The purpose of this study was to examine the presence of Schön's concept of reflective conversation as a defining component in the applied studio music lesson. The research problems were (1) to determine the presence of complete and incomplete reflective conversations; (2) to determine the verbally exhibited knowledge base within complete conversations in relationship to conversation length; and (3) to establish an instructional profile of stable behaviors based on reflective conversation as a distinguishing characteristic among selected teachers. Videotapes of twenty-six applied studio music lessons of thirteen university teachers were analyzed according to problem solving, on-the-spot experimentation, and evaluation. An observation form was developed and was a reliable tool to collect information concerning number and type of reflective conversations, conversation length, and the teachers' verbally demonstrated knowledge base. Knowledge base was obtained by using the procedural model of Flanagan's critical incident technique. Reflective conversations existed and were a distinguishing characteristic of the teachers. With the exception of two teachers, a stable use of both number and length of reflective conversations, and knowledge base areas, was found. A discernible difference in the teachers' knowledge base within conversation length existed, and thus established instructional profiles for the teachers. Complete reflective conversations ranged …

This study is a biography of the life experiences of Nathaniel Clark Smith (1877-1934), an African-American musician, music educator and composer who lived during the early part of America's music education's history. Smith became one of the first international bandmasters to organize bands, orchestras, and glee clubs in schools and industries in the United States. Smith was raised and attended school on a military post. He later received a B.S.M.A. from the Chicago Musical College and a Masters in Composition from the Sherwood School of Music. He taught music at five educational institutions: Tuskegee Institute, Western University, Lincoln, Wendell Phillips and Sumner High Schools. Some of his students became prominent musicians. They were Lionel Hampton, Nat "King" Cole, Milton Hinton, Bennie Moten and Charlie Parker. Smith also worked with industries. He conducted the newsboys band for the Chicago Defender Newspaper and he became the music supervisor for the porters of the Pullman Railroad Company. Smith was stated to have introduced the saxophone to African-Americans and he was considered as one of the first composers to notate spirituals. Smith published over fifty works in America. One of his compositions received a copyright from England. His Negro Folk Suite, published by the …

The purpose of this study was to develop and test systematically a theoretical model that delineated the constructs and subsumed variables of jazz improvisation performance. The specific research questions were; what specific performance variables are related to single line jazz solo improvisation performance? and; what is the most cogent groupings of variables into underlying constructs which characterize single line jazz solo improvisation performances for all performers, student performers, and professional performers?

Mental imagery is a common theme in research that clarifies how musical thought relates to musical performance. Unfortunately, minimal information exists regarding mental imagery and singers. The purpose of this study was to probe the role, if any, mental imagery plays in the conceptualization of pitch and vowel. By interviewing singers at differing levels of expertise, basic information was obtained about the mental processes used by singers. Through evaluations of the singers' mental processes, it was concluded that 95% of the singers in the study employed mental imagery. All singers described using kinesthetic imagery, while the majority implemented sensory and auditory imagery. Viso-spatial imagery was implemented among the more experienced singers. The majority of singers also reported: imaging pitch and vowel interactively; imaging from an internal perspective; and utilizing mental rehearsal. Less than half of the singers described using methods other than mental imagery to conceptualize pitch and vowel.

The purpose of this study was to determine the instructional methods of Oklahoma's elementary school music educators with respect to the inclusion of an authentic repertoire of American Indian music in the curriculum. The research was conducted through two methods. First, an analysis and review of adopted textbook series and pertinent supplemental resources on American Indian music was made. Second, a survey of K-6 grade elementary music specialists in Oklahoma during the 1997-1998 school year was conducted.

The purpose was to investigate the role of influential persons in the professional socialization process of music educators as musicians and teachers. The problems were to determine: who encouraged subjects toward music and teaching during pre-college, college, and post-college years; and the interrerationships of gender and teaching specialty with influential persons in subjects' lives.

This study investigated the effect familiarity with a teacher had on student interpretations of teacher verbal praise in seventh and eighth grade choral ensembles. A stimulus tape was constructed of 16, 30-second videotaped clips containing verbal praise of four teachers. Teachers identified their intent in the use of praise in each example. Students (n = 80) from the four choirs responded to the tape by labeling the praise in each clip as deserved or as one of three types of instructional praise (i.e., praise to encourage, to send a message to other students, or to seek student cooperation). Comparisons were made between choirs in labeling the praise. Comparisons were made also between each teacher's stated purpose in praising and the interpretations of choirs familiar and unfamiliar with the teacher. Choirs who were unfamiliar with the teacher differed from the teachers' own students in interpreting the praise: Students who knew a teacher labeled the praise as deserved in five clips, but unfamiliar choirs thought the praise served an instructional purpose. In four clips, choirs differed in their interpretations of the type of instructional praise. Students familiar with a teacher recognized their teacher's intent in praising in 12 of 16 clips. In …

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of trumpet playing upon the heart. A Holter monitor was used to record electrocardiograms (ECGs) to examine the heart's response during musical performances and practice sessions.

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Research on voice change in males has generally fallen into two categories: music education studies of changes in the singing voice and speech studies of changes in the speaking voice. These studies rarely consider differences in the dynamic ability of male singers at different stages of vocal development. The concept of tessitura, a portion of the vocal range in which the singer sounds best, is referred to in the literature on vocal music, but the means for identifying its size and location within the range have not been consistently specified. Tessitura appears to be a portion of the range which is most controllable in terms of dynamics and agility and is optimal in tonal quality. This study used the phonetograph to investigate differences in measures of intensity control between pre-pubertal, pubertal (changing) and post-pubertal voices in 48 males aged 9 to 18 years old. These intensity measures were compared to ratings of vocal effort from a panel of 4 music educators in order to determine if tessitura could be identified from acoustic and perceptual evidence of an optimum vocal area. Results of the study were: 1) post-pubertal voices demonstrated greater control of vocal intensity as revealed in lower mean minimum …