyrics that are easy to follow are among the top factors contributing to music appreciation for CI users. Modifying the audio mix of complex music potentially improves music enjoyment in CI users. A stereo music preprocessing scheme is described in which vocals, drums, and bass are emphasized based on the representation of the harmonic and the percussive components in the input spectrogram, combined with the spatial allocation of instruments in typical stereo recordings. The scheme is assessed with postlingually deafened CI subjects (N = 7) using pop/rock music excerpts with different complexity levels. The scheme is capable of modifying relative instrument level settings, with the aim of improving music appreciation in CI users, and allows individual preference adjustments. The assessment with CI subjects confirms the preference for more emphasis on vocals, drums, and bass as offered by the preprocessing scheme, especially for songs with higher complexity. The stereo music preprocessing scheme has the potential to improve music enjoyment in CI users by modifying the audio mix in widespread (stereo) music recordings. Since music enjoyment in CI users is generally poor, this scheme can assist the music listening experience of CI users as a training or rehabilitation tool.

  2. Implications of technology in music therapy practice and research for music therapy education: a review of literature.

    PubMed

    Crowe, Barbara J; Rio, Robin

    2004-01-01

    This article reviews the use of technology in music therapy practice and research for the purpose of providing music therapy educators and clinicians with specific and accurate accounts of the types and benefits of technology being used in various settings. Additionally, this knowledge will help universities comply with National Association of Schools of Music requirements and help to standardize the education and training of music therapists in this rapidly changing area. Information was gathered through a literature review of music therapy and related professional journals and a wide variety of books and personal communications. More data were gathered in a survey requesting information on current use of technology in education and practice. This solicitation was sent to all American Music Therapy Association approved universities and clinical training directors. Technology applications in music therapy are organized according to the following categories: (a) adapted musical instruments, (b) recording technology, (c) electric/electronic musical instruments, (d) computer applications, (e) medical technology, (f) assistive technology for the disabled, and (g) technology-based music/sound healing practices. The literature reviewed covers 177 books and articles from a span of almost 40 years. Recommendations are made for incorporating technology into music therapy course work and for review and revision of AMTA competencies. The need for an all-encompassing clinical survey of the use of technology in current music therapy practice is also identified.

  3. Redefining Music Technology: A Rough Guide to a Universe of Possibilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Criswell, Chad; Menasche, Emile

    2009-01-01

    As music making and technology grow more entwined, it is important for teachers to become familiar with available hardware, software, Web apps, yMIDI, sequencing, sampling and other emerging products. If music students in today's digital world wish to make a career out of doing what they love--whether as performers or conductors, composers or…

  4. Pitch Error Analysis of Young Piano Students' Music Reading Performances

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rut Gudmundsdottir, Helga

    2010-01-01

    This study analyzed the music reading performances of 6-13-year-old piano students (N = 35) in their second year of piano study. The stimuli consisted of three piano pieces, systematically constructed to vary in terms of left-hand complexity and input simultaneity. The music reading performances were recorded digitally and a code of error analysis…

  5. Online Distance Learning and Music Training: Benefits, Drawbacks and Challenges

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koutsoupidou, Theano

    2014-01-01

    This study examines online distance learning (ODL) as applied in music and music education programmes at different educational levels with a special focus on the digital tools employed in such programmes. It aims to provide an up-to-date snapshot of the current online courses focusing on the potential benefits and drawbacks of ODL from the…

  6. The "Missing Males" and Other Gender Issues in Music Education: Evidence from the "Music Supervisors' Journal," 1914-1924.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koza, Julia Eklund

    1993-01-01

    Reports on an analysis of gender-related references appearing in the "Music Supervisors' Journal" from 1914-24. Finds that both coeducational and single-sex musical organizations were discussed and that vocal and instrumental instruction for boys and girls was advocated. (CFR)

  7. The Mental Representation of Music Notation: Notational Audiation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brodsky, Warren; Kessler, Yoav; Rubinstein, Bat-Sheva; Ginsborg, Jane; Henik, Avishai

    2008-01-01

    This study investigated the mental representation of music notation. Notational audiation is the ability to internally "hear" the music one is reading before physically hearing it performed on an instrument. In earlier studies, the authors claimed that this process engages music imagery contingent on subvocal silent singing. This study refines the…

  8. Malaysian Children's Attitudes towards Learning Music

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ghazali, Ghaziah Mohd.; McPherson, Gary E.

    2009-01-01

    A sample of 1060 Malaysian children were surveyed in order to examine differences in their motivation to study music in school and to learn a musical instrument outside of school. Adopting the expectancy-value motivation theory, the children were asked questions concerning their perception of music as being important, useful, interesting,…

  9. Apprehensive and Excited: Music Education Students' Experience Vernacular Musicianship

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Isbell, Daniel S.

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine music education students' experiences (N = 64) in courses designed to develop vernacular musicianship and expand understandings of informal music making. Students participated in one of two classes (undergraduate/graduate), formed their own small ensembles, chose their own music and instruments, led their…

  10. Teaching as Improvisational Experience: Student Music Teachers' Reflections on Learning during an Intercultural Project

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Westerlund, Heidi; Partti, Heidi; Karlsen, Sidsel

    2015-01-01

    This qualitative instrumental case study explores Finnish student music teachers' experiences of teaching and learning as participants in an intercultural project in Cambodia. The Multicultural Music University project aimed at increasing master's level music education students' intercultural competencies by providing experiences of teaching and…

  11. World Music Ensemble: Kulintang

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Beegle, Amy C.

    2012-01-01

    As instrumental world music ensembles such as steel pan, mariachi, gamelan and West African drums are becoming more the norm than the exception in North American school music programs, there are other world music ensembles just starting to gain popularity in particular parts of the United States. The kulintang ensemble, a drum and gong ensemble…

  12. 78 FR 76987 - Adjustment of Determination of Compulsory License Rates for Mechanical and Digital Phonorecords

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-12-20

    ... service bundles, music bundles, paid locker services, and purchased content locker services. The technical... downloads, limited offerings, mixed service bundles, music bundles, paid locker services, and purchased...

  13. Interactive Courseware Standards

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1992-07-01

    music industry standard provides data formats and transmission specifications for musical notation. Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG). This...has been used in the music industry for several years, especially for electronically programmable keyboards and 16 instruments. The video compression

  14. Musical activity and emotional competence - a twin study.

    PubMed

    Theorell, Töres P; Lennartsson, Anna-Karin; Mosing, Miriam A; Ullén, Fredrik

    2014-01-01

    The hypothesis was tested that musical activities may contribute to the prevention of alexithymia. We tested whether musical creative achievement and musical practice are associated with lower alexithymia. 8000 Swedish twins aged 27-54 were studied. Alexithymia was assessed using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20. Musical achievement was rated on a 7-graded scale. Participants estimated number of hours of music practice during different ages throughout life. A total life estimation of number of accumulated hours was made. They were also asked about ensemble playing. In addition, twin modelling was used to explore the genetic architecture of the relation between musical practice and alexithymia. Alexithymia was negatively associated with (i) musical creative achievement, (ii) having played a musical instrument as compared to never having played, and - for the subsample of participants that had played an instrument - (iii) total hours of musical training (r = -0.12 in men and -0.10 in women). Ensemble playing added significant variance. Twin modelling showed that alexithymia had a moderate heritability of 36% and that the association with musical practice could be explained by shared genetic influences. Associations between musical training and alexithymia remained significant when controlling for education, depression, and intelligence. Musical achievement and musical practice are associated with lower levels of alexithymia in both men and women. Musical engagement thus appears to be associated with higher emotional competence, although effect sizes are small. The association between musical training and alexithymia appears to be entirely genetically mediated, suggesting genetic pleiotropy.

  15. Motivation to Study Music in Australian Schools: The Impact of Music Learning, Gender, and Socio-Economic Status

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McPherson, Gary E.; Osborne, Margaret S.; Barrett, Margaret S.; Davidson, Jane W.; Faulkner, Robert

    2015-01-01

    This study extends an eight-country mapping exercise (McPherson & O'Neill, 2010; see "Research Studies in Music Education" issues 2010-2011) to include students' motivation to study music within the Australian context. It sought to determine whether music learners (students learning an instrument or voice), might be more motivated to…

  16. Using the Musical Score to Perform: A Study with Spanish Flute Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Marin, Cristina; Echeverria, Ma Puy Perez; Hallam, Susan

    2012-01-01

    Musical scores constitute a key element in the development of expertise in musicians from western tonal traditions, since they act as a mediator between the performer and the music itself. Our aim was to study the role of musical scores in instrumental performance practice by analysing the process of learning a new piece of music, as well as the…

  17. Comparative Analysis of Musical Abilities of 11-Year-Olds from Slovenia and the Island of Martinique

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jerman, Janez; Pretnar, Tatjana

    2006-01-01

    The focus of the study is the comparison between the musical abilities of 11-year-old children on the island of Martinique and in Slovenia, and finding out to what extent their development of musical abilities is influenced by musical and cultural family background, music school attendance, choral singing and playing orchestral instruments. Our…

  18. Home Listening Practices of Parents, Infants, and Toddlers: A Survey of Parents Enrolled in Early Childhood Music Education Classes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hamilton, Lani

    2014-01-01

    A national survey by Custodero & Johnson-Green (2003) examined how parents experienced music with their infants, and found that many reported playing and singing music frequently. More than half of the parents described playing recorded music for their children daily, and parents who had played an instrument and taken music lessons themselves…

  19. "You Are My Sunshine My Only Sunshine": Current Music Activities in Kindergarten Classrooms in Queensland, Australia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Garvis, Susanne

    2012-01-01

    Music in early years classrooms is an important learning area for young children. Young children need access to hear different genres of music, learn a variety of repertoire, engage in composing and play musical instruments. With the changing reform agenda in early childhood education however, little is known about the way music is positioned in…

  20. Collegiate Connections: The Story of a Licensed Teacher in a Paraprofessional Music Position--A Cautionary Tale

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Conway, Colleen; Rawlings, Jared; Wolfgram, T. J.

    2014-01-01

    A trained music educator accepted a band paraprofessional position and discovered some of the challenges inherent in the role. Certified for K-12 music, he was hired part-time in a large suburban instrumental music program. The job, although interesting and challenging, did not pay enough to sustain him financially. Other music educators warned…

  1. Direction of Radio Finding via MUSIC (Multiple Signal Classification) Algorithm for Hardware Design System

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Zheng

    2017-10-01

    Concept of radio direction finding systems, which use radio direction finding is based on digital signal processing algorithms. Thus, the radio direction finding system becomes capable to locate and track signals by the both. Performance of radio direction finding significantly depends on effectiveness of digital signal processing algorithms. The algorithm uses the Direction of Arrival (DOA) algorithms to estimate the number of incidents plane waves on the antenna array and their angle of incidence. This manuscript investigates implementation of the DOA algorithms (MUSIC) on the uniform linear array in the presence of white noise. The experiment results exhibit that MUSIC algorithm changed well with the radio direction.

  2. Generality and specificity in the effects of musical expertise on perception and cognition.

    PubMed

    Carey, Daniel; Rosen, Stuart; Krishnan, Saloni; Pearce, Marcus T; Shepherd, Alex; Aydelott, Jennifer; Dick, Frederic

    2015-04-01

    Performing musicians invest thousands of hours becoming experts in a range of perceptual, attentional, and cognitive skills. The duration and intensity of musicians' training - far greater than that of most educational or rehabilitation programs - provides a useful model to test the extent to which skills acquired in one particular context (music) generalize to different domains. Here, we asked whether the instrument-specific and more instrument-general skills acquired during professional violinists' and pianists' training would generalize to superior performance on a wide range of analogous (largely non-musical) skills, when compared to closely matched non-musicians. Violinists and pianists outperformed non-musicians on fine-grained auditory psychophysical measures, but surprisingly did not differ from each other, despite the different demands of their instruments. Musician groups did differ on a tuning system perception task: violinists showed clearest biases towards the tuning system specific to their instrument, suggesting that long-term experience leads to selective perceptual benefits given a training-relevant context. However, we found only weak evidence of group differences in non-musical skills, with musicians differing marginally in one measure of sustained auditory attention, but not significantly on auditory scene analysis or multi-modal sequencing measures. Further, regression analyses showed that this sustained auditory attention metric predicted more variance in one auditory psychophysical measure than did musical expertise. Our findings suggest that specific musical expertise may yield distinct perceptual outcomes within contexts close to the area of training. Generalization of expertise to relevant cognitive domains may be less clear, particularly where the task context is non-musical. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Music and the brain - design of an MEG compatible piano.

    PubMed

    Chacon-Castano, Julian; Rathbone, Daniel R; Hoffman, Rachel; Heng Yang; Pantazis, Dimitrios; Yang, Jason; Hornberger, Erik; Hanumara, Nevan C

    2017-07-01

    Magnetoencephalography (MEG) neuroimaging has been used to study subjects' responses when listening to music, but research into the effects of playing music has been limited by the lack of MEG compatible instruments that can operate in a magnetically shielded environment without creating electromagnetic interference. This paper describes the design and preliminary testing of an MEG compatible piano keyboard with 25 full size keys that employs a novel 3-state optical encoder design and electronics to provide realistic velocity-controlled volume modulation. This instrument will allow researchers to study musical performance on a finer timescale than fMRI and enable a range of MEG studies.

  4. Grammatical Gender and Mental Representation of Object: The Case of Musical Instruments.

    PubMed

    Vuksanović, Jasmina; Bjekić, Jovana; Radivojević, Natalija

    2015-08-01

    A body of research shows that grammatical gender, although an arbitrary category, is viewed as the system with its own meaning. However, the question remains to what extent does grammatical gender influence shaping our notions about objects when both verbal and visual information are available. Two experiments were conducted. The results obtained in Experiment 1 have shown that grammatical gender as a linguistic property of the pseudo-nouns used as names for musical instruments significantly affects people's representations about these instruments. The purpose of Experiment 2 was to examine how the representation of musical instruments will be shaped in the presence of both language and visual information. The results indicate that the co-existence of linguistic and visual information results in formation of concepts about selected instruments by all available information from both sources, thus suggesting that grammatical gender influences nonverbal concepts' forming, but has no privileged status in the matter.

  5. An Examination of Secondary Wind Instrument Methods Courses

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wagoner, Cynthia L.; Juchniewicz, Jay

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate current secondary woodwind, brass, and combined wind instrument methods courses for preservice music teachers across the United States. Two-hundred eleven (N = 211) wind methods course instructors from National Association of Schools of Music-accredited institutions completed an online survey that…

  6. Up & Strumming

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Perlmutter, Adam

    2011-01-01

    At this point, it's pretty much indisputable: The guitar is a cool instrument. For many years, it's appealed to students because of its prominence in popular music. Lightweight, portable, and inexpensive, it makes a more immediate impact than most other instruments--players can begin to make satisfying music on guitar with just a few easy chord…

  7. Effect of Sex Identification on Instrument Assignment by Band Directors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Johnson, Christopher M.; Stewart, Erin E.

    2004-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of sex identification on the assignment of instruments to beginning band students. Participants were band directors solicited at music conferences and music education students solicited from major universities across the United States. Participants completed an online survey about instrument…

  8. Confucian "Creatio in Situ"--Philosophical Resource for a Theory of Creativity in Instrumental Music Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tan, Leonard

    2016-01-01

    In this philosophical essay, I propose a theory of creativity for instrumental music education inspired by Confucian "creatio in situ" ("situational creativity"). Through an analysis of three major texts from classical Confucianism--the "Analects," the "Zhongyong" ("Doctrine of the Mean"), and the…

  9. Music psychopathology. V. Objective features of instrumental performance and psychopathology.

    PubMed

    Steinberg, R; Fani, M; Raith, L

    1992-01-01

    Mental disease systematically impairs musical expression according to nosologic classification. This was demonstrated with a polarity profile of the instrumental performances of 60 inpatients and 14 controls matched for musical aptitude. Objective performance characteristics such as irregularities and playing faults were analyzed too. No meaningful correlation between these features and psychopathology resulted. This indicates that even in severe psychopathologic alterations performance features, which depend mainly on education and actual training, are not altered in a systematic manner, in contrast to expressive qualities.

  10. Musical Instrument Choice and Playing History in Post-Secondary Level Music Students: Some Descriptive Data, Some Causes and Some Background Factors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chen, Simy Meng-Yu; Howard, Robert W.

    2004-01-01

    Why do musicians specialize in the specific instruments that they do? Research has shown effects of such factors as the perceived masculinity/femininity of instruments and musician's personality but there are little background data on other factors. The present study had two major aims. The first aim was to gather some useful background data on…

  11. MAC, A System for Automatically IPR Identification, Collection and Distribution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Serrão, Carlos

    Controlling Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in the Digital World is a very hard challenge. The facility to create multiple bit-by-bit identical copies from original IPR works creates the opportunities for digital piracy. One of the most affected industries by this fact is the Music Industry. The Music Industry has supported huge losses during the last few years due to this fact. Moreover, this fact is also affecting the way that music rights collecting and distributing societies are operating to assure a correct music IPR identification, collection and distribution. In this article a system for automating this IPR identification, collection and distribution is presented and described. This system makes usage of advanced automatic audio identification system based on audio fingerprinting technology. This paper will present the details of the system and present a use-case scenario where this system is being used.

  12. Art, Storytelling, and the Digital Economy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ohier, Jason

    2007-01-01

    A digital story can be anything that uses digital technology to construct narrative. It comes in many forms, including short movies and documentaries, using still images, voice-over narration, and music. It can be academic, abstract, or highly personal. Digital storytelling provides a powerful media literacy opportunity, as students are required…

  13. DAM-ing the Digital Flood

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Raths, David

    2008-01-01

    With the widespread digitization of art, photography, and music, plus the introduction of streaming video, many colleges and universities are realizing that they must develop or purchase systems to preserve their school's digitized objects; that they must create searchable databases so that researchers can find and share copies of digital files;…

  14. Blind separation of overlapping partials in harmonic musical notes using amplitude and phase reconstruction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    de León, Jesús Ponce; Beltrán, José Ramón

    2012-12-01

    In this study, a new method of blind audio source separation (BASS) of monaural musical harmonic notes is presented. The input (mixed notes) signal is processed using a flexible analysis and synthesis algorithm (complex wavelet additive synthesis, CWAS), which is based on the complex continuous wavelet transform. When the harmonics from two or more sources overlap in a certain frequency band (or group of bands), a new technique based on amplitude similarity criteria is used to obtain an approximation to the original partial information. The aim is to show that the CWAS algorithm can be a powerful tool in BASS. Compared with other existing techniques, the main advantages of the proposed algorithm are its accuracy in the instantaneous phase estimation, its synthesis capability and that the only input information needed is the mixed signal itself. A set of synthetically mixed monaural isolated notes have been analyzed using this method, in eight different experiments: the same instrument playing two notes within the same octave and two harmonically related notes (5th and 12th intervals), two different musical instruments playing 5th and 12th intervals, two different instruments playing non-harmonic notes, major and minor chords played by the same musical instrument, three different instruments playing non-harmonically related notes and finally the mixture of a inharmonic instrument (piano) and one harmonic instrument. The results obtained show the strength of the technique.

  15. A Functional MRI Study of Happy and Sad Emotions in Music with and without Lyrics.

    PubMed

    Brattico, Elvira; Alluri, Vinoo; Bogert, Brigitte; Jacobsen, Thomas; Vartiainen, Nuutti; Nieminen, Sirke; Tervaniemi, Mari

    2011-01-01

    Musical emotions, such as happiness and sadness, have been investigated using instrumental music devoid of linguistic content. However, pop and rock, the most common musical genres, utilize lyrics for conveying emotions. Using participants' self-selected musical excerpts, we studied their behavior and brain responses to elucidate how lyrics interact with musical emotion processing, as reflected by emotion recognition and activation of limbic areas involved in affective experience. We extracted samples from subjects' selections of sad and happy pieces and sorted them according to the presence of lyrics. Acoustic feature analysis showed that music with lyrics differed from music without lyrics in spectral centroid, a feature related to perceptual brightness, whereas sad music with lyrics did not diverge from happy music without lyrics, indicating the role of other factors in emotion classification. Behavioral ratings revealed that happy music without lyrics induced stronger positive emotions than happy music with lyrics. We also acquired functional magnetic resonance imaging data while subjects performed affective tasks regarding the music. First, using ecological and acoustically variable stimuli, we broadened previous findings about the brain processing of musical emotions and of songs versus instrumental music. Additionally, contrasts between sad music with versus without lyrics recruited the parahippocampal gyrus, the amygdala, the claustrum, the putamen, the precentral gyrus, the medial and inferior frontal gyri (including Broca's area), and the auditory cortex, while the reverse contrast produced no activations. Happy music without lyrics activated structures of the limbic system and the right pars opercularis of the inferior frontal gyrus, whereas auditory regions alone responded to happy music with lyrics. These findings point to the role of acoustic cues for the experience of happiness in music and to the importance of lyrics for sad musical emotions.

  16. A Functional MRI Study of Happy and Sad Emotions in Music with and without Lyrics

    PubMed Central

    Brattico, Elvira; Alluri, Vinoo; Bogert, Brigitte; Jacobsen, Thomas; Vartiainen, Nuutti; Nieminen, Sirke; Tervaniemi, Mari

    2011-01-01

    Musical emotions, such as happiness and sadness, have been investigated using instrumental music devoid of linguistic content. However, pop and rock, the most common musical genres, utilize lyrics for conveying emotions. Using participants’ self-selected musical excerpts, we studied their behavior and brain responses to elucidate how lyrics interact with musical emotion processing, as reflected by emotion recognition and activation of limbic areas involved in affective experience. We extracted samples from subjects’ selections of sad and happy pieces and sorted them according to the presence of lyrics. Acoustic feature analysis showed that music with lyrics differed from music without lyrics in spectral centroid, a feature related to perceptual brightness, whereas sad music with lyrics did not diverge from happy music without lyrics, indicating the role of other factors in emotion classification. Behavioral ratings revealed that happy music without lyrics induced stronger positive emotions than happy music with lyrics. We also acquired functional magnetic resonance imaging data while subjects performed affective tasks regarding the music. First, using ecological and acoustically variable stimuli, we broadened previous findings about the brain processing of musical emotions and of songs versus instrumental music. Additionally, contrasts between sad music with versus without lyrics recruited the parahippocampal gyrus, the amygdala, the claustrum, the putamen, the precentral gyrus, the medial and inferior frontal gyri (including Broca’s area), and the auditory cortex, while the reverse contrast produced no activations. Happy music without lyrics activated structures of the limbic system and the right pars opercularis of the inferior frontal gyrus, whereas auditory regions alone responded to happy music with lyrics. These findings point to the role of acoustic cues for the experience of happiness in music and to the importance of lyrics for sad musical emotions. PMID:22144968

  17. Musical Identities in Transition: Solo-Piano Students' Accounts of Entering the Academy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Juuti, Sini; Littleton, Karen

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to explore the identity work of adult instrumental students negotiating their entry to a prestigious music academy and the professional field of music. Ten classical solo-piano students' accounts of their musical histories and experiences were collected through research interviews. The thematic analyses presented…

  18. The Socio-Educational Model of Music Motivation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    MacIntyre, Peter D.; Potter, Gillian K.; Burns, Jillian N.

    2012-01-01

    The well-established socio-educational model of second language learning motivation developed by R. C. Gardner was adapted and applied to study instrumental music learning motivation. The similarities between music and language suggested that the adaptation might lead to new insights in the study of music motivation. At the heart of the proposed…

  19. Handclapping Songs: A Spontaneous Platform for Child Development among 5-10-Year-Old Children

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brodsky, Warren; Sulkin, Idit

    2011-01-01

    The impact of music activity on children's motor and cognitive skills has been investigated with music learning, instrument lessons and classroom music. While none have employed natural utterances, singing games or playground/street songs, these musical experiences of childhood are acknowledged as a major platform for child development. The…

  20. Music Instruction and the Reading Achievement of Middle School Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Huber, Juanita J.

    2010-01-01

    Comparative analysis examined responses on a descriptive questionnaire from 267 students in grades 6, 7, and 8. The study compared duration of and participation in music instruction, types of musical instruments learned, and experience in musical ensembles to scores from the state English language arts assessment. Analysis of results included…

  1. Junior High Instrumental Music: Wind-Percussion Strings. [Curriculum Guide.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Alberta Dept. of Education, Edmonton. Curriculum Design Branch.

    This curriculum guide outlines a secondary music program for Alberta, Canada, that aims: (1) to develop skills in listening, performing, and using notation; (2) to encourage students to strive for musical excellence; (3) to enable students to appreciate music; (4) to foster self-expression and creativity; and (5) to make students aware of the…

  2. Musical Understanding, Musical Works, and Emotional Expression: Implications for Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Elliott, David J.

    2005-01-01

    What do musicians, critics, and listeners mean when they use emotion-words to describe a piece of instrumental music? How can "pure" musical sounds "express" emotions such as joyfulness, sadness, anguish, optimism, and anger? Sounds are not living organisms; sounds cannot feel emotions. Yet many people around the world believe they hear emotions…

  3. The Role of Psychological Needs in Ceasing Music and Music Learning Activities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Evans, Paul; McPherson, Gary E.; Davidson, Jane W.

    2013-01-01

    This article addresses individuals' decisions to continue or cease playing a musical instrument from a basic psychological needs perspective. Participants began learning music 10 years prior to the study and were the subject of previous longitudinal research. They completed a survey investigating the three psychological needs of competence,…

  4. Unit Planning Grids for Music--Grade 7.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Delaware State Dept. of Education, Dover.

    These unit planning grids for grade 7 music education in Delaware public schools outline nine standards for students to attain in music. Standards cited in the grids are: (1) students will sing, independently and with others, a varied repertoire of music; (2) students will perform on instruments, independently, and with others, a varied repertoire…

  5. Unit Planning Grids for Music--Grade 5.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Delaware State Dept. of Education, Dover.

    These unit planning grids for grade 5 music education in Delaware public schools outline nine standards for students to attain in music. Standards cited in the grids are: (1) students will sing, independently and with others, a varied repertoire of music; (2) students will perform on instruments, independently, and with others, a varied repertoire…

  6. Unit Planning Grids for Music--Grade 3.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Delaware State Dept. of Education, Dover.

    These unit planning grids for grade 3 music education in Delaware public schools outline nine standards for students to attain in music. Standards cited in the grids are: (1) students will sing, independently and with others, a varied repertoire of music; (2) students will perform on instruments, independently, and with others, a varied repertoire…

  7. Unit Planning Grids for Music--Grade 4.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Delaware State Dept. of Education, Dover.

    These unit planning grids for grade 4 music education in Delaware public schools outline nine standards for students to attain in music. Standards cited in the grids are: (1) students will sing, independently and with others, a varied repertoire of music; (2) students will perform on instruments, independently, and with others, a varied repertoire…

  8. Unit Planning Grids for Music--Grade 6.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Delaware State Dept. of Education, Dover.

    These unit planning grids for grade 6 music education in Delaware public schools outline nine standards for students to attain in music. Standards cited in the grids are: (1) students will sing, independently and with others, a varied repertoire of music; (2) students will perform on instruments, independently, and with others, a varied repertoire…

  9. Unit Planning Grids for Music--Grade 8.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Delaware State Dept. of Education, Dover.

    These unit planning grids for grade 8 music education in Delaware public schools outline nine standards for students to attain in music. Standards cited in the grids are: (1) students will sing, independently and with others, a varied repertoire of music; (2) students will perform on instruments, independently, and with others, a varied repertoire…

  10. Embodied and Distributed Parallel DJing.

    PubMed

    Cappelen, Birgitta; Andersson, Anders-Petter

    2016-01-01

    Everyone has a right to take part in cultural events and activities, such as music performances and music making. Enforcing that right, within Universal Design, is often limited to a focus on physical access to public areas, hearing aids etc., or groups of persons with special needs performing in traditional ways. The latter might be people with disabilities, being musicians playing traditional instruments, or actors playing theatre. In this paper we focus on the innovative potential of including people with special needs, when creating new cultural activities. In our project RHYME our goal was to create health promoting activities for children with severe disabilities, by developing new musical and multimedia technologies. Because of the users' extreme demands and rich contribution, we ended up creating both a new genre of musical instruments and a new art form. We call this new art form Embodied and Distributed Parallel DJing, and the new genre of instruments for Empowering Multi-Sensorial Things.

  11. Learning How to Be a Research-Minded Teacher: Four Instrumental Music Education Students Investigate Good Music Teaching through Case Study Methodology

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sindberg, Laura K.

    2016-01-01

    Increasing evidence, both in general education and music education, points to the significance of inquiry as a part of teacher preparation. The purpose of this case study was to investigate the ways in which an introductory research project would help preservice music educators understand good "music teaching" and to discover the extent…

  12. Relationship between output from MIDI-keyboard playing and hand function assessments on affected hand after stroke.

    PubMed

    Chong, Hyun Ju; Han, Soo Jeong; Kim, Yong Jae; Park, Hye Young; Kim, Soo Ji

    2014-01-01

    While a number of studies have tested the therapeutic effectiveness of playing musical instruments, such as the electronic keyboard using Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI), it is still unclear whether outcomes of electronic keyboard playing are related to hand function tests. The purpose of this study was to investigate the correlation between MIDI-keyboard playing and hand function tests, including grip strength, Box and Block test (BBT), and Jensen-Taylor Hand Function Test (JTHF). A total of 66 stroke patients were recruited from medical centers and were classified into acute (n = 21), subacute (n = 28), and chronic (n = 17) recovery stages. The participants' mean age was 60.5 years. The MIDI-keyboard playing protocol based on sequential key pressing was implemented. All hand function tests were performed by certified occupational therapists. MIDI scores from participants at all three recovery stages were significantly correlated with BBT and grip strength. Overall, MIDI-keyboard playing scores demonstrated moderate to high correlations with hand function tests except for participants at the chronic stage and the JTHF, which showed no correlation. These findings suggest that MIDI-keyboard playing has great potential as an assessment tool of hand function, especially hand dexterity in acute and subacute stroke patients. Further studies are needed to refine the specific keyboard playing tasks that increase responsiveness to traditional hand function tests.

  13. Careers in Music.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Music Educators National Conference, Reston, VA.

    A report on music-related careers is divided into two sections. Section 1 provides summaries of occupations, including studio teaching, elementary-secondary education, postsecondary teaching, performance, composing and directing, the music industry (including the fields of instrument manufacturing, tuning, radio broadcasting, and recording), music…

  14. School Music Resource.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Music Educators Journal, 1988

    1988-01-01

    Provides a classified index to the companies and institutions that offer products and services for music educators. The list contains over 400 entries classified according to 19 categories such as books and textbooks, band uniforms, band instruments, multimedia learning materials, and music retailers. (JDH)

  15. What Makes the Digital "Special"? The Research Program in Digital Collections at the National Library of Wales

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cusworth, Andrew; Hughes, Lorna M.; James, Rhian; Roberts, Owain; Roderick, Gareth Lloyd

    2015-01-01

    This article introduces some of the digital projects currently in development at the National Library of Wales as part of its Research Program in Digital Collections. These projects include the digital representation of the Library's Kyffin Willams art collection, musical collections, and probate collection, and of materials collected by the…

  16. Cresting the Digital Divide

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gregory, Kay; Steelman, Joyce

    2008-01-01

    Catawba Valley Community College has introduced digital storytelling (DS), an innovative instructional method that has produced extraordinary results. Digital storytelling uses affordable software to craft powerful multimedia presentations of student writing. Students create 3-to-4-minute movies with images, voiceovers, and music. This project…

  17. 37 CFR 385.10 - General.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ....10 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights COPYRIGHT ROYALTY BOARD, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS RATES AND TERMS... AND DISTRIBUTING OF PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL PHONORECORDS Interactive Streaming, Other Incidental Digital... and nonsubscription digital music services in accordance with the provisions of 17 U.S.C. 115. (b...

  18. 37 CFR 385.10 - General.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ....10 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights COPYRIGHT ROYALTY BOARD, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS RATES AND TERMS... AND DISTRIBUTING OF PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL PHONORECORDS Interactive Streaming, Other Incidental Digital... and nonsubscription digital music services in accordance with the provisions of 17 U.S.C. 115. (b...

  19. 37 CFR 385.10 - General.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ....10 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights COPYRIGHT ROYALTY BOARD, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS RATES AND TERMS... AND DISTRIBUTING OF PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL PHONORECORDS Interactive Streaming, Other Incidental Digital... and nonsubscription digital music services in accordance with the provisions of 17 U.S.C. 115. (b...

  20. Music-supported therapy (MST) in improving post-stroke patients' upper-limb motor function: a randomised controlled pilot study.

    PubMed

    Tong, Yanna; Forreider, Brian; Sun, Xinting; Geng, Xiaokun; Zhang, Weidong; Du, Huishan; Zhang, Tong; Ding, Yuchuan

    2015-05-01

    Music-supported therapy (MST) is a new approach for motor rehabilitation of stroke patients. Recently, many studies have demonstrated that MST improved the motor functions of post-stroke patients. However, the underlying mechanism for this effect is still unclear. It may result from repeated practice or repeated practice combined with musical stimulation. Currently, few studies have been designed to clarify this discrepancy. In this study, the application of "mute" musical instruments allowed for the study of music as an independent factor. Thirty-three post-stroke patients with no substantial previous musical training were included. Participants were assigned to either audible music group (MG) or mute music group (CG), permitting observation of music's independent effect. All subjects received the conventional rehabilitation treatments. Patients in MG (n = 15) received 20 extra sessions of audible musical instrument training over 4 weeks. Patients in CG (n = 18) received "mute" musical instrument training of the same protocol as that of MG. Wolf motor function test (WMFT) and Fugl-Meyer assessment (FMA) for upper limbs were utilised to evaluate motor functions of patients in both groups before and after the treatment. Three patients in CG dropped out. All participants in both groups showed significant improvements in motor functions of upper limbs after 4  weeks' treatment. However, significant differences in the WMFT were found between the two groups (WMFT-quality: P = 0.025; WMFT-time: P = 0.037), but not in the FMA (P = 0.448). In short, all participants showed significant improvement after 4 weeks' treatment, but subjects in MG demonstrated greater improvement than those in CG. This study supports that MST, when combined with conventional treatment, is effective for the recovery of motor skills in post-stroke patients. Additionally, it suggests that apart from the repetitive practices of MST, music may play a unique role in improving upper-limb motor function for post-stroke patients.

  1. Expectations in culturally unfamiliar music: influences of proximal and distal cues and timbral characteristics

    PubMed Central

    Stevens, Catherine J.; Tardieu, Julien; Dunbar-Hall, Peter; Best, Catherine T.; Tillmann, Barbara

    2013-01-01

    Listeners' musical perception is influenced by cues that can be stored in short-term memory (e.g., within the same musical piece) or long-term memory (e.g., based on one's own musical culture). The present study tested how these cues (referred to as, respectively, proximal and distal cues) influence the perception of music from an unfamiliar culture. Western listeners who were naïve to Gamelan music judged completeness and coherence for newly constructed melodies in the Balinese gamelan tradition. In these melodies, we manipulated the final tone with three possibilities: the original gong tone, an in-scale tone replacement or an out-of-scale tone replacement. We also manipulated the musical timbre employed in Gamelan pieces. We hypothesized that novice listeners are sensitive to out-of-scale changes, but not in-scale changes, and that this might be influenced by the more unfamiliar timbre created by Gamelan “sister” instruments whose harmonics beat with the harmonics of the other instrument, creating a timbrally “shimmering” sound. The results showed: (1) out-of-scale endings were judged less complete than original gong and in-scale endings; (2) for melodies played with “sister” instruments, in-scale endings were judged as less complete than original endings. Furthermore, melodies using the original scale tones were judged more coherent than melodies containing few or multiple tone replacements; melodies played on single instruments were judged more coherent than the same melodies played on sister instruments. Additionally, there is some indication of within-session statistical learning, with expectations for the initially-novel materials developing during the course of the experiment. The data suggest the influence of both distal cues (e.g., previously unfamiliar timbres) and proximal cues (within the same sequence and over the experimental session) on the perception of melodies from other cultural systems based on unfamiliar tunings and scale systems. PMID:24223562

  2. On the Relationship between Technique and Style: The Case of the Violin

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Johansson, Mats

    2015-01-01

    This article examines the formative interaction between instrumental technique and musical style by analysing different approaches to the violin/fiddle. It is argued that technique is constitutive of style and that musical concepts are intimately related to the accumulated experience of sensations associated with handling the instrument in a…

  3. Predictors of Instrumental Music Teacher Job Satisfaction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bryant, Robert Louis, III

    2012-01-01

    Previous research studies related to teacher quality have found that teacher attrition rates are at an all-time high. Although much research has been conducted in the area of job satisfaction within the general teaching population, few studies of job satisfaction exist for instrumental music teachers. The purpose of this correlational study was to…

  4. Gender and Musical Instrument Stereotypes in Middle School Children: Have Trends Changed?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wrape, Elizabeth R.; Dittloff, Alexandra L.; Callahan, Jennifer L.

    2016-01-01

    Previous studies have established that gender stereotypes are associated with children's choice of musical instrument. Though some have suggested that these gender stereotypes may be trending toward change, other studies have indicated that gender stereotypes are long-standing and still very much at issue. This descriptive study of middle school…

  5. The Effects of Limited, Restricted Music Practice on Overnight Memory Enhancement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Allen, Sarah E.; Duke, Robert A.

    2013-01-01

    During evening practice sessions, 32 nonpianist musicians learned a short melody on piano, and then either learned a second short piano melody, learned a difficult unfamiliar piece on their principal instruments, practiced familiar material on their principal instruments, or engaged in no other music-related motor behavior prior to sleep; practice…

  6. A Mixed Methods Portrait of Urban Instrumental Music Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fitzpatrick, Kate R.

    2011-01-01

    The purpose of this mixed methods study was to learn about the ways that instrumental music teachers in Chicago navigated the urban landscape. The design of the study most closely resembles Creswell and Plano Clark's (2007) two-part Triangulation Convergence Mixed Methods Design, with the addition of an initial exploratory focus group component.…

  7. Instrumental Music Educators' Experiences in a Professional Development Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Draves, Tami J.

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this research was to investigate the experiences of instrumental music teachers in Designing Arts Instruction, a 4-day professional development course in a large urban school district. Specifically, I was interested in which activities participants (a) found most relevant and applicable to their current teaching situation, (b)…

  8. Instrumental Instruction in Community Bands from Bahia, Brazil

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Barbosa, Joel Luis

    2010-01-01

    Community bands play an important role in Brazilian music education. Often the only point of musical access, they provide free instrumental teaching for thousands of people who cannot afford to pay. One challenge that needs to be continually addressed is the issue of attrition, especially during the first stages of instruction. Considering this…

  9. Including Exceptional Students in Your Instrumental Music Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mixon, Kevin

    2005-01-01

    This article describes the method and adaptations used by the author in including students with special needs in an instrumental music program. To ensure success in the program, the author shares the method he uses to include exceptional students and enumerates some possible adaptations. There are certainly other methods and modifications that…

  10. Verbal and Operant Responses of Young Children to Vocal Versus Instrumental Song Performances.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sims, Wendy L.; Cassidy, Jane W.

    1997-01-01

    Reports on a study that investigated the effects of the presence or absence of lyrics in children's musical selections on young children's responses to music. The children responded to either recorded lullabies performed by a women singing, or a solo instrument, or separate pieces with and without lyrics. (MJP)

  11. Playing-related musculoskeletal disorders among icelandic music students: differences between students playing classical vs rhythmic music.

    PubMed

    Arnason, Kári; Arnason, Arni; Briem, Kristín

    2014-06-01

    Most research studies investigating the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders affecting musicians and music students have focused on classical music, while less is known about their prevalence in other music genres. The purpose of this study was to document cumulative and point prevalence of playing-related musculoskeletal disorders (PRMD) among music students in Iceland and, specifically, to identify differences between those studying classical vs rhythmic music. We hypothesized that students of classical music would report more frequent and more severe musculoskeletal disorders than students involved in rhythmic music, as classical instruments and composition typically require more demanding, sustained postures during practice and performance. A total of 74 students from two classical music schools (schools A and B) and 1 rhythmic school (school C) participated in the study by answering a questionnaire assessing PRMDs. The results showed that 62% of participants had, at some point in their musical career, suffered a PRMD. The cumulative prevalence was highest in music school A (71.4%) and lowest in music school C (38.9%). A statistically significant difference was identified between the cumulative prevalence of PRMD from schools A and B combined compared to music school C (p=0.019). Over 40% of participants reported a "current PRMD," and a significant difference was identified between the three schools (p=0.011), with the highest point prevalence being registered in music school A (66.6%) and the lowest in music school C (22.2%). The prevalence of PRMDs among Icelandic music students was high. The difference found between students who play classical vs rhythmic music may be explained by different demands of the instruments and composition on playing posture.

  12. Some Implications for Afro-American Culture: Rationalism and Western Music

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Walton, Ortiz M.

    1973-01-01

    Will the computer or instruments powered by electrical energy become the most efficient means by which to produce Western music, replacing the live performer? If so, what will be the effects of electronic, mechanical music on society? (Author/RJ)

  13. African Oral Tradition Literacy.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Green, Doris

    1985-01-01

    Presents the basic principles of two systems for notating African music and dance: Labanotation (created to record and analyze movements) and Greenotation (created to notate musical instruments of Africa and to parallel Labanotation whereby both music and dance are incorporated into one integrated score). (KH)

  14. The music perception abilities of prelingually deaf children with cochlear implants.

    PubMed

    Stabej, Katja Kladnik; Smid, Lojze; Gros, Anton; Zargi, Miha; Kosir, Andrej; Vatovec, Jagoda

    2012-10-01

    To investigate the music perception abilities of prelingually deaf children with cochlear implants, in comparison to a group of normal-hearing children, and to consider the factors that contribute to music perception. The music perception abilities of 39 prelingually deaf children with unilateral cochlear implants were compared to the abilities of 39 normal hearing children. To assess the music listening abilities, the MuSIC perception test was adopted. The influence of the child's age, age at implantation, device experience and type of sound-processing strategy on the music perception were evaluated. The effects of auditory performance, nonverbal intellectual abilities, as well as the child's additional musical education on music perception were also considered. Children with cochlear implants and normal hearing children performed significantly differently with respect to rhythm discrimination (55% vs. 82%, p<0.001), instrument identification (57% vs. 88%, p<0.001) and emotion rating (p=0.022). However we found no significant difference in terms of melody discrimination and dissonance rating between the two groups. There was a positive correlation between auditory performance and melody discrimination (r=0.27; p=0.031), between auditory performance and instrument identification (r=0.20; p=0.059) and between the child's grade (mark) in school music classes and melody discrimination (r=0.34; p=0.030). In children with cochlear implant only, the music perception ability assessed by the emotion rating test was negatively correlated to the child's age (r(S)=-0.38; p=0.001), age at implantation (r(S)=-0.34; p=0.032), and device experience (r(S)=-0.38; p=0.019). The child's grade in school music classes showed a positive correlation to music perception abilities assessed by rhythm discrimination test (r(S)=0.46; p<0.001), melody discrimination test (r(S)=0.28; p=0.018), and instrument identification test (r(S)=0.23; p=0.05). As expected, there was a marked difference in the music perception abilities of prelingually deaf children with cochlear implants in comparison to the group of normal hearing children, but not for all the tests of music perception. Additional multi-centre studies, including a larger number of participants and a broader spectrum of music subtests, considering as many as possible of the factors that may contribute to music perception, seem reasonable. Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

  15. Digital Media Stories for Persuasion

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Leopold, Lisa

    2010-01-01

    Digital media story-telling (which enhances traditional oral story-telling with images, music, and text) has been a focus of recent scholarship for its potential to produce numerous educational benefits. Through digital media storytelling, students' imagination, creativity, critical thinking, writing, public speaking, and organizational or…

  16. Psychiatry and music

    PubMed Central

    Nizamie, Shamsul Haque; Tikka, Sai Krishna

    2014-01-01

    Vocal and/or instrumental sounds combined in such a way as to produce beauty of form, harmony and expression of emotion is music. Brain, mind and music are remarkably related to each other and music has got a strong impact on psychiatry. With the advent of music therapy, as an efficient form of alternative therapy in treating major psychiatric conditions, this impact has been further strengthened. In this review, we deliberate upon the historical aspects of the relationship between psychiatry and music, neural processing underlying music, music's relation to classical psychology and psychopathology and scientific evidence base for music therapy in major psychiatric disorders. We highlight the role of Indian forms of music and Indian contribution to music therapy. PMID:24891698

  17. Cortical thickness maturation and duration of music training: health-promoting activities shape brain development.

    PubMed

    Hudziak, James J; Albaugh, Matthew D; Ducharme, Simon; Karama, Sherif; Spottswood, Margaret; Crehan, Eileen; Evans, Alan C; Botteron, Kelly N

    2014-11-01

    To assess the extent to which playing a musical instrument is associated with cortical thickness development among healthy youths. Participants were part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Study of Normal Brain Development. This study followed a longitudinal design such that participants underwent MRI scanning and behavioral testing on up to 3 separate visits, occurring at 2-year intervals. MRI, IQ, and music training data were available for 232 youths (334 scans), ranging from 6 to 18 years of age. Cortical thickness was regressed against the number of years that each youth had played a musical instrument. Next, thickness was regressed against an "Age × Years of Playing" interaction term. Age, gender, total brain volume, and scanner were controlled for in analyses. Participant ID was entered as a random effect to account for within-person dependence. False discovery rate correction was applied (p ≤ .05). There was no association between thickness and years playing a musical instrument. The "Age × Years of Playing" interaction was associated with thickness in motor, premotor, and supplementary motor cortices, as well as prefrontal and parietal cortices. Follow-up analysis revealed that music training was associated with an increased rate of thickness maturation. Results were largely unchanged when IQ and handedness were included as covariates. Playing a musical instrument was associated with more rapid cortical thickness maturation within areas implicated in motor planning and coordination, visuospatial ability, and emotion and impulse regulation. However, given the quasi-experimental nature of this study, we cannot rule out the influence of confounding variables. Copyright © 2014 American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. The Effect of the Tuning System and Instrument Variables on Modal Dictation Performance

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Demirbatir, Rasim Erol; Çeliktas, Hatice; Engür, Doruk

    2018-01-01

    Ear training and musical literacy (ETML) education is one of the main dimensions of the bachelor degree program of music teacher education departments, which provides professional music education. In ETML education, hearing, sight-reading and dictation studies for Turkish music makams have an important place. In this study, it was aimed to…

  19. Communication of Expectations between Principals and Entry-Year Instrumental Music Teachers: Implications for Music Teacher Assessment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Edgar, Scott

    2012-01-01

    Assessment of arts educators, including music educators, has evolved into a high-stakes situation that drives teacher pay, promotion, and retention. This assessment process is driven by federal policy advocating for a value-added model based on student performance. Principals, who are often charged with assessing artistic musical performance,…

  20. Hybrid Spaces and Hyphenated Musicians: Secondary Students' Musical Engagement in a Songwriting and Technology Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tobias, Evan S.

    2012-01-01

    This case study investigates how secondary students (three individuals and three groups) engaged with music and acted as musicians in a Songwriting and Technology Class (STC), a course involving the creation, performance, recording and production of original music with instruments and music technology. The following research question guided the…

  1. Key Competencies: Music Education and Instrumental Music, Secondary Schools.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Philadelphia School District, PA. Office of Curriculum and Instruction.

    This booklet identifies major competencies for each course offered in the secondary music education program in the Philadelphia school system. Music is seen to be a mode of expression in responding to and interpreting life and nature. It promotes the development of aesthetic judgment. The booklet outlines up to eight competencies for each of nine…

  2. Score-Informed Musical Source Separation and Reconstruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Han, Yushen

    2013-01-01

    A systematic approach to retrieve individual parts in a monaural music recording with its score is introduced. We are interested in isolating the accompaniment part by removing the solo part from a recording of concerto music in which a solo instrument is accompanied by an orchestra. We require the music audio, the score, and optionally a sample…

  3. The Relation of Culture and Musical Play: A Literature Review

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Soccio, Alison

    2013-01-01

    Children express the cultures they bring into the classrooms through musical play. When children are left to their own devices they dance, create songs, and play instruments. Campbell emphasizes how children are immersed in musical activity throughout the entirety of their day; they use music for self-expression, to interact with others, and to…

  4. Music Education in Montessori Schools: An Exploratory Study of School Directors' Perceptions in the United States

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rajan, Rekha S.

    2017-01-01

    This exploratory study examined the changing role of music education and the availability of musical experiences for students attending Montessori schools in the Midwestern United States. On a survey instrument designed by the researcher, Montessori school directors (N = 36) from eight states shared descriptions of the current role of music at…

  5. Beliefs of Applied Studio Faculty on Desirable Traits of Prospective Music Education Majors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Royston, Natalie Steele; Springer, D. Gregory

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the beliefs of applied music faculty on desirable traits of prospective music education majors. Respondents (N = 326), who were sampled from 73 National Association of Schools of Music-accredited institutions in the United States, completed a survey instrument developed to determine the characteristics of…

  6. Music and Anxiety in Williams Syndrome: A Harmonious or Discordant Relationship?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dykens, Elisabeth M.; Rosner, Beth A.; Ly, Tran; Sagun, Jaclyn

    2005-01-01

    In this two-part study, we assessed musical involvements in two samples of persons with Williams syndrome compared to others with mental retardation and also related musicality to anxiety and fears in Study 2. Relative to others with mental retardation, those with Williams syndrome were more likely to take music lessons, play an instrument, and…

  7. Pre-Service Music Teachers' Piano Performance Self-Efficacy Belief Inversely Related to Musical Performance Anxiety Levels

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Egilmez, Hatice Onuray

    2015-01-01

    Many factors affect piano performance, including students' self-confidence and self-efficacy about playing an instrument. This study assessed piano performance self-efficacy beliefs in pre-service music teachers studying at the music education department of education faculty of Uludag University to a certain relationships between the strength of…

  8. Music Activities in Primary School: Students' Preferences in the Spanish Region of Murcia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vicente-Nicolás, Gregorio; Mac Ruairc, Gerry

    2014-01-01

    The aim of this study was to determine the preferences of primary school children in relation to the types of activities that typically take place in music classrooms. For the purposes of this study, these classroom-based music activities have been categorised into five areas: singing, playing instruments, listening, reading and writing music and…

  9. Melodies That Help: The Relation between Language Aptitude and Musical Intelligence

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fonseca-Mora, M. C.; Toscano-Fuentes, C.; Wermke, K.

    2011-01-01

    Music and rhythm have been defined as powerful aids to language learning, memory, and recall. But is this due to structural and motivational properties of instrumental music and songs, or is there a relation between learners' language aptitude and musical intelligence? It seems that everyone who feels motivated to do it is able to learn other…

  10. Community Music: History and Current Practice, Its Constructions of "Community", Digital Turns and Future Soundings, an Arts and Humanities Research Council Research Review

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McKay, George; Higham, Ben

    2012-01-01

    The United Kingdom has been a pivotal national player within the development of community music practice. There are elements of cultural and debatably pedagogic innovations in community music. These have to date only partly been articulated and historicized within academic research. This report, funded by the UK's Arts and Humanities Research…

  11. 15 CFR Supplement No. 1 to Part 746 - Examples of Luxury Goods

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... (Continued) BUREAU OF INDUSTRY AND SECURITY, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE EXPORT ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS...) Personal digital assistants (PDAs) (3) Personal digital music players (4) Computer laptops (g...

  12. Assessing Top-Down and Bottom-Up Contributions to Auditory Stream Segregation and Integration With Polyphonic Music

    PubMed Central

    Disbergen, Niels R.; Valente, Giancarlo; Formisano, Elia; Zatorre, Robert J.

    2018-01-01

    Polyphonic music listening well exemplifies processes typically involved in daily auditory scene analysis situations, relying on an interactive interplay between bottom-up and top-down processes. Most studies investigating scene analysis have used elementary auditory scenes, however real-world scene analysis is far more complex. In particular, music, contrary to most other natural auditory scenes, can be perceived by either integrating or, under attentive control, segregating sound streams, often carried by different instruments. One of the prominent bottom-up cues contributing to multi-instrument music perception is their timbre difference. In this work, we introduce and validate a novel paradigm designed to investigate, within naturalistic musical auditory scenes, attentive modulation as well as its interaction with bottom-up processes. Two psychophysical experiments are described, employing custom-composed two-voice polyphonic music pieces within a framework implementing a behavioral performance metric to validate listener instructions requiring either integration or segregation of scene elements. In Experiment 1, the listeners' locus of attention was switched between individual instruments or the aggregate (i.e., both instruments together), via a task requiring the detection of temporal modulations (i.e., triplets) incorporated within or across instruments. Subjects responded post-stimulus whether triplets were present in the to-be-attended instrument(s). Experiment 2 introduced the bottom-up manipulation by adding a three-level morphing of instrument timbre distance to the attentional framework. The task was designed to be used within neuroimaging paradigms; Experiment 2 was additionally validated behaviorally in the functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) environment. Experiment 1 subjects (N = 29, non-musicians) completed the task at high levels of accuracy, showing no group differences between any experimental conditions. Nineteen listeners also participated in Experiment 2, showing a main effect of instrument timbre distance, even though within attention-condition timbre-distance contrasts did not demonstrate any timbre effect. Correlation of overall scores with morph-distance effects, computed by subtracting the largest from the smallest timbre distance scores, showed an influence of general task difficulty on the timbre distance effect. Comparison of laboratory and fMRI data showed scanner noise had no adverse effect on task performance. These Experimental paradigms enable to study both bottom-up and top-down contributions to auditory stream segregation and integration within psychophysical and neuroimaging experiments. PMID:29563861

  13. Berimbau: A simple instrument for teaching basic concepts in the physics and psychoacoustics of music

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vilão, Rui C.; Melo, Santino L. S.

    2014-12-01

    We address the production of musical tones by a simple musical instrument of the Brazilian tradition: the berimbau-de-barriga. The vibration physics of the string and of the air mass inside the gourd are reviewed. Straightforward measurements of an actual berimbau, which illustrate the basic physical phenomena, are performed using a PC-based "soundcard oscilloscope." The inharmonicity of the string and the role of the gourd are discussed in the context of known results in the psychoacoustics of pitch definition.

  14. This Precious Heritage.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Heth, Charlotte

    1994-01-01

    Discusses the role of Native American music, dance, and song in religious ceremonies, cultural preservation, social occasions, and entertainment. Describes traditional musical forms and instruments used by Hawaiians and various American Indian and Alaska Native groups, as well as innovations and European-based adaptations in musical styles and…

  15. Agua Caliente and Their Music.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ryterband, Roman

    1979-01-01

    Discusses the traditional music of the Agua Caliente band of California's Desert Cahuilla Indian tribe, including accompanying instruments, types of songs, thematic material, and performance routines. Exploring the structure of the music, the article describes meter, tempo, harmony and tonal gravitations, and use of words. (DS)

  16. Music: A Shared Experience.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dunn, Rosemary

    1992-01-01

    This paper describes how sixth form girls in England provided music experiences to young children (ages 3-9) with severe learning difficulties. The weekly sessions involve individual sessions and use of various instruments. The relationship of the music therapy program to the National Curriculum is noted. (DB)

  17. An Observational Study of Score Study Practices among Undergraduate Instrumental Music Education Majors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Silvey, Brian A.; Montemayor, Mark; Baumgartner, Christopher M.

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate undergraduate instrumental music education majors' score study practices as they related to the effectiveness of their simulated conducting. Participants (N = 30) were video recorded in two sessions in which they completed a 20-min score study session and a simulated conducting performance. In the first…

  18. Teaching Instrumental Music to Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hash, Phillip M.

    2003-01-01

    Many Deaf/Hard of Hearing (D/HH) individuals have successfully participated in instrumental music programs for over 100 years. In spite of proven success, however, many directors are reluctant to involve students with hearing loss in school bands and orchestras. Reasons may include a lack of knowledge regarding the needs and capabilities of these…

  19. A Response to Oivind Varkoy, "Instrumentalism in the Field of Music Education: Are We All Humanists?"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Westerlund, Heidi

    2007-01-01

    Oivind Varkoy challenges music educators who start their educational work from well-defined learning outcomes and who then test and assess whether students have achieved these predefined ends. He argues that "ends-means-thinking," "assessment-thinking," and "some sort of market-philosophy" all relate to "instrumentalism" in which learners are…

  20. Identification of the Predictive Power of Five Factor Personality Traits for Individual Instrument Performance Anxiety

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Özdemir, Gökhan; Dalkiran, Esra

    2017-01-01

    This study, with the aim of identifying the predictive power of the five-factor personality traits of music teacher candidates on individual instrument performance anxiety, was designed according to the relational screening model. The study population was students attending the Music Education branch of Fine Arts Education Departments in…

  1. Motivations Impacting upon Music Instrument Teachers' Decisions to Teach and Perform in Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Parkes, Kelly A.; Daniel, Ryan

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to explore why highly trained musicians choose to teach in higher education. An international population from nine countries of music instrument teachers was sampled via online survey, to determine their reasons for teaching in higher education. Motivational constructs from the expectancy-value framework were used,…

  2. High School Instrumental Music Students' Attitudes and Beliefs regarding Practice: An Application of Attribution Theory

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schatt, Matthew D.

    2011-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to explore high school band students' perspectives of instrumental music practice from within the attribution theory paradigm and to attempt to elucidate the secondary student's attitudes toward practice. High school band students from three Midwestern school districts (N = 218) completed a survey that was used to…

  3. Effect of Color-Coded Notation on Music Achievement of Elementary Instrumental Students.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rogers, George L.

    1991-01-01

    Presents results of a study of color-coded notation to teach music reading to instrumental students. Finds no clear evidence that color-coded notation enhances achievement on performing by memory, sight-reading, or note naming. Suggests that some students depended on the color-coding and were unable to read uncolored notation well. (DK)

  4. An Ethic of Care in High School Instrumental Music

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Edgar, Scott N.

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to apply Noddings' ethic of care to a qualitative inquiry of select instrumental music educators. In the first section I describe and define an ethic of care, considering specifically who is involved in a caring relationship, how an ethic of care can be taught, and strategies for educational implementation and…

  5. On Practice, Skill and Competition: A Pragmatist Theory of Action for Instrumental Music Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tan, Leonard

    2017-01-01

    Practice, skill and competition are important aspects of participating in school bands and orchestras. However, writers have questioned their value. In this philosophical paper, I mine the writings of the American pragmatists--in particular, their theories of habit and experience--to construct a theory of action for instrumental music education,…

  6. Polyphonic Music Information Retrieval Based on Multi-Label Cascade Classification System

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jiang, Wenxin

    2009-01-01

    Recognition and separation of sounds played by various instruments is very useful in labeling audio files with semantic information. This is a non-trivial task requiring sound analysis, but the results can aid automatic indexing and browsing music data when searching for melodies played by user specified instruments. Melody match based on pitch…

  7. Non-invasive identification of organic materials in historical stringed musical instruments by reflection infrared spectroscopy: a methodological approach.

    PubMed

    Invernizzi, Claudia; Daveri, Alessia; Vagnini, Manuela; Malagodi, Marco

    2017-05-01

    The analysis of historical musical instruments is becoming more relevant and the interest is increasingly moving toward the non-invasive reflection FTIR spectroscopy, especially for the analysis of varnishes. In this work, a specific infrared reflectance spectral library of organic compounds was created with the aim of identifying musical instrument materials in a totally non-invasive way. The analyses were carried out on pure organic compounds, as bulk samples and laboratory wooden models, to evaluate the diagnostic reflection mid-infrared (MIR) bands of proteins, polysaccharides, lipids, and resins by comparing reflection spectra before and after the KK correction. This methodological approach was applied to real case studies represented by four Stradivari violins and a Neapolitan mandolin.

  8. The power of a musical instrument: Franklin, the Mozarts, Mesmer, and the glass armonica.

    PubMed

    Gallo, D A; Finger, S

    2000-11-01

    In 1761 Benjamin Franklin invented the armonica (often referred to as the glass harmonica), an instrument designed to simplify the playing of the musical glasses. The instrument immediately became popular and inspired compositions by Wolfgang Mozart, who had the opportunity to hear and play one at the house of Franz Anton Mesmer. Armonica music was used by Mesmer in his séances, because he felt it could promote healing by propagating a mystical fluid that he called animal magnetism through the body. After Mesmer's theories were debunked by a highly respected panel of scientists, the armonica fell out of vogue. Because Franklin was on the panel that examined the discredited mesmerism, he indirectly contributed to his own invention's demise.

  9. An examination of an enhancing effect of music on attentional abilities in older persons with mild cognitive impairment.

    PubMed

    Lake, Jessica I; Goldstein, Felicia C

    2011-02-01

    While the effect of listening to music on cognitive abilities is highly debated, studies reporting an enhancing effect of music in elderly populations appear to be more consistent. In this study, the effects of listening to music on attention in groups of cognitively normal older adults and those with mild cognitive impairment were considered. Participants were exposed to both a music and silence condition, and after each condition performed Digit Span and Coding tasks which require attention for maximal performance. The hypothesis that listening to music, compared to a silence condition, enhances performance was not supported for either group. Various explanations for these findings are considered.

  10. Apply lightweight recognition algorithms in optical music recognition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pham, Viet-Khoi; Nguyen, Hai-Dang; Nguyen-Khac, Tung-Anh; Tran, Minh-Triet

    2015-02-01

    The problems of digitalization and transformation of musical scores into machine-readable format are necessary to be solved since they help people to enjoy music, to learn music, to conserve music sheets, and even to assist music composers. However, the results of existing methods still require improvements for higher accuracy. Therefore, the authors propose lightweight algorithms for Optical Music Recognition to help people to recognize and automatically play musical scores. In our proposal, after removing staff lines and extracting symbols, each music symbol is represented as a grid of identical M ∗ N cells, and the features are extracted and classified with multiple lightweight SVM classifiers. Through experiments, the authors find that the size of 10 ∗ 12 cells yields the highest precision value. Experimental results on the dataset consisting of 4929 music symbols taken from 18 modern music sheets in the Synthetic Score Database show that our proposed method is able to classify printed musical scores with accuracy up to 99.56%.

  11. Transnationalism and Rights in the Age of Empire: Spoken Word, Music, and Digital Culture in the Borderlands

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hicks, Emily D.

    2004-01-01

    The cultural activities, including the performance of music and spoken word are documented. The cultural activities in the San Diego-Tijuana region that is described is emerged from rhizomatic, transnational points of contact.

  12. An analysis of music therapy program goals and outcomes for clients with diagnoses on the autism spectrum.

    PubMed

    Kaplan, Ronna S; Steele, Anita Louise

    2005-01-01

    The researchers analyzed data related to goals and outcomes over 2 program years for 40 music therapy clients, ranging in age from 2-49 years, with diagnoses on the autism spectrum. They investigated music therapy interventions, session types, and formats most frequently used; goals most frequently addressed; assessed level of difficulty of clients and their situations; and generalization of skills attained in music therapy to other settings. The most common session type was individual, followed by partner, small or large groups, peer model, or a combination. Primary goal areas were ranked from language/communication (41%), behavioral/psychosocial (39%), cognitive (8%), and musical (7%), to perceptual/motor (5%). One hundred percent of subjects reached their initial objectives in these goal areas within one year or less, regardless of session type, level of difficulty, or goal area. Seventy-seven percent of intermediate objectives were reached within that time. The most frequently utilized interventions were interactive instrument playing, musical instrument instruction, interactive singing, instrument choices, and song choices. Specific interventions chosen did not affect accomplishment of initial objectives. However, there was more variation among interventions in terms of achievement of intermediate objectives. Session formats were ranked from activity-based as most frequent to lesson-based, client-led/"shadow," and ensemble format. All formats were successful when addressing initial objectives, with lesson-based format being most effective in reaching intermediate objectives. Lastly, 100% of parents and caregivers surveyed indicated subjects generalized skills/responses acquired in music therapy to non-music therapy environments.

  13. From Kratzenstein to Wheatstone: Episodes in the early history of free reed acoustics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cottingham, James P.

    2002-05-01

    In 1780 C. G. Kratzenstein published a paper in St. Petersburg describing a machine which produced vowel sounds using free reeds with resonators of various shapes. This marks a convenient, if arbitrary, starting point for the history of the free reed musical instruments of European origin. These instruments developed rapidly, and by 1850 the accordion, concertina, harmonica, reed organ, and harmonium all had been invented and developed into more or less final form. A key figure in this period is Charles Wheatstone, who not only published papers on acoustical research but was also an inventor and commercially successful manufacturer of musical instruments, most notably the Wheatstone English concertina. Much of Wheatstone's research in acoustics and almost all of his work as an inventor of musical instruments involved free reeds. This paper presents some episodes in the development of the free reed instruments and some examples of acoustical research involving free reeds during the 18th and 19th centuries.

  14. Identification of musical instruments by normal-hearing subjects listening through a cochlear-implant simulation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Reich, Rebecca D.; Eddington, Donald

    2002-05-01

    Signal processing in a cochlear implant (CI) is primarily designed to convey speech and environmental sounds, and can cause distortion of musical timbre. Systematic investigation of musical instrument identification through a CI has not yet revealed how timbre is affected by the implant's processing. In this experiment, the bandpass filtering, rectification, and low-pass filtering of an implant are simulated in MATLAB. Synthesized signals representing 12 common instruments, each performing a major scale, are processed by simulations using up to 8 analysis channels. The unprocessed recordings, together with the 8 simulation conditions for 12 instruments, are presented in random order to each of the subjects. The subject's task is to identify the instrument represented by each item. The subjects also subjectively score each item based on similarity and pleasantness. We anticipate performance using the simulation will be worse than the unprocessed condition because of the limited information delivered by the envelopes of the analysis channels. These results will be analyzed as a confusion matrix and provide a basis for contrasting the information used by subjects listening to the unprocessed and processed materials. Understanding these differences should aid in the development of new processing strategies to better represent music for cochlear implant users.

  15. "The Impossible" Future

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Higgins, Lee

    2007-01-01

    Providing genuine opportunities for musical engagement is a constant challenge for music educators. Throughout their working lives, they may find "authentic" moments of musical engagement ever harder to manifest. The potential obstacles are numerous: the size or configuration of physical space, the number of instruments available, the quality of…

  16. Exploring Music Dynamics through Children's Literature

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cardany, Audrey Berger

    2012-01-01

    Language sometimes creates confusion when teaching music concepts to children. Incorporating children's literature may further enhance children's comprehension of music vocabulary when preceded by listening and moving experiences, as well as singing and playing instruments. "The Quiet Book," and its companion, "The Loud Book!" both authored by…

  17. Rap-Music Attitude and Perception Scale: A Validation Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tyson, Edgar H.

    2006-01-01

    Objective: This study tests the validity of the Rap-music Attitude and Perception (RAP) Scale, a 1-page, 24-item measure of a person's thoughts and feelings surrounding the effects and content of rap music. The RAP was designed as a rapid assessment instrument for youth programs and practitioners using rap music and hip hop culture in their work…

  18. Musical memory in a patient with severe anterograde amnesia

    PubMed Central

    Cavaco, Sara; Feinstein, Justin S.; van Twillert, Henk; Tranel, Daniel

    2014-01-01

    The ability to play a musical instrument represents a unique procedural skill that can be remarkably resilient to disruptions in declarative memory. For example, musicians with severe anterograde amnesia have demonstrated preserved ability to play musical instruments. However, the question of whether amnesic musicians can learn how to play new musical material despite severe memory impairment has not been thoroughly investigated. We capitalized on a rare opportunity to address this question. Patient SZ, an amateur musician (tenor saxophone), has extensive bilateral damage to his medial temporal lobes following herpes simplex encephalitis, resulting in a severe anterograde amnesia. We tested SZ’s capacity to learn new unfamiliar songs by sight-reading following three months of biweekly practices. Performances were recorded and then evaluated by a professional saxophonist. SZ demonstrated significant improvement in his ability to read and play new music, despite his inability to recognize any of the songs at a declarative level. The results suggest that it is possible to learn certain aspects of new music without the assistance of declarative memory. PMID:23036073

  19. Musical Instrument-Associated Health Issues and Their Management.

    PubMed

    Okoshi, Kae; Minami, Taro; Kikuchi, Masahiro; Tomizawa, Yasuko

    2017-09-01

    Playing musical instruments can bring joy to people, but can also cause a wide variety of health issues that range from mild disorders to potentially fatal conditions. Although sports medicine is an established medical subspecialty, relatively few studies have investigated the health issues associated with musical instruments. Here we present an overview of these health issues. These include infections due to microorganisms, allergic reactions, as well as mechanical injuries from sustained high pressures within the oral, mediastinal, thoracic, and abdominal cavities. For example, wind instruments can potentially harbor thousands of pathogenic organisms. If several players share the same instrument, these instruments present potential hazards in the spread of infections. A fatal case of hypersensitivity pneumonitis in a bagpiper is particularly noteworthy. Similarly, a case of gastrointestinal anthrax in an animal-hide drummer is a reminder of this rare but highly fatal disease. Although not fatal, hearing-related disorders, neuromuscular issues, musculoskeletal problems, and contact dermatitis are also very common among instrumentalists. This review aims to illuminate these under-recognized health issues by highlighting both the common conditions and the rare but fatal cases.

  20. Motion Simulation in the Environment for Auditory Research

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-08-01

    Toolbox, Centre for Digital Music , Queen Mary University of London, 2009. http://www.isophonics.net/content/spatial-audio- matlab-toolbox (accessed July 27...this work. 46 Student Bio I studied Music Technology at Northwestern University, graduating as valedictorian of the School of... Music in 2008. In 2009, I was awarded the Gates Cambridge Scholarship to fund a postgraduate degree at the University of Cambridge. I read for a

  1. Mobile radiography at a music festival.

    PubMed

    Walker, A; Brenchley, J; Hughes, N

    2009-08-01

    Limb injuries are common at music festival sites and traditionally patients seen by on-site medical services require referral to hospital emergency departments for radiographic exclusion of bony injury. This takes clinical personnel off site, increases demand on local emergency departments and is inconvenient for revellers. This is an audit of the use of a portable digital radiography system at the Virgin music festival in Staffordshire over a 3-year period.

  2. Effects of a School-Based Instrumental Music Program on Verbal and Visual Memory in Primary School Children: A Longitudinal Study

    PubMed Central

    Roden, Ingo; Kreutz, Gunter; Bongard, Stephan

    2012-01-01

    This study examined the effects of a school-based instrumental training program on the development of verbal and visual memory skills in primary school children. Participants either took part in a music program with weekly 45 min sessions of instrumental lessons in small groups at school, or they received extended natural science training. A third group of children did not receive additional training. Each child completed verbal and visual memory tests three times over a period of 18 months. Significant Group by Time interactions were found in the measures of verbal memory. Children in the music group showed greater improvements than children in the control groups after controlling for children’s socio-economic background, age, and IQ. No differences between groups were found in the visual memory tests. These findings are consistent with and extend previous research by suggesting that children receiving music training may benefit from improvements in their verbal memory skills. PMID:23267341

  3. Prospective Study on Music Therapy in Terminally Ill Cancer Patients during Specialized Inpatient Palliative Care.

    PubMed

    Kordovan, Sarah; Preissler, Pia; Kamphausen, Anne; Bokemeyer, Carsten; Oechsle, Karin

    2016-04-01

    This study was a prospective evaluation of feasibility, acceptance, and potential beneficial effects of music therapy in terminally ill cancer patients on a specialized palliative care inpatient ward. Intervention had to consist of at least two sessions, but frequency and duration was left to the patients` decision. Different music therapy methods were offered to the patient at the beginning of every session. Patients rated their subjective benefit. Disease-related and sociodemographic factors were considered as potentially influencing factors. A total of 166 music therapy sessions were performed with 41 patients (average, 4; range, 2-10). Average session duration was 41 minutes (range, 20-70). Most favored methods were therapeutic conversation in 84% of sessions; listening to relaxing music, 39%; playing an instrument, 31%; and music-lead imagination, 11%. Receptive music therapy was applied in 45%, active forms in 25%, a combination of both in 7%, and therapeutic conversation only in 23%. Music therapy was rated to be "helpful" in 68%. Positive effects were significantly associated with frequency (p = 0.009) and duration (p = 0.040), living in a partnership (p = 0.017), having children (p = 0.035), psycho-oncologic therapy (p = 0.043), experience with music therapy (p = 0.007), role of music in life (p = 0.035), playing an instrument (p = 0.021), and singing regularly (p = 0.003). Music therapy techniques, especially receptive methods, are feasible and well accepted in terminally ill cancer patients. Therapeutic conversation seems to play an important role. Frequency and duration of music therapy, previous experience with music and music therapy, as well as sociodemographic factors influence positive effects of music therapy.

  4. Audio-based deep music emotion recognition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Tong; Han, Li; Ma, Liangkai; Guo, Dongwei

    2018-05-01

    As the rapid development of multimedia networking, more and more songs are issued through the Internet and stored in large digital music libraries. However, music information retrieval on these libraries can be really hard, and the recognition of musical emotion is especially challenging. In this paper, we report a strategy to recognize the emotion contained in songs by classifying their spectrograms, which contain both the time and frequency information, with a convolutional neural network (CNN). The experiments conducted on the l000-song dataset indicate that the proposed model outperforms traditional machine learning method.

  5. Analysis of the learning curve for transurethral resection of the prostate. Is there any influence of musical instrument and video game skills on surgical performance?

    PubMed

    Yamaçake, Kleiton Gabriel Ribeiro; Nakano, Elcio Tadashi; Soares, Iva Barbosa; Cordeiro, Paulo; Srougi, Miguel; Antunes, Alberto Azoubel

    2015-09-01

    To evaluate the learning curve for transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) among urology residents and study the impact of video game and musical instrument playing abilities on its performance. A prospective study was performed from July 2009 to January 2013 with patients submitted to TURP for benign prostatic hyperplasia. Fourteen residents operated on 324 patients. The following parameters were analyzed: age, prostate-specific antigen levels, prostate weight on ultrasound, pre- and postoperative serum sodium and hemoglobin levels, weight of resected tissue, operation time, speed of resection, and incidence of capsular lesions. Gender, handedness, and prior musical instrument and video game playing experience were recorded using survey responses. The mean resection speed in the first 10 procedures was 0.36 g/min and reached a mean of 0.51 g/min after the 20(th) procedure. The incidence of capsular lesions decreased progressively. The operation time decreased progressively for each subgroup regardless of the difference in the weight of tissue resected. Those experienced in playing video games presented superior resection speed (0.45 g/min) when compared with the novice (0.35 g/min) and intermediate (0.38 g/min) groups (p=0.112). Musical instrument playing abilities did not affect the surgical performance. Speed of resection, weight of resected tissue, and percentage of resected tissue improve significantly and the incidence of capsular lesions reduces after the performance of 10 TURP procedures. Experience in playing video games or musical instruments does not have a significant effect on outcomes.

  6. The cryomechanical design of MUSIC: a novel imaging instrument for millimeter-wave astrophysics at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hollister, Matthew I.; Czakon, Nicole G.; Day, Peter K.; Downes, Thomas P.; Duan, Ran; Gao, Jiansong; Glenn, Jason; Golwala, Sunil R.; LeDuc, Henry G.; Maloney, Philip R.; Mazin, Benjamin A.; Nguyen, Hien Trong; Noroozian, Omid; Sayers, Jack; Schlaerth, James; Siegel, Seth; Vaillancourt, John E.; Vayonakis, Anastasios; Wilson, Philip; Zmuidzinas, Jonas

    2010-07-01

    MUSIC (Multicolor Submillimeter kinetic Inductance Camera) is a new facility instrument for the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory (Mauna Kea, Hawaii) developed as a collaborative effect of Caltech, JPL, the University of Colorado at Boulder and UC Santa Barbara, and is due for initial commissioning in early 2011. MUSIC utilizes a new class of superconducting photon detectors known as microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKIDs), an emergent technology that offers considerable advantages over current types of detectors for submillimeter and millimeter direct detection. MUSIC will operate a focal plane of 576 spatial pixels, where each pixel is a slot line antenna coupled to multiple detectors through on-chip, lumped-element filters, allowing simultaneously imaging in four bands at 0.86, 1.02, 1.33 and 2.00 mm. The MUSIC instrument is designed for closed-cycle operation, combining a pulse tube cooler with a two-stage Helium-3 adsorption refrigerator, providing a focal plane temperature of 0.25 K with intermediate temperature stages at approximately 50, 4 and 0.4 K for buffering heat loads and heat sinking of optical filters. Detector readout is achieved using semi-rigid coaxial cables from room temperature to the focal plane, with cryogenic HEMT amplifiers operating at 4 K. Several hundred detectors may be multiplexed in frequency space through one signal line and amplifier. This paper discusses the design of the instrument cryogenic hardware, including a number of features unique to the implementation of superconducting detectors. Predicted performance data for the instrument system will also be presented and discussed.

  7. [The musician's hand: aspects of music physiology and performing arts medicine].

    PubMed

    Blum, J

    2000-09-01

    Musicians are particularly demanding hand patients. Increased expectancy towards the hand surgeon as well as principle aversion to any kind of operative treatment of the musician's hand impede the relationship between hand surgeon and patient. Knowledge and experience of the specific demands towards the musician's hand--including the background of basics in physiology of music making and instrumental techniques--facilitate history taking, examinations, diagnosing as well as the selection of therapy. Besides tendinitis and tendovaginitis, pathologies of the musician's hand are not more frequent compared to the entire population. Still several pathologies reach a significantly pronounced importance through the specific professional requirements. This is true especially for peripheral nerve compression syndromes, arthritis, ganglia, contractures, joint laxity and focal dystonias. The treatment of these disorders and hand trauma require, besides an utmost of hand surgical care, creativity and the implementation of the professional musical surroundings in therapy and rehabilitation, including also the musical instruments. The indication for surgery might be restrained in certain cases, although there are, without doubt, situations, when a professional musician should be operated on at an early stage. This should enhance a rapid return to play the musical instrument and to exercise delicate and demanding skilled movement patterns of his hand.

  8. Musical learning in children and adults with Williams syndrome.

    PubMed

    Lense, M; Dykens, E

    2013-09-01

    There is recent interest in using music making as an empirically supported intervention for various neurodevelopmental disorders due to music's engagement of perceptual-motor mapping processes. However, little is known about music learning in populations with developmental disabilities. Williams syndrome (WS) is a neurodevelopmental genetic disorder whose characteristic auditory strengths and visual-spatial weaknesses map onto the processes used to learn to play a musical instrument. We identified correlates of novel musical instrument learning in WS by teaching 46 children and adults (7-49 years) with WS to play the Appalachian dulcimer. Obtained dulcimer skill was associated with prior musical abilities (r = 0.634, P < 0.001) and visual-motor integration abilities (r = 0.487, P = 0.001), but not age, gender, IQ, handedness, auditory sensitivities or musical interest/emotionality. Use of auditory learning strategies, but not visual or instructional strategies, predicted greater dulcimer skill beyond individual musical and visual-motor integration abilities (β = 0.285, sr(2) = 0.06, P = 0.019). These findings map onto behavioural and emerging neural evidence for greater auditory-motor mapping processes in WS. Results suggest that explicit awareness of task-specific learning approaches is important when learning a new skill. Implications for using music with populations with syndrome-specific strengths and weakness will be discussed. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research © 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd, MENCAP & IASSID.

  9. Evolution of music score watermarking algorithm

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Busch, Christoph; Nesi, Paolo; Schmucker, Martin; Spinu, Marius B.

    2002-04-01

    Content protection for multimedia data is widely recognized especially for data types that are frequently distributed, sold or shared using the Internet. Particularly music industry dealing with audio files realized the necessity for content protection. Distribution of music sheets will face the same problems. Digital watermarking techniques provide a certain level of protection for these music sheets. But classical raster-oriented watermarking algorithms for images suffer several drawbacks when directly applied to image representations of music sheets. Therefore new solutions have been developed which are designed regarding the content of the music sheets. In Comparison to other media types the development for watermarking of music scores is a rather young art. The paper reviews the evolution of the early approaches and describes the current state of the art in the field.

  10. Incentive Mechanisms for Mobile Music Distribution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Furini, Marco; Montangero, Manuela

    The mobile digital world is seen as an important business opportunity for two main reasons: the widespread usage of cellphones (more than two billions [30], most of them with sound features) and the pervasiveness of mobile technologies. As a result, music industry and telecoms are bringing the successful Internet-based music market strategy into the mobile scenario: record labels are setting up agreements with cellphone network providers (Sprint, Verizon, Vodafone, Orange just to name a few) to offer a download music service also in the mobile scenario. The strategy is to use wireless channels to distribute music contents in the attempt of replicating the success of the Internet-based download scenario.

  11. Vocal tract resonances in speech, singing, and playing musical instruments

    PubMed Central

    Wolfe, Joe; Garnier, Maëva; Smith, John

    2009-01-01

    In both the voice and musical wind instruments, a valve (vocal folds, lips, or reed) lies between an upstream and downstream duct: trachea and vocal tract for the voice; vocal tract and bore for the instrument. Examining the structural similarities and functional differences gives insight into their operation and the duct-valve interactions. In speech and singing, vocal tract resonances usually determine the spectral envelope and usually have a smaller influence on the operating frequency. The resonances are important not only for the phonemic information they produce, but also because of their contribution to voice timbre, loudness, and efficiency. The role of the tract resonances is usually different in brass and some woodwind instruments, where they modify and to some extent compete or collaborate with resonances of the instrument to control the vibration of a reed or the player’s lips, and∕or the spectrum of air flow into the instrument. We give a brief overview of oscillator mechanisms and vocal tract acoustics. We discuss recent and current research on how the acoustical resonances of the vocal tract are involved in singing and the playing of musical wind instruments. Finally, we compare techniques used in determining tract resonances and suggest some future developments. PMID:19649157

  12. Vocal tract resonances in speech, singing, and playing musical instruments.

    PubMed

    Wolfe, Joe; Garnier, Maëva; Smith, John

    2009-01-01

    IN BOTH THE VOICE AND MUSICAL WIND INSTRUMENTS, A VALVE (VOCAL FOLDS, LIPS, OR REED) LIES BETWEEN AN UPSTREAM AND DOWNSTREAM DUCT: trachea and vocal tract for the voice; vocal tract and bore for the instrument. Examining the structural similarities and functional differences gives insight into their operation and the duct-valve interactions. In speech and singing, vocal tract resonances usually determine the spectral envelope and usually have a smaller influence on the operating frequency. The resonances are important not only for the phonemic information they produce, but also because of their contribution to voice timbre, loudness, and efficiency. The role of the tract resonances is usually different in brass and some woodwind instruments, where they modify and to some extent compete or collaborate with resonances of the instrument to control the vibration of a reed or the player's lips, andor the spectrum of air flow into the instrument. We give a brief overview of oscillator mechanisms and vocal tract acoustics. We discuss recent and current research on how the acoustical resonances of the vocal tract are involved in singing and the playing of musical wind instruments. Finally, we compare techniques used in determining tract resonances and suggest some future developments.

  13. Scales and Exercises with Aksak Meters in Flute Education: A Study with Turkish and Italian Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sakin, Ajda Senol; Öztürk, Ferda Gürgan

    2016-01-01

    Musical scale and exercise studies in instrumental education are considered as a fundamental component of music education. During an analysis of methods prepared for instrumental education, it was detected that scale and exercise studies for Aksak meters generally did not exist. This study was conducted to identify the effects of scales and…

  14. An Examination of Embedding Character Education into the Daily Functions of High School Instrumental Music Ensembles

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sours, James P.

    2009-01-01

    This study was conducted to examine the effectiveness of embedding character education into the daily functions of instrumental music ensembles at Franklin High School in Portland Oregon. The participants in the study were the students of the researcher which may have been a delimitation. Their ages were from 14 to 19 years. Students from…

  15. Arts Involvement Predicts Academic Achievement Only When the Child Has a Musical Instrument

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Young, Laura N.; Cordes, Sara; Winner, Ellen

    2014-01-01

    We examined the associations between academic achievement and arts involvement (access to a musical instrument for the child at home, participation in unspecified after-school arts activities) in a sample of 2339 11-12-year-olds surveyed in the USA between 1998 and 2008. We compared the contributions of these variables to other kinds of cognitive…

  16. From Leisure to Work: Amateur Musicians Taking up Instrumental or Vocal Teaching as a Second Career

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Taylor, Angela; Hallam, Susan

    2011-01-01

    This article aims to increase our understanding of how amateur musicians become teachers as a change of career, how they use their musical and life skills in their teaching, and how their teaching impacts on their musical identity. The questionnaire responses of 67 career-change instrumental and vocal teachers showed evidence of their strong…

  17. Music 4C, a multi-voiced synthesis program with instruments defined in C

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Beauchamp, James W.

    2003-04-01

    Music 4C is a program which runs under Unix (including Linux) and provides a means for the synthesis of arbitrary signals as defined by the C code. The program is actually a loose translation of an earlier program, Music 4BF [H. S. Howe, Jr., Electronic Music Synthesis (Norton, 1975)]. A set of instrument definitions are driven by a numerical score which consists of a series of ``events.'' Each event gives an instrument name, start time and duration, and a number of parameters (e.g., pitch) which describe the event. Each instrument definition consists of event parameters, performance variables, initializations, and a synthesis algorithmic code. Thus, the synthetic signal, no matter how complex, is precisely defined. Moreover, the resulting sounds can be overlaid in any arbitrary pattern. The program serves as a mixer of algorithmically produced sounds or recorded sounds taken from sample files or synthesized from spectrum files. A score file can be entered by hand, generated from a program, translated from a MIDI file, or generated from an alpha-numeric score using an auxiliary program, Notepro. Output sample files are in wav, snd, or aiff format. The program is provided in the C source code for download.

  18. The Association of Music Experience, Pattern of Practice and Performance Anxiety with Playing-Related Musculoskeletal Problems (PRMP) in Children Learning Instrumental Music

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ranelli, Sonia; Smith, Anne; Straker, Leon

    2015-01-01

    There is evidence supporting the social and cognitive benefits of music education. However aspects of music practice, such as an increase in frequency and intensity of practice, are associated with playing-related musculoskeletal problems in adult musicians, though with limited evidence in children. The aim of this study was to describe the music…

  19. Still Making Music: How Students with Traumatic Brain Injury Can Continue with Musical Activities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bennington, Patrick M.

    2017-01-01

    Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is common in the United States. All age groups are at risk for TBI, but there is a larger occurrence among school-age children and young adults. No matter the severity of a student's injury, he or she can benefit from music education, whether listening to music, singing, or performing on an instrument. Students can…

  20. Relationships between Postsecondary Students' Instrumental Performance Fundamentals and Musical Independence: How Important are Tone, Intonation, Phrasing, Ensemble, Technique, Dynamics, Rhythm, History, Form, and Theory?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bobbett, Gordon C.; And Others

    This study examines the relationships among a variety of secondary/postsecondary experiences and activities and postsecondary students' musical independence (MI). The paper reports on the impact of 10 Performance Fundamentals (PFs) on the postsecondary student's MI as measured by Colwell's Musical Achievement Test 3 (MAT3) and Musical Achievement…

  1. Soreness during non-music activities is associated with playing-related musculoskeletal problems: an observational study of 731 child and adolescent instrumentalists.

    PubMed

    Ranelli, Sonia; Straker, Leon; Smith, Anne

    2014-06-01

    Is exposure to non-music-related activities associated with playing-related musculoskeletal problems in young instrumentalists? Is non-music-activity-related soreness associated with playing-related musculoskeletal problems in this group of instrumentalists? Observational study using a questionnaire and physical measures. 859 instrumentalists aged 7 to 17 years from the School of Instrumental Music program. Of the 731 respondents who completed the questionnaire adequately, 412 (56%) experienced instrument-playing problems; 219 (30%) had symptoms severe enough to interfere with normal playing. Children commonly reported moderate exposure to non-music-related activities, such as watching television (61%), vigorous physical activity (57%), writing (51%) and computer use (45%). Greater exposure to any non-music activity was not associated with playing problems, with odds ratios ranging from 1.01 (95% CI 0.7 to 1.5) for watching television to 2.08 (95% CI 0.5 to 3.3) for intensive hand activities. Four hundred and seventy eight (65%) children reported soreness related to non-music activities, such as vigorous physical activity (52%), writing (40%), computer use (28%), intensive hand activities (22%), electronic game use (17%) and watching television (15%). Non-music-activity-related soreness was significantly associated with instrument playing problems, adjusting for gender and age, with odds ratios ranging from 2.6 (95% CI 1.7 to 3.9) for soreness whilst watching television, to 4.3 (95% CI 2.6 to 7.1) for soreness during intensive hand activities. Non-music-activity-related soreness co-occurs significantly with playing problems in young instrumentalists. The finding of significant co-occurrence of music and non-music-related soreness in respondents in this study suggests that intervention targets for young instrumentalists could include risk factors previously identified in the general child and adolescent population, as well as music-specific risk factors. This is an important consideration for the assessment and management of the musculoskeletal health of young musicians. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  2. Evaluating the Effectiveness of School Instrumental Programs.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Holtz, Glenn

    2001-01-01

    Describes the analysis of "Strengths and Weaknesses and Opportunities and Threats" (SWOT). Discusses the study, "Gemeinhardt 4," that used the SWOT analysis to determine 13 different types of music programs. Addresses how music teachers can utilize this information. Includes other sections such as, "Possible Solution to Music Program Threats."…

  3. An Approach to Chinese-English Bilingual Music Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ward, Lisa-Jane

    2014-01-01

    Music departments in Chinese universities incorporate Western musicology and instruments as part of their undergraduate or graduate courses (or both). However, many of these students may have had limited exposure to Western classical music and English, as a medium of communication. Furthermore, these courses are predominantly offered in Chinese.…

  4. Envisioning Collaborative Composing in Music Education: Learning and Negotiation of Meaning in "operabyyou.com"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Partti, Heidi; Westerlund, Heidi

    2013-01-01

    This qualitative instrumental case study examines collaborative composing in the "operabyyou.com" online music community from the perspective of learning by utilising the concept of a "community of practice" as a heuristic frame. The article suggests that although informal music practices offer important opportunities for…

  5. Ecological Development and Validation of a Music Performance Rating Scale for Five Instrument Families

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wrigley, William J.; Emmerson, Stephen B.

    2013-01-01

    This study investigated ways to improve the quality of music performance evaluation in an effort to address the accountability imperative in tertiary music education. An enhanced scientific methodology was employed incorporating ecological validity and using recognized qualitative methods involving grounded theory and quantitative methods…

  6. Bagpipes and Artichokes: Surprise as a Stimulus to Learning in the Elementary Music Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jacobi, Bonnie Schaffhauser

    2016-01-01

    Incorporating surprise into music instruction can stimulate student attention, curiosity, and interest. Novelty focuses attention in the reticular activating system, increasing the potential for brain memory storage. Elementary ages are ideal for introducing novel instruments, pieces, composers, or styles of music. Young children have fewer…

  7. Self-Regulation Competence in Music Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ludovico, Luca Andrea; Mangione, Giuseppina Rita

    2014-01-01

    This work starts from a systematic review about music education and self-regulation during learning processes. Then the paper identifies those meta-cognitive strategies that music students should adopt during their instrumental practice. The goal is applying such concepts in order to rethink the structure of a didactic e-book for instrumental…

  8. CREATIVE MUSIC EDUCATION. ORIGINAL COMPOSITION BY STUDENTS.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    MATHES, BERNADINE; AND OTHERS

    THE GROWTH AND SUCCESS OF AN ORIGINAL COMPOSITION PROJECT DESIGNED TO ENCOURAGE CREATIVE WORK IN MUSIC ARE DESCRIBED. THE MAJOR PURPOSE, BEYOND THE COMPOSITION OF SONGS OR INSTRUMENTAL WORKS, WAS THE IMPROVEMENT AND GROWTH OF THE STUDENT SOCIALLY, INTELLECTUALLY, AND CULTURALLY AS WELL AS MUSICALLY. MORE THAN 2,000 STUDENTS PARTICIPATED BY…

  9. Music and Careers for the Junior High Student.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carlson, Bruce

    The curriculum guide describes an exemplary project designed to provide junior high school students with an opportunity to explore careers related to the world of music. The units present objectives, activities, and resources related to the following occupations: pop music artist, professional musician (union), instrumental and vocal music…

  10. Applied Music (Individual Study).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Texas Education Agency, Austin.

    Background information and resources to help students in grades 9-12 in Texas pursue an individual study contract in applied music is presented. To fulfill a contract students must publicly perform from memory, with accompaniment as specified, three selections from a list of approved music for their chosen field (instrument or voice). Material…

  11. The Music within

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rajan, Rekha S.

    2010-01-01

    Providing opportunity for musical exploration is essential to any early childhood program. Through music making, children are actively engaged with their senses: they listen to the complex sounds around them, move their bodies to the rhythms, and touch and feel the textures and shapes of the instruments. The inimitable strength of the Montessori…

  12. Hydraulophones: Acoustic musical instruments and expressive user interfaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Janzen, Ryan E.

    Fluid flow creates an expansive range of acoustic possibilities, particularly in the case of water, which has unique turbulence and vortex shedding properties as compared with the air of ordinary wind instruments. Sound from water flow is explained with reference to a new class of musical instruments, hydraulophones, in which oscillation originates directly from matter in its liquid state. Several hydraulophones which were realized in practical form are described. A unique user-interface consisting of a row of water jets is presented, in terms of its expressiveness, tactility, responsiveness to derivatives and integrals of displacement, and in terms of the direct physical interaction between a user and the physical process of sound production. Signal processing algorithms are introduced, which extract further information from turbulent water flow, for industrial applications as well as musical applications.

  13. How musical are music video game players?

    PubMed

    Pasinski, Amanda C; Hannon, Erin E; Snyder, Joel S

    2016-10-01

    Numerous studies have shown that formal musical training is associated with sensory, motor, and cognitive advantages in individuals of various ages. However, the nature of the observed differences between musicians and nonmusicians is poorly understood, and little is known about the listening skills of individuals who engage in alternative types of everyday musical activities. Here, we show that people who have frequently played music video games outperform nonmusicians controls on a battery of music perception tests. These findings reveal that enhanced musical aptitude can be found among individuals who play music video games, raising the possibility that music video games could potentially enhance music perception skills in individuals across a broad spectrum of society who are otherwise unable to invest the time and/or money required to learn a musical instrument.

  14. Size and synchronization of auditory cortex promotes musical, literacy, and attentional skills in children.

    PubMed

    Seither-Preisler, Annemarie; Parncutt, Richard; Schneider, Peter

    2014-08-13

    Playing a musical instrument is associated with numerous neural processes that continuously modify the human brain and may facilitate characteristic auditory skills. In a longitudinal study, we investigated the auditory and neural plasticity of musical learning in 111 young children (aged 7-9 y) as a function of the intensity of instrumental practice and musical aptitude. Because of the frequent co-occurrence of central auditory processing disorders and attentional deficits, we also tested 21 children with attention deficit (hyperactivity) disorder [AD(H)D]. Magnetic resonance imaging and magnetoencephalography revealed enlarged Heschl's gyri and enhanced right-left hemispheric synchronization of the primary evoked response (P1) to harmonic complex sounds in children who spent more time practicing a musical instrument. The anatomical characteristics were positively correlated with frequency discrimination, reading, and spelling skills. Conversely, AD(H)D children showed reduced volumes of Heschl's gyri and enhanced volumes of the plana temporalia that were associated with a distinct bilateral P1 asynchrony. This may indicate a risk for central auditory processing disorders that are often associated with attentional and literacy problems. The longitudinal comparisons revealed a very high stability of auditory cortex morphology and gray matter volumes, suggesting that the combined anatomical and functional parameters are neural markers of musicality and attention deficits. Educational and clinical implications are considered. Copyright © 2014 the authors 0270-6474/14/3410937-13$15.00/0.

  15. The E-music box: an empirical method for exploring the universal capacity for musical production and for social interaction through music

    PubMed Central

    Novembre, Giacomo; Varlet, Manuel; Muawiyath, Shujau; Stevens, Catherine J.; Keller, Peter E.

    2015-01-01

    Humans are assumed to have a natural—universal—predisposition for making music and for musical interaction. Research in this domain is, however, typically conducted with musically trained individuals, and therefore confounded with expertise. Here, we present a rediscovered and updated invention—the E-music box—that we establish as an empirical method to investigate musical production and interaction in everyone. The E-music box transforms rotatory cyclical movements into pre-programmable digital musical output, with tempo varying according to rotation speed. The user’s movements are coded as continuous oscillatory data, which can be analysed using linear or nonlinear analytical tools. We conducted a proof-of-principle experiment to demonstrate that, using this method, pairs of non-musically trained individuals can interact according to conventional musical practices (leader/follower roles and lower-pitch dominance). The results suggest that the E-music box brings ‘active’ and ‘interactive’ musical capacities within everyone’s reach. We discuss the potential of this method for exploring the universal predisposition for music making and interaction in developmental and cross-cultural contexts, and for neurologic musical therapy and rehabilitation. PMID:26715993

  16. The E-music box: an empirical method for exploring the universal capacity for musical production and for social interaction through music.

    PubMed

    Novembre, Giacomo; Varlet, Manuel; Muawiyath, Shujau; Stevens, Catherine J; Keller, Peter E

    2015-11-01

    Humans are assumed to have a natural-universal-predisposition for making music and for musical interaction. Research in this domain is, however, typically conducted with musically trained individuals, and therefore confounded with expertise. Here, we present a rediscovered and updated invention-the E-music box-that we establish as an empirical method to investigate musical production and interaction in everyone. The E-music box transforms rotatory cyclical movements into pre-programmable digital musical output, with tempo varying according to rotation speed. The user's movements are coded as continuous oscillatory data, which can be analysed using linear or nonlinear analytical tools. We conducted a proof-of-principle experiment to demonstrate that, using this method, pairs of non-musically trained individuals can interact according to conventional musical practices (leader/follower roles and lower-pitch dominance). The results suggest that the E-music box brings 'active' and 'interactive' musical capacities within everyone's reach. We discuss the potential of this method for exploring the universal predisposition for music making and interaction in developmental and cross-cultural contexts, and for neurologic musical therapy and rehabilitation.

  17. A comparison between the first-fit settings of two multichannel digital signal-processing strategies: music quality ratings and speech-in-noise scores.

    PubMed

    Higgins, Paul; Searchfield, Grant; Coad, Gavin

    2012-06-01

    The aim of this study was to determine which level-dependent hearing aid digital signal-processing strategy (DSP) participants preferred when listening to music and/or performing a speech-in-noise task. Two receiver-in-the-ear hearing aids were compared: one using 32-channel adaptive dynamic range optimization (ADRO) and the other wide dynamic range compression (WDRC) incorporating dual fast (4 channel) and slow (15 channel) processing. The manufacturers' first-fit settings based on participants' audiograms were used in both cases. Results were obtained from 18 participants on a quick speech-in-noise (QuickSIN; Killion, Niquette, Gudmundsen, Revit, & Banerjee, 2004) task and for 3 music listening conditions (classical, jazz, and rock). Participants preferred the quality of music and performed better at the QuickSIN task using the hearing aids with ADRO processing. A potential reason for the better performance of the ADRO hearing aids was less fluctuation in output with change in sound dynamics. ADRO processing has advantages for both music quality and speech recognition in noise over the multichannel WDRC processing that was used in the study. Further evaluations of which DSP aspects contribute to listener preference are required.

  18. Neurologic music therapy in upper-limb rehabilitation in children with severe bilateral cerebral palsy: a randomized controlled trial.

    PubMed

    Marrades-Caballero, Eugenio; Santonja-Medina, Clara S; Sanz-Mengibar, Jose M; Santonja-Medina, Fernando

    2018-02-26

    After receiving neurologic music therapy, functional improvements in children with severe bilateral cerebral palsy have not been found in the literature. Musical training with instruments allows interrelationships between movement, emotions and cognition for task-based learning, in order to improve motor control. To understand whether neurologic music therapy has an impact on the functionality of children with severe cerebral palsy. A randomized controlled assessor-blind trial was carried out. Children were recruited and treated in their own community center. Eighteen children with severe bilateral cerebral palsy between 4 and 16 years old were studied. The intervention group (n=18) received music therapy for 16 weeks, in addition to its usual physiotherapy input. Two music therapists implemented a neurologic music therapy program of therapeutic instrumental music performance. The control group (n=9) received its usual therapeutic input, similar to the intervention group, but not neurologic music therapy. Overall and specific "Chailey levels of Ability" were quantified, as well as the Locomotor Stages. Significant improvements in the overall and specific "arm and hand position" as well as "activities" from the Chailey Levels of Ability and the Locomotor Stages were observed (p<.05) in the group which received the music therapy (corregir si se acepta en la editing proofs). All these improvements persisted after 4 months. The control group showed no improvements after a four-month follow-up. Optimized intervention of neurologic music therapy can improve the functionality of children with severe bilateral cerebral palsy. Music therapy is a useful tool in rehabilitation and its positive effects remain four months after completing the treatment.

  19. Cosmogonic Perceptions in the Armenian Traditional Musical Instrument-crafting Culture

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pikichian, Hripsime

    2015-07-01

    Based on research data and materials recorded by folk musicians and craftsmen, the article presents the musical instrument-crafting in traditional culture, its contribution in to re-establishment of cosmic order. In this context, the several issues are reviewed in detail: individuality of craftsmen and musicians, the raw materials for the creation of instrument, the instrument structure, the manufacturing process, the ornaments and application. According to the traditional view, using the elements of nature and imitating the sounds of nature and human psychological states the master imitates God repeating the process of creation of the Universe. So, the Instrument is held capable to influence the society contributing to the eternity of life.

  20. A digital waveguide-based approach for Clavinet modeling and synthesis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gabrielli, Leonardo; Välimäki, Vesa; Penttinen, Henri; Squartini, Stefano; Bilbao, Stefan

    2013-12-01

    The Clavinet is an electromechanical musical instrument produced in the mid-twentieth century. As is the case for other vintage instruments, it is subject to aging and requires great effort to be maintained or restored. This paper reports analyses conducted on a Hohner Clavinet D6 and proposes a computational model to faithfully reproduce the Clavinet sound in real time, from tone generation to the emulation of the electronic components. The string excitation signal model is physically inspired and represents a cheap solution in terms of both computational resources and especially memory requirements (compared, e.g., to sample playback systems). Pickups and amplifier models have been implemented which enhance the natural character of the sound with respect to previous work. A model has been implemented on a real-time software platform, Pure Data, capable of a 10-voice polyphony with low latency on an embedded device. Finally, subjective listening tests conducted using the current model are compared to previous tests showing slightly improved results.

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