Journal articles on the topic 'Organ music Analysis'

This paper discusses the Organ Augmented Reality (ORA) project, which considers an audio and visual augmentation of an historical church organ to enhance the understanding and perception of the instrument through intuitive and familiar mappings and outputs. ORA has been presented to public audiences at two immersive concerts. The visual part of the installation was based on a spectral analysis of the music. The visuals were projections of LED-bar VU-meters on the organ pipes. The audio part was an immersive periphonic sound field, created from the live capture of the organ sounds, so that the listeners had the impression of being inside the augmented instrument. The graphical architecture of the installation is based on acoustic analysis, mapping from sound levels to synchronous graphics through visual calibration, real-time multi-layer graphical composition and animation. The ORA project is a new approach to musical instrument augmentation that combines enhanced instrument legibility and enhanced artistic content.

True Baroque organ music can only come back to life in the 21st century by developing Cu-based alloys and implementing them in the organ reed pipes. Reed pipes contain a vibrating part, the brass tongue that crucially influences its sound. Energy dispersive synchrotron X-ray diffraction has been performed in order to investigate residual stresses in the tongues. The in depth analysis gives us an important indication on the processes the tongues were submitted to during their manufacturing: hammering, annealing, filing to the neat thickness, curving of the tongues. A biaxial stress state in the organ tongues was considered. The residual stress values and behaviour were correlated to the manufacturing processes.

We examined, by historical and empirical means, relations among text (positive, negative), mode (Ionian, Phrygian), and medium (organ, vocal) in settings of a popular Christian melody from the baroque era. A descriptive analysis of 51 representative settings indicated that baroque composers tended to link Ionian settings of the melody to a "salvation" text and Phrygian settings to a "condemnation" text. They also set vocal pieces more frequently in the Ionian mode and organ pieces in the Phrygian mode. A series of experiments confirmed that contemporary adult and child listeners linked reward texts to the Ionian mode and punishment texts to the Phrygian mode, with the internal cadence structure of the settings affecting such links. Moreover, adult listeners associated these texts differentially with organ and vocal settings.

Musicians can choose between various “historicist” or “presentist” ways of performing works from the past. Music scholars who study early music sometimes are forced to make similar choices. If one thinks of corpus studies in music as an objective form of counting the “elements of music,” the question of what constitutes an “element” can involve similar historicist/presentist dilemmas. The article examines three historically significant characteristics of European art music—three historicist features—that are not always recognized in presentist corpus studies. For an illustrative example, a comparison is made between how the cadenza doppia in a Bach toccata for organ might be represented in a corpus study as either a two-voice framework or a series of Roman numerals in the tradition of Allen McHose (1947). Because that type of cadence was a commonplace in Bach’s time and in Bach’s compositions, a corpus analysis should be able to detect its multiple occurrences as a core element of the music.

I should begin by declaring immediately my standpoint that there is no such thing as race. Race and, by extension, racism may have a social reality but they have no sound scientific grounding whatsoever. No convincing biological evidence has ever been produced that establishes the existence of different human races. DNA analysis offers little support to theories of genetic difference, and has revealed that even the most geographically separate social groups vary in only 6 to 8 per cent of their genes. Race does not present a medical problem when it comes to organ transplants. My research questions are, therefore: When and why did the idea of ‘race’ arise, and how did this fiction affect the production and consumption of music in the nineteenth century? In seeking answers, I make illustrative references to Liszt's Gypsy, Wagner's Jew, Celtic music, African-American music and American Indian music.

The chest organ, which gained popularity at the beginning of the 17th century, is a small pipe organ the size of a large box. Several years ago, while compiling an inventory, a previously unidentified chest organ was discovered at St. John the Baptist’s Co-Cathedral in Kamień Pomorski. Regrettably, the instrument did not possess any of its original pipes. What remained, however, was an image of the front pipes preserved on the chest door. The main issue involved in the reconstruction of a historic instrument is the restoration of its original tuning (temperament). Additionally, it is important to establish the frequency of A4, as this sound serves as a standard pitch reference in instrument tuning. The study presents a new method that aims to address the above-mentioned problems. To this end, techniques to search for the most probable temperament and establish the correct A4 frequency were developed. The solution is based on the modeling of sound generation in flue pipes, as well as statistical analysis to help match a model to the parameters preserved in the chest organ drawing. Additionally, differentalues of the A4 sound values were defined for temperatures ranging from 10 ∘C to 20 ∘C. The tuning system proposed in 1523 by Pietro Aaron proved to be the most probable temperament. In the process of testing the developed flue pipe model, the maximum tuning temperature was established as 15.8 ∘C.

The purpose of the article is to determine genre parameters of meditation for the organ on the example of the pieces of composers of the early 21st century. It is proposed to concretize the prerequisites of meditation for organ as an independent genre and to compare the strategies of reading the genre by representatives of different national schools of composition (Italy, Ukraine, Brazil). Among the research methods there were used: historiographic (restoring the historical retrospective of genre formation), the method of genre analysis (confirming the genre status of meditation), the method of style determination in combination with the comparative method (comparing the strategies of reading the genre by composers of different nationalities). The novelty of the proposed topic lies in the identification of the genre status of meditation for the organ and the introduction into the musicological discourse of works that have not previously come to the attention of Ukrainian researchers. Conclusions. Meditations “Shiva” by K. Ferrari, “And there was night, and there was morning, and there were quiet heavenly flutes...” by M. Shukh and Prelude-Meditation by F. Costa make it possible to define meditation as an independent genre of organ art with a constant set of stable indicators. Meditation for the organ is a concert piece that belongs to the genres of cult-ritual music and is characterized by an introverted structure of the communicative act. All works with a similar genre name are united by a single semantic field of religious contemplation. The compositional foundations of meditation as a genre consist in the multiple repetition of structures (of different scales) with a clear “looseness” of the form, which guarantees the tightness of the same sound environment and the monochromatic text. Stylistic characteristics became variable components of the meditation: the meditative profile of “Shiva” by C. Ferrari is emphasized by the using of techniques of minimalism, in the piece by M. Shukh the emphasis is transferred to the timbre of the organ with appeal to the intonation of oriental music, and in the Prelude-meditation by F. Costa attempts to build a new sound universe, as extended scale of the overtone series.

Following the new reading of Kant?s third critique, which was proposed by Hannah Arendt in her Lectures on Kant?s Political Philosophy, in this paper, the author deals with the function of art in the establishment, organization and profiling of political communities. The focus is primarily on the field of music. The analysis begins with ancient philosophers (Pythagoras, Plato, Aristotle) and continues with the problems which relate to artistic shaping of citizens? lives in modern epoch (Rousseau, Kant, Schiller). The goal of the paper is to show that the philosophy of art and the philosophy of music, could be taken as a political philosophy, precisely because the analysis of these phenomena constantly convinces a close intertwining of politics and aesthetics, i.e. art and power, music and power. As a conclusion, we might say that a general aesthetic sense can be seen as a kind of human organ for public aesthetic gathering of citizens. Music, poetry, visual arts, etc., have become tools for the political shaping of citizens, i.e. the tools of their political life.

Discussion of the 1960s generally identifies progressive rock as the prime organ of communication within the counter-culture. At the same time, musical analysis of the genre is an underdeveloped field of study, including only an identification of musical characteristics (Willis 1978), Mellers' analysis of the Beatles (1973) and Middleton and Muncie's analysis of five representative songs in the Open University's course, Popular Culture (1981). As a particularly heterogeneous genre (compared with, for example, rock 'n' roll and r&b), definitions of progressive rock equally raise problems: to what extent does the variety of styles reflect the variety of radical movements contained within the overall term counter-culture; alternatively, given the variety of styles, can progressive rock be considered a single phenomenon and, if so, to what extent does it have musical codes in common?

This study investigated the perception of isolated chords using a combination of experimental manipulation and exploratory analysis. Twelve types of chord (five triads and seven tetrads) were presented in two instrumental timbres (piano and organ) to listeners who rated the chords for consonance, pleasantness, stability and relaxation. Listener ratings varied by chord, by timbre, and according to musical expertise, and revealed that musicians distinguished consonance from the other variables in a way that other listeners did not. To further explain the data, a principal component analysis and linear regression examined three potential predictors of the listener ratings. First, each chord’s frequency of occurrence was obtained by counting its appearances in selected works of music. Second, listeners rated their familiarity with the instrumental timbre in which the chord was played. Third, chords were described using a set of acoustic features derived using the Timbre Toolbox and MIR Toolbox. Results of the study indicated that listeners’ ratings of both consonance and stability were influenced by the degree of musical training and knowledge of tonal hierarchy. Listeners’ ratings of pleasantness and relaxation, on the other hand, depended more on the instrumental timbre and other acoustic descriptions of the chord.

Hypertension is one of desease that can caused death in the world. Hypertension can be stated as a “silent killer” because someone who diagnosed wit hypertension in organ vital that severe. The aims of this study is to determine effect of music therapy on blood pressure in hypertensive patients treated at Sobirin Lubuk L, canggau Hospital.The Quasi Experimental research method uses The One Group Pretest Posttest Design. The population in this study were all hypertensive patients treated in the Nusa Indah room, Sobirin Lubuk Linggau Hospital as many as 38 people. The sampling technique in this study used Total Sampling. Data collection is done using primary data, namely data obtained through direct measurement of blood pressure using sphygmomanometer in hypertensive patients in the Nusa Indah room at Sobirin Lubuk Linggau Hospital. Data analysis was done by univariate, bivariate with Chi-Square Test.The results were obtained: (1) Of the 38 hypertensive patients treated in the Nusa Indah room at Sobirin Lubuk Linggau Hospital before music therapy was given, systolic blood pressure was obtained with a minimum value of 130 mmHg, a maximum value of 160 mmHg, an average value of 142.63 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure with a minimum value of 80 mmHg, a maximum value of 100 mmHg, an average value of 92.37 mmHg; (2) Of the 38 hypertensive patients treated in the Nusa Indah room at Sobirin Hospital Lubuk Linggau after music therapy was given blood pressure was obtained with a minimum value of 120 mmHg, a maximum value of 150 mmHg, an average value of 135.79 mmHg and blood pressure systole with minimum value of 80 mmHg, maximum value of 90 mmHg, average value of 83.42 mmHg; (3) There is the influence of music therapy on the reduction of blood pressure in hypertensive patients who are treated at Sobirin Lubuk Linggau Hospital. The results of this study can be input for the SobirinLubukLinggau Hospital to be able to apply non-pharmacological therapies such as music therapy to help reduce blood pressure other than drugs. Keywords: blood pressure, music therapy, patient

Relying on knowledge of Karl Engel's edition of the Volksschauspiel, Karl Simrock's version of the puppet play, Gotthold Lessing's Faust fragments, and versions of the Faust legend by Christopher Marlowe and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, among others, Ferruccio Busoni crafted his own hybrid libretto that depicts a mystical and broadminded Faust. Busoni's music reflects the richness of Faust's mind, combining heterogeneous timbres, forms, and styles. Busoni juxtaposes a Gregorian Credo, Palestrina-style choral settings, a reformation hymn, a Baroque instrumental dance suite, an organ fantasia, recitatives, a lyrical ballad, and orchestral variations, with impressionistic symphonic writing, and experimental passages. While stylistic heterogeneity can be heard throughout many of his mature instrumental and vocal works, Busoni also used this heterogeneity in a descriptive way in Doktor Faust to characterize Faust. At the same time, Busoni sought to write “a history of man and his desire” rather than of a man and the devil. It is Faust's own dark side, rather than the devil, that distracts him and prevents him from completing his greatest work. With Kaspar removed from the plot, Mephistopheles, who as spirit is not always distinct from Faust the man, becomes Faust's alter ego. This duality is expressed musically when Faust assumes Mephistopheles's characteristic intervals. Although Busoni's incomplete Doktor Faust, BV 303, has already been studied by several scholars, including Antony Beaumont, Nancy Chamness, and Susan Fontaine, there is still no detailed analysis of Busoni's treatment of Faust. Through analyses of autobiographical connections, Busoni's early settings of Faustian characters, and the text and music in Doktor Faust, with special attention on the Wittenberg Tavern Scene that has no precedent among the versions of the Faust legend, this article reveals Busoni's vision of Faust as a broadminded, and yet conflicted character, shaped idiosyncratically to convey Busoni's personal artistic ideals. In so doing, the article not only contributes to ongoing discourse about Doktor Faust, but also expands knowledge about ways the Faust legend was interpreted and set musically in the early twentieth century through intertextual comparisons.

In the developing mouse embryo the first definitive (transplantable-into-the-adult) haematopoietic stem cells/long-term repopulating units (HSC/RUs) emerge in the AGM region and umbilical vessels on10-11 days post coitum (d.p.c.). Here, by limiting dilution analysis, we anatomically map the development of definitive HSC/RUs in different embryonic tissues during early colonisation of the liver. We show that by day 12 p.c. the mouse embryo contains about 66 definitive HSC/RUs (53 in the liver, 13 in other tissues), whereas on the previous day the total number of definitive HSC/RUs in the entire conceptus is only about 3. Owing to the length of the cell cycle this dramatic increase in thenumber of definitive HSC/RUs in only 24 hours is unlikely to be explained purely by cell division. Therefore, extensive maturation of pre-definitive HSCs to a state when they become definitive must take place in the day 11-12 embryo. Here we firstly identify the numbers of HSCs in various organs at 11-13 d.p.c. and secondly, using an organ culture approach, we quantitatively assess the potential of the aorta-gonadmesonephros (AGM) region and the yolk sac to produce/expand definitive HSC/RUsduring days 11-12 of embryogenesis. We show that the capacity of the AGM region to generate definitive HSC/RUs is high on 11 d.p.c. but significantly reduced by 12 d.p.c. Conversely, at 12 d.p.c. the YS acquires the capacity to expand and/or generate definitive HSCs/RUs, whereas it is unable to do so on 11 d.p.c. Thus, the final steps in development of definitive HSC/RUs may occur not onlywithin the AGM region, as was previously thought, but also in the yolk sac microenvironment. Our estimates indicate that the cumulative activity of the AGM region and the yolk sac is sufficient to provide the day 12 liver with a large number of definitive HSC/RUs, suggesting that the large pool of definitive HSC/RUs in day 12 foetal liver is formed predominantly by recruiting ‘ready-to-use’ definitive HSC/RUs from extra-hepatic sources. In accordance with this we observe growing numbers of definitive HSC/RUs in the circulation during days 11-13 of gestation, suggesting a route via which these HSCs migrate.

Relevance of the study. A new wave of creative interest in the piano transcription combines the constructive and destructive vectors of the development. In the performing sphere the former stimulate the search for original ways of presenting the personal “I”. The destructive influence is connected with the possible hyperbolization of any artistic ideas. The presented problematic situation determines the relevance of the topic of the article: the transcription legacy of the renowned Kharkiv pianist-pedagogue Serhiy Yushkevych still remains little studied in domestic art history.Main objective of the study. The objective of the research is concluded in comprehending the stylistic dominants of S. Yushkevych’s transcriptional approach.Methodology. The research is based on the principles of an integrated approach that motivates appealing to the genre, stylistic, intonation, structural-functional, compositional-dramaturgical and comparative-interpretative methods of analysis. The biographical method is used to provide additional important informational data Results and conclusions. Transcriptions demonstrate not only the aesthetic preferences and stylistic guidelines of a particular era (according to B. Borodin), but also the individual performing and interpreting tendencies of the transcriptor himself. This allows considering transcriptions as the key to understanding a musician’s artistic credo. S. Yushkevych’s transcriptional interests include the works of composers of the Baroque and Romantic eras, Soviet-era music, and Ukrainian folklore; he is attracted by various samples of orchestral, organ-harpsichord and vocal music. The transcriptions of the “Badinerie” collection can be divided into three groups: 1) ancient music; 2) the compositions which in the original are intended for the voice with accompaniment; 3) Ukrainian music. A significant role in understanding the creative search is played by the interpretation of Yushkevych-pianist.The specificity of the transcriptional style of the Kharkiv maestro lies in the ability to create the “sound op-art” with the help of typical formulas of piano technique (similar to the op-art by V. Vasarely). This is reflected in his own system of means of expression, the specifics of the texture and register distribution of the artistic material, the use of polyphony as a technique of additional ornament, the embodiment of various acoustic effects and more. This creates a different type of the pianosound relief. The stylistic features of S. Yushkevych’s transcript handwriting are: the special register framing of the composition, the multi-layered nature of piano texture, the openness to timbre orchestration, the use of quartet writing peculiarities, the tessitura fragmentation of thematic complex, the intonation-motive detailing of musical fabric and a significant freedom from the author’s remarks. The pianism itself is the main “factor of influence” and is a representative of the individual style.

ABSTRACT Purcell's surviving autographs have long been a source of fascination, and the extensive evidence they preserve of his working methods has been examined in several academic studies. However, methodology has focused on analyzing notational changes within the sources, and neither the appropriateness of the standard labels ““working draft”” and ““fair copy”” nor the directness of the relationship between the creation of a composition and its encoding in notation has been questioned. This article challenges current assumptions about Purcell's compositional processes, arguing that because the autographs were created for specific, often practical, purposes not necessarily directly connected to the compositional process itself, it is misleading to interpret them divorced from their function and the cultural and social contexts in which they were produced. There are three main factors that help us to determine the different purposes for which the manuscripts were copied: First, Purcell maintained a clear separation between different genres of music in both his private and court scorebooks, so it is possible that his compositional techniques varied between repertories; second, Shay and Thompson have established that the methods Purcell used to record his compositions changed as his employment conditions altered; and third, it is clear from contemporary descriptions that the modern tendency to translate the Restoration terms ““fowle originall”” and ““fayre writeing”” as ““rough draft”” and ““fair copy”” is misleading, and that Purcell's ““fowle originalls”” were not essentially private documents of his work in progress. Instead, the sources seem to have been notated for at least five different purposes, the categories including performance materials, file copies, and what we might term ““transmission”” copies, which, as Robert Ford has highlighted, were sent by the composer to provincial colleagues. Analysis of the autographs surviving for two contrasting genres——liturgical sacred music, written for choir and organ alone, and court odes——serves to illustrate the ways in which a contextual perspective on the sources can transform our understanding of Purcell's compositional methods, particularly when considered alongside significant nonautograph sources. There are distinct differences between the functions for which the manuscripts for these repertories were copied, with a notable emphasis in the liturgical sacred music on transmission around the provinces. More significantly, however, the extant ““fowle originalls”” for the two genres demonstrate variations of approach in the earliest notated stages, while comparisons between the two main court scorebooks and related non-autograph sources indicate that file copies were also produced for different reasons and do not relate to the cre-ation of performance materials in the same way. The manuscripts also suggest that more of Purcell's compositional amendments in the liturgical sacred music may have been made without a specific performance context in mind than has previously been thought, an observation that draws into question modern assumptions about the ontological centrality of musical performance in this period.

Introduction. A radical tendency in modern approaches to understanding the mechanisms of the brain is the tendency of some scientists to believe that the brain is a receptor capable of capturing thoughts; the nature of the occurrence of the thoughts themselves, however, is not to be clarified. However, speech expressing thoughts is undoubtedly the result of the work of the brain, so studies of the frequency structure of speech can be the basis for considering the material structure of the brain as a kind of “antenna”. In this approach, the problem of noise protection against the background of the undeniable frequency similarity of speech and music appears to us from somewhat different positions. This study raises the question of how essential the overall height of the musical system is to the perception of music (are there musical systems that are harmful or useful, in terms of their effects on the psyche). This question is also relevant to speech perception.Methodology and sources. The main sources in which the work of the brain and the essence of consciousness are considered from the positions indicated above were for us the work of American and British neurophysiologists and psychiatrists (Sam Parnia, Peter Fenwick). These scientists are studying the phenomena that accompany clinical death, and argue that at these moments the brain functions to the greatest extent as a receiving “antenna”. Assuming that any antenna is to be tuned, we are trying to identify possible ways to “tune” the brain. To do this, we propose to study the frequency characteristics of speech (in the simplest case, when singing vowels in a calm state) for their belonging to a particular musical system, as well as the peculiarities of music perception depending on the musical system (on the height of the note “la”). Varying the frequency characteristics of speech in a particular musical system can be considered, in our opinion, the main way to “tune” the brain. The methodology of the method is based on the use of frequency analysis of sound and the basic provisions of the elementary theory of music.Results and discussion. The main conclusion made by Western psychiatrists is the brain is not an organ of thought, consciousness exists independently from outside, the work of consciousness cannot be explained by the functioning of the brain – it requires a hardware check. If the neural network is an “antenna” that captures thoughts, and its “adjustment” at the physical level can be carried out (and is carried out) through sensory systems (including the hearing organ), the study of the frequency structure of speech will answer a number of important questions, including including related and higher brain functions (insight, creativity). Our experiments (Saint Petersburg Electrotechnical University, FIBS, department of EUT) showed that the influence of the “increased” or “lowered” musical-speech system on brain activity is insignificant. The study revealed the equiprobability of the frequency structure of speech. Since our brain lacks some characteristic set of frequencies – elements of a uniformly temperamental system, it is not necessary to talk about the harmful (or any other noise) effect of the “raised” and “lowered” systems due to deviation from the “internal standard”.Conclusion. In response to the assumptions made by Western experts, we proposed a frequency interpretation of the processes occurring in the brain, which, perhaps, will explain in more detail such phenomena as inspiration, discovery, etc., which occur with minimal activity of consciousness. Despite the limited methods of hardware study of factors that influence the activity of the brain and largely determine its higher functions (for example, creativity), the results of the brain's work in relation to music (both in terms of its creation and in terms of our reaction to it) are quite analyzable , which was shown in this study. The “musicality” of speech is extremely vividly represented in its frequency structure and allows one to reveal, to one degree or another, the features of the brain.

The paper analyses the development of the structure and content of pipe organ catalogues that have appeared in Slovenian organology since the beginning of twentieth century. Of seventy catalogues describing multiple organs, particular attention is devoted to ten, especially the inventories of the Maribor (1911) and Ljubljana (1918) Dioceses, and the monograph Orgle Slovenije (2018).

The objectives of the research. The article is devoted to the study of the main parameters of the Marian theme embodiment in the art of music, with highlighting the aspects of history and genre stylistics. It is noted that the choice of the topic is related to the study of the works by the Kharkiv composer of Polish origin Konstanty Antoni Gorski, who worked in Kharkiv for many years (1880–1910) and belongs to the founders of his academic musical culture. The article lays the methodological basis for studying interpretation of the Marian theme in the works by this author, for that the analysis of the relevant sources (theological, musicological, etc.) has been carried out to derive the genre-stylistic classifications for this phenomenon (confessional, genre, national classifications). The results of the study. It is noted that the Marian theme in music can be classified as one of its central themes. This is due to the general ethical and natural content of the European music of the academic layer, which itself, as it is known, originated from the Church music and retained the features of high contemplation inherent in the cult genres, which determined the prospect line for the subsequent development of the Christian world music. The study emphasizes that the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary acts as a part and an important component of the New Testament, where two her main hypostases are presented. The Virgin Mary is honored and praised, firstly, as the Mother of the Son of God, who experienced suffering with him for the good of humanity, and secondly, as the intercessor and guardian of people who believe in her divine power and destiny. Here, the two interpretations of the Blessed Virgin’s image should be borne in mind, which are implemented at the confessional level – in the Catholic and Orthodox liturgical service. The whole branch of knowledge, called Mariology, is devoted to the study of these issues in the European theology and art history. The musical aspects of this field, presented in the monograph by O. Nemkova (2013), are closely related to religious teachings, as well as to their secular reflection at the level of the genre, style and stylistics of the musical works. The musical interpretation of the Blessed Virgin’s image, coming from Catholicism is based on the postulates of Her Divine destiny, which is reflected in the canonical texts in Latin, among which two main ones stand out – “Stabat Mater” and “Salve Regina”. These texts are realized in the cantata genre, the basis of which is the style of da chiesa, that is, the concerto itself in the church that accompanies the service in honor of Virgin Mary. The latter takes place in such holidays: Conception of Mary by Her mother Anna, Nativity of Mary, Presentation of Mary, Annunciation, Dormition of the Mother of God. The prayer “Ave Maria” is also very popular, and it has become for many European authors the basis of both applied religious and secular works, an example of which is the music of Early Baroque, Romanticism and Modern times. The secularization processes that began in the music of the Christian world on the turn of the Late Renaissance and Baroque (the watershed here is the 1600 year, the official year of the opera genre birth), called to life two groups of works on Marian themes: 1) the compositions nearby to the canonical original, as a rule, Latin texts (they were distributed among Catholics by religion and in Catholic countries); 2) the works modified, based on translations and free narrations of canonical texts given in the national languages and in suitable stylistics of one or another national culture (this is characteristic of Protestantism, as well as of Orthodoxy). There is also a deep line of interpretation of the Blessed Virgin’s image, personifying the eternal idea of motherhood and femininity, which is equally characteristic of many national musical cultures, in particular, the non-religious wave that manifested itself in Slavic music, first at the turn of the 19th – 20th centuries, and then – during the last two decades of the 20th century. It is noted that Gorski, remaining a devout Catholic by the nature of his activity in such interfaith cultural center as Kharkiv in the late 19th – the first two decades of the 20th centuries, embodied in his work the traditions and demands coming from the Polish (Catholic) as well as the Ukrainian (Orthodox) and French and German (Lutheran, Protestant) musical cultures. On this basis, three of his opuses devoted to Virgin Mary arose: the Catholic cantata “Salve Regina” (for voice, violin and organ), the concerto-cantata in French “Salutation a la Sainte Vierge” (for soprano accompanied by choir, organ, string quintet and two French horns), and the choral concerto for the Orthodox mixed choir “Zriaszcze mia bezglasna” on the Old Slavonic text. Each of these works is a special genre form, with which Gorski works as with a standard model equipped with a lexical layer of a certain musical stylistics, primarily national. The Polish song and romanza sources are traced in the first of the works, along with the obvious influence of the opera arias. In the cantata on the French text, echoes of not only opera scenes are heard, but also the elements of the programme music, story-telling, characteristic of French musical style. Finally, the Orthodox choral Concerto on the Old Slavonic text demonstrates the typical genre of the Ukrainian music – the large form intended for collective choral performance that was the equivalent of a symphony in the Western European musical culture. Conclusion. It is proved that, guided by the world experience, Konstanty Antoni Gorski embodies all these models in three Marian works – the canonical church cantata, the larger-scale secular cantata, the a cappella choral concerto, while remaining a composer with original and unique intonational thinking. Gorski in these three compositions appears as a neoclassic, subordinating the original genres to his own creative intentions, which makes the music of these compositions comprehensible and accessible to a wide audience. It was that for the purpose to popularize the opuses by Gorski this article has been written.

Background. Mikhail Shukh is a Ukrainian composer, who paid much attention to spiritual music in his creative work. In general, the spiritual sphere of his works belonged to choral genres. Mikhail Shukh’s choral music is very diverse: it varies from large genres to choral cycles and miniatures. Mikhail Shukh was one of the first composers who revived spiritual music in the 90s of the 20th century after a long stagnation. As a composer of the "new time", who belonged to the "nova musica sacra" direction, Mikhail Shukh interprets spiritual genres in a new way. His works are written from the modern perspective, begotten by the artist’s vision of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Mikhail Shukh composed his works at the historical and political turn of the centuries reflecting and developing the choral art of our times in many ways. The composer’s musical thinking is remarkable for philosophical and religious ideas that underlie many of his works. In his world view, Mikhail Shukh always shrinks into himself, trying to gain inner freedom, to comprehend the secrets of the world order. Hence the desire of the composer for the meditative direction in music – contemplation, reflection – is noticeable Objectives. The purpose of the paper is to reveal meditativity in the structure of M. Shukh’s Mass "And I said in my heart" in order to comprehend the specifics of the artistic consciousness of the composer Methods. The study is based on the stylistic, semantic and genre methods. Results. The results of the research detected that Mikhail Shukh’s Mass "And I said in my heart", written with canonical Latin texts (for soprano, female vocal trio, organ and synthesizer), belongs to the spiritual genre and is distinguished by the weighty role of meditativity in the birth of the artistic concept of the composition. However, speaking of the canonical genre of the Mass, it is clear that the most important thing in the sound of church songs is their prayerful character. Prayer state is the state of inner feeling, that is why the concept of "meditativity" can be equated with the concept of "prayerfulness". But the pray can be different – it can contain requests to God, thanks or praise of His greatness. Such a deep immersion of the composer in the image and philosophical thinking stems from the fact that the Mass "And I said in my heart" is a dedication to the memory of his mother, which changes the content and genre of the work, bringing it closer to the funeral mass – requiem. This is evidenced by the structure of the Mass: the work is made up of 9 parts, 8 of which belong to the classical requiem, with the exception of one – "Victimae paschali", which is a Gregorian sequence. The mass has many intonations of light sadness; the transparent architectonics of the parts makes the mass sound imponderable and sublime. From the emotional viewpoint the parts are contemplative, prayerful, peaceful, devoid of vivid variety. A bright example of the nontraditional interpretation of the requiem genre made by the composer is his treatment of the part "Dies irae". As you know, this part has always been one of the dramatic centers in the classical samples of the genre (for example, in the works of W. Mozart, G. Verdi, A. Schnittke). However, from the viewpoint of imaginative state the second part of Shukh’s Mass "And I said in my heart" is meditative-contemplative, essentially it does not express the main idea of the Requiem text about the "Day of Wrath". The composer decided to use the meditative figurative sphere in this part, wishing to rise and soar over everything negative and let all the earthly sufferings go. The analysis of the mass showed that in most parts (except VII and VIII) the composer uses slow or moderate tempo, a quiet nuance, there are no climaxes. Analyzing the peculiarities of the thematism in the mass, we can say that the author often comes close to the genre of the Gregorian chant in its pure form (in unison, in a quart), the themes are quite ascetic, restrained and do not have much development. The semantics of the work synthesizes various states of the penitential soul and embodies such modes of meditative lyricism as penitential, sorrowful, contemplative, prayerful, and peaceful ones. One of the stylistic features of M. Shukh’s musical language is the use of sustained chords in the cadence at the end of phrases or at the end of the parts themselves, which is also observed in this work and is also a manifestation of the meditative semantics. The parts of the mass can be conditionally divided into figuratively bright parts (e.g. "Kyrie eleison", "Victimae paschali", "Domine Jesu Christe", "Agnus Dei"), which mostly sound in major keys where enlightened, ascending intonations, consonances prevail, and mournful ones (e.g. "Dies irae", "Dies illa", "Lacrimosa"). As the name of the work "And I said in my heart" suggests, the Mass has many inner emotions of the author; it reveals the composer’s own self. This is evidenced by the fact that the composer wrote his piece not for the full choir, but for a vocal trio in order to make the texture of the work more transparent and its sound more gentle, intimate, as well as to affirm the dominant female image in the piece – the image of Mother. Soft voices and the "angel-like" solo of the high soprano help to create the image of the human soul "departing", "flying away" to God. An important role in the embodiment of the meditative concept of the mass is assigned to the accompanying instruments – the organ and synthesizer. From the first seconds soft organ chords resemble the sound of the choir, and the slight rustle of the synthesizer’s sound dip listeners into the prayerful sphere, way of thinking. And then throughout the composition they help to create an elevated, prayerful image. Conclusions. When analyzing various genres of choral works by M. Shukh, one can note that the composer resorts to meditativity both in spiritual choral works (for the embodiment of the Divine being through music) and in secular genres. So, this quality of the composer’s choral thinking can be seen in the Mass "And I said in my heart," which is a vivid embodiment of the liturgical interpretation

"The aim of the work is to determine the influence of the characteristic features of the linguistic and style environment of the second half of the twentieth century on the development of Lesia Dychko's creative personality (on the example of the song cycles Pastels and Enharmonic, written to the words of P. Tychyna). The analyzed song cycles demonstrate the artist’s deep penetration into the figurative concept of the poet's free verses, reflecting its semantic properties by musical means. We notice a lot in common and consonant in the works of both artists, namely, an impressionistic vision and perception of the surrounding world, a deep philosophical understanding of nature, a symbolic load of images. The musical-theoretical analysis of the cycles has shown the principles of the development of material common to poetry and music, such as cross-cutting development, leitmotif, etc. The article reveals another facet of the composer's stylistic direction, namely, the expressive means inherent in impressionism: the coloristic function of harmony, ostinato techniques and organ points, the melodic line of recitative-declamatory or instrumental plan. The overwhelming majority of them correspond to the principles of impressionism in combination with modern innovative techniques of the musical language and personal individual stylistic features of the composer. Keywords: Lesia Dychko, song cycles, poetic and musical texts, poetry of Pavlo Tychyna, impressionism. "

Ch.-M. Widor (1844–1937) inscribed his name in the history of French music primarily as an author of organ works (10 Organ Symphonies, 1872–1900, in particular). But other genre branches of his creativity (symphonic, chamber-instrumental, chamber-vocal, operatic, choral) remains less famous for wide public. This quite vast layer is mostly not studied in musical science. However, at the recent time the interest is somewhat growing both among musicologists (A. Thomson, E. Krivitskaya, M. R. Bundy), and among the performers, which confi rms the relevance of this article. The objectives of this study are to consider compositions by Ch.-M. Widor (Piano Concerto No.1, Fantasy, Piano Concerto No.2) both in terms of features of individual creator style and context of concert branch history in France. Information about works is supplemented by the analysis of the basic musical text parameters. Ch.-M. Widor graduated the Brussels Conservatory, where he was studied from 1859 to 1863 – in classes of organ (J.-N. Lemmens) and composition (F.-J. Fetis). At 1860s, the young man was visiting Paris. Soon he was acquainted with C. Saint-Saens, which infl uenced Ch.-M. Widor not only in terms of his executive career turn, but also was etalon of instrumental writing. It seems that the writing of instrumental Concertos for violin (ор. 26, 1877), cello (ор. 41, 1877), and piano (ор. 39, 1876) in many ways is owed by C.Saint-Saens and the impulse to French music of the 1870s given by him. Piano Concerto No.1 f-moll by Ch.-M.Widor was well appreciated by the contemporaries of the composer. In fi rst movement (Allegro con fuoco) the active narrative is combining with predominantly lyrical mood. It passes in constant pulsation without any whimsical tempo deviations, as well as without cadenza using. Contemplative and philosophical meditations are concentrated at the second movement (Andante religioso). The exposition of ideas is embodied in oppositions of characters, concentrated and depth in front of light and joyous. By the way, a little similar can be found in Andante sostenuto quasi adagio of Piano Concerto No.1 (published in 1875) by C. Saint-Saens. The cycle is crowned with a lively scherzo fi nal with elegant dotted rhythm using. On the whole we can say that the Piano Сoncerto No.1 by Ch.-M. Widor purposefully continues the traditions of C. Saint-Saens. This is noticeable in the clarity of the structure, emphatic melody, and also in some specifi c features – the avoidance of long-term solo cadenzas and the absence of expanded orchestra tutti’s, as well as the laconicism of development section at the fi rst movement. Echoes of F. Liszt and C. Franck can be heard in Fantasy As-dur op. 62 for piano and orchestra (1889, dedicated to I. Philipp). Ch.-M. Widor shows interest in this genre type as many other French authors at 1880–1890s. In work there are many counterpoint and variation elements, which is due to author’s mastery of organ-polifonic writing. In our opinion, eclectic combinations of the main subject in the spirit of F. Liszt – R. Wagner with oriental saucy theme at the end of composition are quite in the style of C. Saint-Saens. Piano Concerto No.2 c-moll (1905) is standing out with its clear attachment to the late-romantic line. It is somewhat out of the general context of genre existence in France, especially when comparing with signifi cantly more traditional Piano Concertos by B. Godard (No.2, 1894), C. Saint-Saens (No.5, 1896), T. Dubois (No.2, 1897), A. Gedalge (1899), J. Massenet (1902). This manifests itself in appeal to fateful gloomy spirit, abundance of dark paints in the sound, the complication of the tonal-harmonic language, increased expressivity, psychologization. Here are found more fi ne-tooth application of timbre orchestral potential (in comparison with the Piano Concerto No.1), as well as increasing of orchestra importance upon the whole. This is paradoxical, but its performing tradition has developed not in the best way, so that nowadays this remarkable work is very rarely heard at concert halls. In our time, the author’s creativity is a real terra incognita that encompasses a lot of hidden masterpieces. Results of the research bring to light that examined works by composer are outstanding illustrations of French romantic music. Ch.-M. Widor is an example of original talent that continues the late Romanticism line in France at the end of 19th and fi rst third of the 20th century, together with other authors – L. Vierne, V. d’Indy, A. Magnard, F. Schmitt. His works for piano and orchestra quite deserve to become on a par with recognized masterpieces, included in the concert repertoire of pianists and orchestras by different countries of the world. The perspectives of the further research are defi ned in more detailed analytical labors, including the extension of analysis over Violin Concerto op. 26 and Cello Concerto op. 41 by author. The learning of these works will allow to complement the history of the concert genre of French Romanticism with new details, that will enable to see the evidence of succession and the vitality of traditions.

Background. The article is a step towards a modern comprehension of the creative heritage by M. Karminskyi, whose work in the second half of the 20 century contributed to the development and international fame of Ukrainian music. Analysis of scientific publications (Heivandova, K., 1981; Ivanova, Yu., 2001; Kushchova, E., 2004 etc.), memoirs (Hanzburg, G., 2000) and a huge array of periodicals devoted to the composer allows us to single out the characteristic features of his creative personality, which determine the originality of his talent as a composer, explaining the constant demand for his music and its successful functioning in the pedagogical process, in particular, in children’s music schools. The purpose and objectives of this study – to consider the artistic and aesthetic orientation of the creative heritage by M. Karminskyi and identify its distinctive features, focusing on the genre and style aspect of his works for children and youth and their methodological significance in pedagogical practice. Research methods are based on general scientific principles of systematization and generalization. The most important role was played by the interdisciplinary approach to the analysis of the composer’s creative heritage from the standpoint not only of musicology, but also of history, culturology, and pedagogy. For reflecting the spiritual atmosphere, where the composer’s talent was formed, the historicalbiographical approach was of great importance. Research results. The way of formation of M. Karminskyi’s individuality, development of his innate musical inclinations to successful realization of talent is crowned with creation of compositions of various genres, both largescale – partitas, operas, music to performances, and chamber – vocal-choral and instrumental miniatures, among which the piano music for children and youth audiences appealed to the style of Ukrainian folklore occupies a significant place. Ukrainian literature, in particular, works by Taras Shevchenko, Lesia Ukrainka, and Ivan Franko, which were carefully studied by M. V. Karminskyi as a student of the Faculty of Journalism at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv State University, had a significant influence on the formation of the composer’s worldview and aesthetic priorities. Probably, it was the love for literature that determined the programmatic narrative nature of M. Karminskyi’s compositions. However, the love for music itself prevailed: M. Karminskyi continued his studies at the Kharkiv Conservatory in the class of Professor D. Klebanov possessed in perfection by the musical artistic heritage and was able to transfer creatively this knowledge to students. M. Karminskyi’s later applied the skills acquired from him in his work. In those years, the Kharkiv School of Composition stood out among other music unions of Ukraine with a high level of creative competence: composers sought their own way and artistic individuality, creating a modern musical language. However, even in this highly educated environment, the personal potential of Mark Veniaminovich, his highly artistic taste and erudition rose. Mark Veniaminovich is sometimes called “the knight of the country of childhood” thanks to his brilliant compositions for children. The composer speaks to the children’s audience with the help of intonations and artistic techniques available to the child’s worldview, but he does not adapt to the child, but teaches him to develop thinking, show strong emotions. Pupils like program music with interesting content that evokes familiar associations, specific ideas. Therefore, in many of his works M. Karminskyi turns to the literary basis, clear concrete and dynamic images, heightened emotionality (“Steppe, steppe...”, “Autumn Day”, “Lyrical intermezzo”, etc.). Such approach motivates children not to perform works abstractly and mechanically, but to bring their own emotions and understandings into them. M. Karminskyi uses clear three-part or couplet forms that contain repetition (the plays “Favorite Tale”, “Ancient History”, “Merry Trumpeter”, etc.), he is characterized by conciseness of melodic phrases. The texture is convenient for children’s hands: parallel intervals, counterpointing voices, organ points of the lower voice, melodic figurations and harmonic degrees sustained in the middle line, register dynamics are used. These and other techniques promote students’ technical capabilities by developing mobility and finger strength. Continuing the traditions of the Ukrainian singing school, M. Karminskyi pays a lot of attention to the techniques of cantilena performance, forcing students to master the art of playing the pedal, which requires careful sound control. Piano ensembles, unique in their poetic beauty, were created by the composer at the end of his not too long life. These plays use themes from the music to the play “Robin Hood”, and the musical images of the pieces are extremely clear even in the names: “Old Grandfather Kohl”, “Lady Tambourine”, “Road to the Temple”, “Crazy Waltz”. M. Karminskyi, feeling a passionate interest in theatrical action with its playful moments and the task of embodying specific images, created music for performances. The radio production “Robin Hood” with the participation of the country’s leading artists, based on the poems of the famous Scottish poet R. Burns translated by S. Marshak and imbued with romantic sublimity, lyricism and sincerity, received a special resonance; it contains expressive melodies that are quickly memorized. In 1978, the company “Melody” released a stereo disc “Robin Hood” with a recording of this radio show. The variety of artistic tasks of the ensemble music of M. Kaminskyi leads to the formation of a variety of pianistic skills. The predominance of playful, moving images in plays develops motor technic and synchronization in performing. The meter and the rhythm of the works are complicated using the measures 6/8, 9/8 or size change in one work: 2/4; 3/4; again 2/4; then 4/4. This technique allows you to transmit movement and free breath of a musical phrase. Karminskyi actively uses chords from fourths and fifths intervals characterized the repertoire of Ukrainian bandura players. Conclusions. The composer gave the children a lot of strength and inspiration, creating music for them in accordance with high moral and ethical criteria and filled with vivid emotions, theatricality, and visible concrete imagery. Miniatures for the children’s choir, the master’s piano pieces have a high spiritual meaning and are among the best achievements of Ukrainian children’s musical literature. The piano music of M. Karminskyi is marked by a tendency to search for a new national style: the composer does not quote folk melodies, creating original musical images in the spirit of folklore. The multi-genre works of M. Karminskyi embody the eternal themes of good and evil, love and death, betrayal and fidelity with the emotional strength inherent in his music, demonstrating the composer’s deep erudition and human decency, originality, uniqueness of his personality and his talent.

The methodological elaborations of the rubric of the journal “My fi rst transcriptions” will present examples from assignments from the attempts of creative work of beginning pianists with the musical text. The offered assignments carry the aim of teaching certain universal techniques of artistic transformation of the composer’s primary text. The fi rst article devoted to this subject matter examines the register allocation and the doubling which were applied in everyday music-making in the 16th and 17th centuries during the varied re-exposition of the clavier text into various ensembles. The technique of their application is simple and accessible to contemporary listeners as well; it presumes the utilization of timbral possibilities of the present-day piano and keyboard synthesizer. At the basis of the elaboration of the assignments there are fragments of J.S. Bach’s instructive compositions from such compilations as “Kleinen Preludien und Fugen,” “Klavierbüchlein für Wilhelm Friedemann Bach,” as well as the “French Suites,” all of which assume a transformation of the clavier text for performing it in various variants and instrumental ensembles. These are the introductory pieces to the cycles: the preludes, fantasies or the pieces in the dance genres.The lessons are organized in the piano classes upon the conditions of “sight-reading” either in a solo manner, or with participation of partners in the form of intonational etudes. The analysis of the semantic structures applies role playing games in the subject matter of “I am playing the organ,” “there is a rehearsal of a historical orchestra going on,” “Trio for two fl utes and cello,” etc.

The purpose of the article is to determine the genre and stylefeatures of the piano cycle „Serious Variations” by F. Mendelssohn-Bartholdy. The round of specific methods is due to the use of empiricalscientific approaches of observation and generalization. The methodsidentified form a pronounced practical component of the proposedscientific intelligence. The structural and analytical approach allows you toform a sequence of presentation of scientific material, and draw theappropriate conclusions on the features of „Serious Variations”. Using thehistorical-typological approach, the sequence of the development processof the variation genre as a whole is revealed. The novelty of the proposedtopic is determined by the fact that the first analysis of the piano cycle„Serious Variations” by F. Mendelssohn was carried out in the context ofthe historical development of the genre of variations and its stylisticdetermination. Conclusions. Variations for piano occupy a rather modestplace in Mendelssohn’s music compared to the work of other composers.The piano series „Serious Variations” was created by Mendelssohn inaccordance with romantic trends in contemporary composer in a dialoguewith the stylistic features of the Baroque and classical era. The styleguidelines for creating the cycle was the work of L. Beethoven andI.S. Bach. The texture of the work is very “pianistic”, although itinfluences both the orchestral writing and Mendelssohn’s organ music.The dramaturgy of „Serious Variations” is organized in such a way that itclearly senses the movement from Baroque to classical stylistics,manifesting the essence of style modulation within the cycle. The mainfeature of „Serious Variations” on the implementation of which thepianist’s efforts should be aimed at working on this cycle is the stylemultiplicity, which is the main characteristic of musical material and theways of its presentation.

Statement of the problem. The violin style of A. Corelli, a composer-violinist who laid the foundation for the development of the violin art in Europe, represents a special “image of the instrument” that entered the professional-academic arena during the Baroque era. The research of A. Corelli’s violin style belongs to the field of organology, which is dedicated to the integrated study of instruments as the “organs” of musicians’ thinking. The close relationship, connection of the individual who is playing music with his/her instrument is not only one of the little developed theoretical problems, but also the basis of the practice for performing music, as well as learning this art. Analysis of recent publications on the topic. The available sources on the creative work of A. Corelli (written by K. Kuznetsov, I. Yampolsky, L. Ginzburg, N. Harnoncourt) contain either general information or individual observations on the image of the violin in the Baroque era. It is necessary to point out the significance of the general theory of the violin style (E. Nazaikinsky, V. Medushevsky, V. Kholopova, Y. Bentya) for the development of scientific ideas about the "image of the violin". The purpose of the article is to identify the special features of the “image” of the violin in the style of A. Corelli on the material of Concerti grossi op.6. The presentation of the main material. At the time of the creation of Concerts op.6 by A. Corelli, in Italy there was a violin school, which was distinguished by an exceptional variety of playing techniques. It was here that the historical process of replacing the viol with the violin was finally completed. The violin becomes the leading instrument in the instrumental genres of the 17th century music – suite, trio-sonata, solo sonata, and by the end of the century – concerto grosso. The path of movement to A. Corelli’s universal, generalized-reduced violin style ran along the line “ensemble feature – concert feature – solo feature”. The creation of the academic style of the violin playing logic is the merit of the Bologna school. The main thrust of the violin style of Bologna masters (Torelli, Antonia, Bassani, Vitali, and later Corelli and Vivaldi) is the combination of “church” and “chamber” models of the violin playing. For instrumental sound in an ensemble or orchestra, a “canon” and certain limitations in the technique of the playing are necessary, allowing establishing the balance of the parts of instruments and instrumental groups. The “invention” (inventio) in the violin playing, characteristic of the Italian school of the first half of the 17th century, was aimed at identifying the whole complex of the possible techniques of playing this instrument. The violin plating logic in Concertі grossi by A. Corelli is subordinated to the combination of two artistic and aesthetic tasks arising from two styles of concert making – the “church” one and the “chamber” one. Hence the choice of the appropriate techniques for playing. The “church” style, despite its democratization inherent in the Italian violin school, acquired the functions of a public concert for a mass audience and was distinguished by greater severity and regulation of the complex of the violin playing techniques. This stemmed from the genre style (“concert in the church”), where polyphonic presentation prevailed in the fast parts, the “tempo” names of the parts were used, and the organ in the numbered bass part was used. The “chamber” style opened up wider possibilities for the violin and the creation of an expressive technical complex associated with the genre (“dance” parts), replacing the organ in basso continuo with the harpsichord (cembalo), other stringed and plucked instruments (lute, theorbo), low string-and-bow instruments (gamba, cello, double bass), which gave a mono-articulate character to the general sounding. Playing shades of "lively speech" on the violin is a characteristic feature of A. Corelli’s violin style, reflected in the instrumental-playing complex through phrasing, attention to details and to micro-intonation. Conclusions. In describing the historical and artistic situation, in the context of which the style of the “great citizen of Bologna” was formed, its innovations have been outlined. The signs of the turning epoch have been indicated – they are the transition from the Renaissance polyphony and the “church” style to the secular homophony, with the instruments of the violin family singled out as the main ones. The particular attention has been paid to the principles of the violin intonation in the form of a speech playing (sprechendes Spiel) and dance motor skills, which together formed the semantics of A. Corelli’s violin style in the genres of concerto grosso, trio sonatas, solo sonata with bass. The main features of A. Corelli’s violin style, which became determinant for compositional decisions in the field of thematic, texture, and harmony, have been revealed.

The spectrogram analysis technology via computer application makes voice visualized, realizes the integrated teaching mode of "mouth to ear- nose", and improves the teaching quality of vocal music.The technology gives a dynamic map of singing respiration and singing organs, and the singing process is specified by the harmony search algorithm. This technology solves problems of shallow breathing, slurred speech and incorrect use of resonant cavity. The spectrogram analysis visualizes vocal music teaching, improves students' abilities of singing, practice and innovation.

Evaluation of the correlation among the activities of various organs is an important research area in physiology. In this paper, we analyzed the correlation between the brain and skin reactions in response to various auditory stimuli. We played three different music (relaxing, pop, and rock music) to eleven subjects (4 M and 7 F, 18–22 years old) and accordingly analyzed the changes in the complexity of Electroencephalogram (EEG) and Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) signals by calculating their fractal exponent and sample entropy. A strong correlation was observed among the alterations of the complexity of GSR and EEG signals in the case of fractal dimension ([Formula: see text]) and also sample entropy ([Formula: see text]), which indicates the correlation between the activities of skin and brain. This analysis method could be further applied to investigate the correlation among the activities of the brain and other organs of the human body.

Since skin activity, like other organs, is controlled by the brain, we decoded the correlation among the brain and skin responses in auditory stimulation by complexity-based analysis of EEG and GSR signals. Three pieces of music were selected according to the difference in the fractal exponent and sample entropy of embedded noises in them. We calculated the fractal dimension and sample entropy of EEG and GSR signals for 11 subjects in rest and response to these music pieces. The correlation coefficients of 0.9525 and 0.9822 in the case of fractal dimension and sample entropy demonstrated a strong correlation between the complexities of the GSR and EEG signals. Therefore, we can state that the skin and brain responses are coupled. This method can be applied to evaluate the relationship between the human brain and other organs.

The relation of any fine art expresses the elixir of human, physical, and physical world. As civilization grows more and more civilized and cultured, the development of fine arts reaches its peak. Music is a major part of the fine arts. The place of music in Indian civilization is paramount in the fine arts. The great Indian civilization has been underlining the importance of music education since its height. From ancient Vedic and medieval to modern times, the Indian educational system has been concentrating on the education of music; all its parts such as singing, playing and dancing. In the present era, radical changes in the teaching system can be reflected. Divisions like traditional and distance education can also be reflected in the teaching system. Today, the importance of a flexible and alternative system of remote education system cannot be denied. Needless to say that through remote learning, changes in the importance of traditional teaching of music, guruship relations, internal learning method of music and music in life; the importance of all its organs. In the present era, while on the one hand there has been a remarkable change in social and personal life, changes in the teaching method of all subjects can also be targeted. The importance of many new dimensions developed in music education through remote means can be understood. State-of-the-art mediums such as audio, audio, video via Internet, sophisticated equipment of communication, television and radio etc. can be used successfully in music teaching by remote media.The objective of the paper presented is to find a way to solve the problems arising out of it and the benefits of acquiring higher education of Indian classical music through a distance learning system. किसी भी ललित कला का संबंध मानव के दैहिकए दैविक और भौतिक जगत के उत्‍कर्ष को व्‍यक्‍त करता है। सभ्‍यता ज्‍यों.ज्‍यों अधिकाधिक सभ्‍य एवं सुसंस्‍कृत होती जाती है त्‍योंदृत्‍यों ललित कलाओं का विकास अपने चरम पर पहुंचता जाता है। संगीतए ललित कला का एक प्रमुख अंग है। भारतीय सभ्‍यता में संगीत का स्‍थान ललित कला में सर्वोपरि है। महान भारतीय सभ्‍यता अपने उत्‍कर्ष काल से ही संगीत की शिक्षा के महत्व को रेखांकित करती आई है। प्राचीनए वैदिक एवं मध्‍यकाल से आधुनिक काल तक भारतीय शिक्षण प्रणाली संगीत ;उसके सभी अंगों यथा गायनए वादन एवं नृत्‍यद्ध की शिक्षा पर अपना ध्‍यान केन्द्रित करती रही है। वर्तमान युग में शिक्षण प्रणाली में आमूल चूल परिवर्तन को परिलक्षित किया जा सकता है। शिक्षण प्रणाली में पारम्‍परिक एवं दूरस्‍थ शिक्षा जैसे विभाजनों को भी परि‍लक्षित किया जा सकता है। आज दूरस्‍थ शिक्षा प्रणाली की लचीली तथा वैकल्पिक व्‍यवस्‍था के महत्‍व को नकारा नहीं जा सकता। कहना न होगा कि दूरस्‍थ शिक्षण माध्‍यम से संगीत की पारम्‍परिक शिक्षाए गुरूदृशिष्‍य संबंधोंए संगीत की आंतरिक शिक्षण पद्धति तथा जीवन में संगीत;उसके सभी अंगोंद्ध के महत्‍व में आए बदलावों को अनुभव किया जा सकता है। वर्तमान युग में जहां एक ओर सामाजिक एवं व्‍यक्तिगत जीवन में आश्‍चर्यजनक परिवर्तन आया है वहीं सभी विषयों की शिक्षण पद्धति में भी परिवर्तन को लक्षित किया जा सकता है। दूरस्‍थ माध्‍यम से संगीत शिक्षा में विकसित कई नए आयामों का महत्‍व समझा जा सकता है। तकनीकी के अत्‍याधुनिक माध्‍यमों दृ जैसे ऑडियोदृविडियो माध्‍यमए इंटरनेटए संचार के अत्‍याधुनिक उपकरणए टेलीविजन एवं रेडियो आदि का उपयोग दूरस्‍थ माध्‍यम द्वारा संगीत शिक्षण में सफलतापूर्वक किया जा सकता है । प्रस्‍तुत शोधपत्र का उद्देश्‍य दूरस्‍थ शिक्षण प्रणाली के माध्‍यम से भारतीय शास्‍त्रीय संगीत की उच्‍च शिक्षा ग्रहण करने के लाभए इससे उत्‍पन्‍न समस्‍याओं एवं उनके निराकरण का मार्ग खोजना है ।

Initiated by Queen Elizabeth I upon sending the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed III an organ, Anglo-Ottoman music-historical relations date back to the sixteenth century. Such interactions continued during the Nizam-ı Cedid (New Order) period of the eighteenth century and became more frequent in the nineteenth century, during the modernization movement of the Ottomans. After the establishment of the Muzıka-yı Hümâyûn (The Imperial Music School), the Ottoman Empire began to import many European musical instruments, including pianos, to Ottoman lands. To this end, some English piano manufacturers became the main piano suppliers of the Ottoman Empire. Among them was Kastner & Co. Ltd. According to two archival files identified in the Turkish Prime Ministry Ottoman Archives in Istanbul, an autopiano was bought for Sultan Abdulhamid II from Kastner & Co. of London in 1907. The files include the receipt of the shipped equipment, its description, and a user’s manual, as well as diplomatic manuscripts about the event. This article summarizes the history of Anglo-Ottoman musical interactions up until this historical trade and analyses these archival files within their historical and cultural contexts.

Abstract A set of thirteenth-century parchment fragments, including the remnants of two rolls and one manuscript codex, preserves a largely unstudied repertoire unique to medieval England. In addition to a single motet and a setting of a responsory verse, the Rawlinson Fragments preserve twelve three-voice Alleluya settings. While polyphonic Alleluyas are well known from the continental Magnus liber repertoire, these insular Alleluya settings are quite different. Most significantly, while composed on the text and pitches of plainchant, they include newly composed texts in at least one voice—that is, they are polytextual chant settings. Aspects of their musical style certainly draw on other polyphonic genres—organum, conductus, and motet. This article presents the paleographical and codicological evidence that corroborates an early date for these fragments (in the 1240s), confirms their connection to Reading Abbey, and situates their repertoire within a broader context. My analysis points to intriguing points of overlap with both the plainchant prosula tradition and the Magnus liber organa and motets. It reopens broader questions about the copying and performance practices of liturgical polyphony, including previous suggestions that motet texts may have been sung within the performance of the Magnus liber organa, regardless of the scribal copying conventions that separated organum and motet in the surviving Magnus liber manuscripts. The article also considers the role of the Rawlinson Fragments’ main scribe, Benedictine monk W. de Wicumbe, who was active within the monastic communities of Leominster and Reading as a composer of plainchant and polyphony, and as precentor, most likely in charge of his community's musical life.

Background. The article reveals the genre-style, form-building and dramatic features of G. Fauré’s Sonata No. 2, in E Minor, op. 108. It is determined that this work, in contrast to his first sonata in A Major op. 13, written in the early period of the composer’s life and embodying romantic elation and inspiration, belongs to the late period of G. Fauré’s work, which is distinguished by a complex harmonic and polyphonic writing, sophisticated form and dramatic content characteristic of the early 20th century music and the First World War. The purpose of this article is a characteristic of genre-stylistic and compositional-dramaturgical features of G. Fauré’s Sonata for violin and piano № 2, in E Minor, op. 108. Results. The Second Violin Sonata by G. Fauré, in contrast to the First, has a different dramaturgy and is built on the principle of dramatic antithesis. A special place – and this brings its logical patterns closer to Beethoven’s – is given to the sonata allegro of the first movement, the excitement and explosiveness of which contrasts not only with the lyrical Andante of the second one, in A Major, but also with the enlightened and carefree Allegro non troppo of the finale in E Major. The logic of the formation in the first movement is associated with the originality of the passage of musical events and has a spiral structure consisting of five turns. The musical image of the second movement’s theme is interesting, as it is born from the conjugation of several voices, combining the features of rhythmic variability. This gives the theme a special, truly French charm. There are several dynamic build-ups in the second movement throughout Andante, which shows the implementation of the wave dramaturgy principle. Rondo shows the freshness of musical colors and spontaneity of expression. The last refrain of this part is especially interesting from the dramatic, thematic and ensemble points of view. The general culmination of the Sonata takes place in the refrain. It includes the main intonational ideas and serves as a generalization of the key events of the composition. At the highest climax of Rondo the main and secondary themes from the first movement of the Sonata appear. Thus, the idea of concentric circles, which was noted in the sonata allegro, is implemented in the finale of the Rondo. Conclusion. The analysis of the Second Violin Sonata by G. Fauré allows us to speak not only about a special implementation of the form in this work, but, in comparison with the First Sonata, about a great variety of ensemble writing, marked by the polyphonization of texture. The timbre contrast of the violin and piano allows the composer to set off the emerging replicas, arrange them in different sound spaces, which may resemble the organ register. The loss of any “character” by the members of the ensemble is most consistently traced in the sonata allegro. Another regularity can be traced in the reduction of the background, which is supplanted by the thematization of the texture. This is emphasized by the frequent change of role-playing functions of the instruments and the multitude of ensemble details that ensure the mobility of the musical texture and its multidimensionality. In this Sonata G. Fauré shows a special sensitivity to the harmonic component of the musical language. This search for expressive possibilities of harmony subsequently becomes a distinctive feature of the modern French musical language, which affects the sound image of a chamber ensemble, leading to the interpretation of chamberness as a refined variability of sensations.

AbstrakKajian syair dan bentuk struktur lagu No. 332 Kekuatan Serta Penghiburan pada prodi PMG IAKN tarutung. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui lebih banyak mengenai pengembangan kajian yang terdapat dalam lagu kekuatan serta penghiburan dan mengetahui bentu-bentuk dan struktur lagu yang di teliti. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode kajian pustaka dengan pendekatan kualitatif. Adapun proses kerja yang dilakukan yaitu pengamatan, wawancara, dokumentasi, studi pustaka (online) dan analisis. Penelitian dilakukan dengan mengumpulkan informasi melalui penelitian di lapangan untuk memproleh hasil yang diolah menjadi data pasti. Dalam hal ini untuk pengembangan dalam bernyanyi dan memainkan organ. Dalam aspek musikologi, penulis mengambil salah satu lagu yang di nyanyikan oleh jemaat dalam ibadah yaitu lagu kekuatan serta penghiburan dengan nada dasar es=do, birama 4/4 tempo andante, (Mm 69) dan perubahan moderato (Mm80).lagu tersebut ditulis lagi dengan not balok kemudian di analisis dengan melihat aspe-aspek musik yaitu : melodi, tangga nada, ambitus, frase, motif, tempo, dan gaya vocal.Kata kunci : Kerajaan Allah, Kebenaran dan Pemeliharaan. Abstract The purpose of this study is to find out more about the development of studies that are in the song of strength and consolation and to know the forms and structures of the songs under study. This research uses literature review method with a qualitative approach. The work process carried out is observation, interview, documentation, literature study (online) and analysis. The Research Was Conducted By Gathering Information Through Field Research To Get Results That Are Processed Into Certain Data. In This Case For Development In Singing And Playing The Organ. In the aspect of musicology, the author of one of the songs sung by the congregation in worship is the song of strength and consolation with the basic tone of Es = Do, Birama 4/4 Tempo Andante, (Mm 69) and Moderato Changes (Mm80). The notes are then analyzed by looking at musical aspects, namely: melody, scale, ambitus, phrases, motifs, tempo, and vocal style.Keywords: Poetry study, form, song structure

The presented article is the first study of this kind, where the musical life of Volhynia of the mid 16th - early 17th century is specially considered. In the study, we almost exclusively focused on the secular segment of musical everyday life. On the basis of the analysis of historical acts, fiscal accounting documents and other sources, three thematic sections were formed. The first section is devoted to the study of musicians in Volhynia. In the fiscal accounting documents, initially the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and later the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (Lesser Poland Province of the Polish Crown), various terms are used to refer to musicians and related professions: "dudari", "skomorokhy", "skrypali", "trubachi", "medwednyky" "muzyky", "hudky". From these and other documents we learn about the number of musicians in different small settlements. Among the nicknames that were given to musicians, the "dudnyk" and "skrypka" prevail, sometimes there is a "hudka". Separately, in the act documents other music specialties are mentioned: "Jews Cantors", "organist", "pyshchyk", "trubach", "bubnist". Also, in the documents of such kind, one could find some episodes from the everyday life of the musicians. Musical instruments are discussed in the second section of the article: "kobza", "turkish kobza", "lute", "quintar lute", "violin", "italian violin", "cithara", "duda", "smyk", "truba", "bubon". The last section deals with two separate phenomena of Volhynia musical culture - music in dance and Volochebnyy ceremonies. The lack of study of Volhynia musical culture in previous years encouraged the emergence of various myths, in particular, about the poverty of the musical culture of the Volhynia autochthonous population. According to the myth, the pipe organs of the Catholic temples were brought to these territories by the Polish colonists after the Union of Lublin. However, as it is shown in the article, the first mention of the Lutsk organist dates back to the time before the Union of Lublin and the name of organist indicates his Ruthenian origin. Thus, the obtained results allow us not only to fill the gaps in Ukrainian historical musicology of the mid 16th - early 17th century, but also to hope for the appearing of similar studies of other Ukrainian lands.

Torpedo electric organ and vertebrate neuromuscular junctions contain the receptor-associated protein of the synapse (RAPsyn) (previously referred to as the 43K protein), a nonactin, 43,000-Mr peripheral membrane protein associated with the cytoplasmic face of postsynaptic membranes at areas of high nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR) density. Although not directly demonstrated, several lines of evidence suggest that RAPsyn is involved in the synthesis and/or maintenance of such AChR clusters. Microscopic and biochemical studies had previously indicated that RAPsyn expression is restricted to differentiated, AChR-synthesizing cells. Our recent finding that RAPsyn is also produced in undifferentiated myocytes (Frail, D.E., L.S. Musil, a. Bonanno, and J.P. Merlie, 1989. Neuron. 2:1077-1086) led to to examine whether RAPsyn is synthesized in cell types that never express AChR (i.e., cells of other than skeletal muscle origin). Various primary and established rodent cell lines were metabolically labeled with [35S]methionine, and extracts were immunoprecipitated with a monospecific anti-RAPsyn serum. Analysis of these immunoprecipitates by SDS-PAGE revealed detectable RAPsyn synthesis in some (notably fibroblast and Leydig tumor cell lines and primary cardiac cells) but not all (hepatocyte- and lymphocyte-derived) cell types. These results were further substantiated by peptide mapping studies of RAPsyn immunoprecipitated from different cells and quantitation of RAPsyn-encoding mRNA levels in mouse tissues. RAPsyn synthesized in both muscle and nonmuscle cells was shown to be tightly associated with membranes. These findings demonstrate that RAPsyn is not specific to skeletal muscle-derived cells and imply that it may function in a capacity either in addition to or instead of AChR clustering.

ABSTRACT This article describes uterine and uterine cavity changes throughout the normal and pathological puerperium, as revealed by various ultrasound modalities. A gray scale ultrasound, color and pulsed Doppler ultrasound and 3D ultrasound were used. It is based on results of several prospective longitudinal studies, which were designed so that every woman was examined at six occasions during the puerperium, namely on postpartum days 1, 3, 7, 14, 28 and 56. The first four examinations were performed transabdominally and the last two transvaginally. The same design was used in all studies. The involution process of the uterus was assessed by measuring the anteroposterior diameter of the uterus and uterine cavity. Morphological findings were recorded. The influence on the involution process of parity, breastfeeding, maternal smoking and infant's birth weight were also evaluated. Besides conventional ultrasound, Doppler technology was used to study hemodynamic events occurring during the normal puerperium. The pulsatility (PI) and resistance (RI) indices in the uterine arteries were measured, and the presence or absence of early diastolic notches was recorded. A hypervascular area in myometrium was assessed by color and power Doppler. Normal involution process was also described by means of 3D ultrasound. The volume of the uterus and uterine cavity after normal vaginal delivery were measured using virtual organ computer-aided analysis (VOCAL) using six adjacent planes and a 30° rotation method. Reference values from uncomplicated puerperium were used when pathological conditions were studied. Results from these studies, which shed light on normal and pathological changes during the puerperium, are summarized in this chapter. How to cite this article Mulic-Lutvica A. Postpartum Ultrasound. Donald School J Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol 2012; 6(1):76-92.

Abstract Background: Light chain amyloidosis (AL) is characterized by tissue deposition of misfolded proteins that cause multisystem organ dysfunction. Current treatments, including chemotherapy and autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (AHCT), target plasma cells producing pathogenic amyloid proteins. The development of amyloid protein targeted monoclonal antibody therapy has led to an increased need for objective measurements of clinical response. The 6-minute walk test (6MWT) has been used for years as the primary outcome measure to monitor disease severity in clinical trials of heart failure (HF). For example, HF trials with cardiac devices MIRACLE (Abraham, 2002) and MUSTIC (Cazeau, 2001) demonstrated important therapeutic effects based on an improved 6MWT distance of 39 meters and a change of 23%, respectively. These findings, in conjunction with improvement in other markers of disease activity, lead to approval of cardiac resynchronization for the management of HF. Our primary objective was to determine the impact of chemotherapy on changes in 6MWT in patients with AL cardiac amyloid and correlate these changes with cardiac biomarkers. Patients and Methods: We retrospectively analyzed outcomes of 22 AL amyloid patients with cardiac involvement. Subjects performed 6MWT at diagnosis and at the end of planned initial chemotherapy. All patients received bortezomib (B)-based chemotherapy. About half received chemotherapy alone (45%) and the others received B-based induction chemotherapy followed by AHCT (55%). To identify factors associated with changes in 6MWT, we analyzed cardiac response and changes in New York Heart Association (NYHA) class, troponin I, brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) and left ventricular ejection fraction (LV EF). Cardiac response was defined as BNP decrease of 30% or NYHA class decrease ≥ 2 in subjects with baseline NYHA class 3 or 4 (adapted from Comenzo, 2012). Results: At baseline, 59% (n=13) of patients were modified AL amyloid cardiac stage I/II and 41% (n=9) stage III. The median percent change in 6MWT was an increase in 26.5% with a median change of 90 meters (range, -120 to 365), p < 0.001. Overall, 81% (n=18) had improvement in 6MWT distance, 9% (n=2) declined and 9% (n=2) were unchanged. Patients had reassessment of 6MWT a median of 13.5 months from diagnosis. Hematological responses (HR) included CR (36%), VGPR (36%), PR (23%) and SD (5%). HR was not associated with change in 6MWT. Fifty percent (n=11) experienced a cardiac response. By Wilcoxon rank sum test, variables that were associated with improvement in 6MWT included improved BNP, LV EF, troponin I, NYHA class and cardiac response (all p<0.001). The median follow-up of patients was 2.15 years (range, 1.10 - 7.20). By multivariate analysis, patients with a cardiac response had significantly better improvement in 6MWT disease compared with patients without cardiac response (p=0.02). A cardiac response was associated with a median increase of 170 meters of distance traveled by 6MWT when compared with patients having no cardiac response. All other variables tested were not statistically significant. Conclusion: In AL amyloid patients with cardiac involvement, the 6MWT can be used as an objective marker of functional improvement complementing biochemical and imaging parameters of response. Furthermore, treatment of cardiac amyloidosis with contemporary standard regimens has a major impact on the disease process by a number of objective parameters. Patients experiencing a cardiac response had substantial improvements in 6MWT. The 6MWT should be incorporated in trials of patients with cardiac amyloid. Disclosures Cornell: Prothena: Research Funding.

Increasing preoccupations and interest manifested for the Romanian language as a foreign language compose a focused and clear expression in the volume “Romanian as a foreign language. Methodology and cultural applicability”, launched at the Turku University publishing house, Finland (2018). The editors, Paul Nanu (Department of Romanian Language and Culture, University of Turku, Finland) and Emilia Ivancu (Department of Romanian Studies of the Adam Mickiewicz University of Poznań, Poland) with this volume, continue a series of activities dedicated to the promotion of the Romanian language and culture outside the country borders. This volume brings together a collection of articles, previously announced and briefly presented at a round table organized by the two Romanian lectors, as a section of the International Conference “Dialogue of cultures between tradition and modernity”, (Philological Research and Multicultural Dialogue Centre, Department of Philology, Faculty of History and Philology, “1 Decembrie 1918” University of Alba Iulia). The thirteen authors who sign the articles are teachers of Romanian as a foreign language, either in the country or abroad. The challenge launched by the organisers pointed both at the teaching methods of Romanian as a foreign language – including the authors’ reflections upon the available textbooks (Romanian language textbooks) and the cultural implications of this perspective on the Romanian language. It is probably no accident that the first article of the aforementioned volume – “Particularities of teaching Romanian as a foreign language for the preparatory year. In quest of “the ideal textbook’’ (Cristina Sicoe, University of the West, Timișoara) – brings a strict perspective upon that what should be, from the author’s point of view, “the ideal textbook”. The fact that it does not exist, and has little chances ever to exist, could maybe be explained by the multitude of variables which appear in practice, within the didactic triangle composed by teacher – student – textbook. The character of the variables is the result of particular interactions established between the components of the triad. A concurrent direction is pointed out by the considerations that make the object of the second article, “To a new textbook of Romanian language as a foreign language’’ (Ana-Maria Radu-Pop, University of the West, Timișoara). While the previous article was about an ideal textbook for foreign students in the preparatory year of Romanian, this time, the textbook in question has another target group, namely Erasmus students and students from Centres of foreign languages. Considering that this kind of target group “forms a distinct category”, the author pleads for the necessity of editing adequate textbooks with a part made of themes, vocabulary, grammar and a part made of culture and civilization – the separation into parts belongs to the author – that should consider the needs of this target group, their short stay in Romania (three months to one year) and, last but not least, the students’ poor motivation. These distinctive notes turn the existent RFL textbooks[1] in that which the author calls “level crossings”, which she explains in a humorous manner[2]. Since the ideal manual seems to be in no hurry to appear, the administrative-logistic implications of teaching Romanian as a foreign language (for the preparatory year) should be easier to align with the standards of efficiency. This matter is addressed by Mihaela Badea and Cristina Iridon from the Oil & Gas University of Ploiești, in the article “Administrative/logistic difficulties of teaching RFL. Case study”. Starting from a series of practical experiences, the authors are purposing to suggest “several ideas to improve existent methodologies of admitting foreign students and to review the ARACIS criteria from March 2017, regarding external evaluation of the ‘Romanian as a foreign language’ study programme”. Among other things, an external difficulty is highlighted (common to all universities in the country), namely the permission to register foreign students until the end of the first semester of the academic year, meaning around the middle of February. The authors punctually describe the unfortunate implications of this legal aspect and the regrettable consequences upon the quality of the educational act. They suggest that the deadline for admitting foreign students not exceed the 1st of December of every academic year. The list of difficulties in teaching Romanian as a foreign language is extremely long, reaching sensitive aspects from an ethical perspective of multiculturalism. This approach belongs to Constantin Mladin from Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, Macedonia, who writes about “The role of the ethical component in the learning process of a foreign language and culture. The Macedonian experience”. Therefore, we are moving towards the intercultural competences which, as the author states, are meant to “adequately and efficiently round the acquired language competences”. In today’s Macedonian society, that which the author refers to, a society claimed to be multiethnic, multilingual and pluriconfessional, the emotional component of an intercultural approach needs a particular attention. Thus, reconfigurations of the current didactic model are necessary. The solution proposed and successfully applied by Professor Constantin Mladin is that of shaking the natural directions in which a foreign language and culture is acquired: from the source language/culture towards the target language/culture. All this is proposed in the context in which the target group is extremely heterogeneous and its “emotional capacity of letting go of the ethnocentric attitudes and perceptions upon otherness” seem to lack. When speaking about ‘barriers’, we often mean ‘difficulty’. The article written by Silvia Kried Stoian and Loredana Netedu from the Oil & Gas University of Ploiești, called “Barriers in the intercultural communication of foreign students in the preparatory year”, is the result of a micro-research done upon a group of 37 foreign students from 10 different countries/cultural spaces, belonging to different religions (plus atheists), speakers of different languages. From the start, there are many differences to be reconciled in a way reasonable enough to reduce most barriers that appear in their intercultural communication. Beneficial and obstructive factors – namely communication barriers – coexist in a complex communicational environment, which supposes identifying and solving the latter, in the aim of softening the cultural shock experienced within linguistic and cultural immersion. Several solutions are recommended by the two authors. An optimistic conclusion emerges in the end, namely the possibility that the initial inconvenient of the ethnical, linguistic and cultural heterogeneity become “an advantage in learning the Romanian language and acquiring intercultural communication”. Total immersion (linguistic and cultural), as well as the advantage it represents as far as exposure to language is concerned, is the subject of the article entitled “Cultural immersion and exposure to language”, written by Adina Curta (“1 Decembrie 1918” University of Alba Iulia). Considered to be a factor of rapid progress and effectiveness of acquisition, exposure to language that arises from the force of circumstances could be extended to that what may be named orchestrated exposure to language. This phrase is consented to reunite two types of resources, “a category of statutory resources, which are the CEFRL suggestions, and a category of particular resources, which should be the activities proposed by the organizers of the preparatory year of RFL”. In this respect, we are dealing with several alternating roles of the teacher who, besides being an expert, animator, facilitator of the learning process or technician, also becomes a cultural and linguistic coach, sending to the group of immersed students a beneficial message of professional and human polyvalence. A particular experience is represented by teaching the Romanian language at the Sapienza University of Rome, Italy. This experience is presented by Nicoleta Neșu in the article “The Romanian language, between mother tongue and ethnic language. Case study”. The particular situation is generated by the nature of the target group, a group of students coming, on the one hand, from Romanian families, who, having lived in Italy since early childhood, have studied in the Italian language and are now studying the Romanian language (mother tongue, then ethnic language) as L1, and, on the other hand, Italian mother tongue students who study the Romanian language as a foreign language. The strategies that are used and the didactic approach are constantly in need of particularization, depending on the statute that the studied language, namely the Romanian language, has in each case. In the area of teaching methodology for Romanian as a foreign language, suggestions and analyses come from four authors, namely Eliana-Alina Popeți (West University of Timișoara), “Teaching the Romanian language to students from Romanian communities from Serbia. Vocabulary exercise”, Georgeta Orian (“1 Decembrie 1918” University of Alba Iulia) “The Romanian language in the rhythm of dance and hip-hop music”, Coralia Telea (“1 Decembrie 1918” University of Alba Iulia), “Explanation during the class of Romanian as a foreign language” and Emilia Ivancu (Adam Mickiewicz University of Poznań, Poland), “Romanian (auto)biographic discourse or the effect of literature upon learning RFL”. The vocabulary exercise proposed to the students by Eliana-Alina Popeți is a didactic experiment through which the author checked the hypothesis according to which a visual didactic material eases the development of vocabulary, especially since the textual productions of the students, done through the technique that didactics calls “reading images”, were video recorded and submitted to mutual evaluation as well as to self-evaluation of grammar, coherence and pronunciation. The role of the authentic iconographic document is attested in the didactics of modern languages, as the aforementioned experiment confirms once again the high coefficient of interest and attention of the students, as well as the vitality and authenticity of interaction within the work groups. It is worth mentioning that these students come from the Serbian Republic and are registered in the preparatory year at the Faculty of Letters, History and Theology of the West University of Timișoara. Most of them are speakers of different Romanian patois, only found on the territory of Serbia. The activity consisted of elaborating written texts starting from an image (a postcard reproducing a portrait of the Egyptian artist Eman Osama), imagining a possible biography of the character. In the series of successful authentic documents in teaching-learning foreign languages, there is also the song. The activities described by Georgeta Orian were undertaken either with Erasmus students from the preparatory year at the “1 Decembrie 1989” University of Alba Iulia, or with Polish students (within the Department of Romanian Studies in Poznań), having high communication competences (B1-B2, or even more). There were five activities triggered by Romanian songs, chosen by criteria of sympathy with the interests of the target group: youngsters, late teenagers. The stake was “a more pleasant and, sometimes, a more useful learning process”, mostly through discovery, through recourse to musical language, which has the advantage of breaking linguistic barriers in the aim of creating a common space in which the target language, a language of “the other”, becomes the instrument of speaking about what connects us. The didactic approach, when it comes to Romanian as a foreign language taught to students of the preparatory year cannot avoid the extremely popular method of the explanation. Its story is told by Coralia Telea. With a use of high scope, the explanation steps in in various moments and contexts: for transmitting new information, for underlining mechanisms generating new rules, in evaluation activities (result appreciation, progress measurements). Still, the limits of this method are not left out, among which the risk of the teachers to annoy their audience if overbidding this method. Addressing (Polish) students from the Master’s Studies Program within the Romania Philology at the Adam Mickiewicz University of Poznań, Emilia Ivancu crosses, through her article, the methodological dimensions of teaching Romanian as a foreign language, entering the curricular territory of the problematics in question by proposing an optional course entitled Romanian (auto)biographic discourse”. Approaching contact with the Romanian language as a foreign language at an advanced level, the stakes of the approach and the proposed contents differ, obviously, from the ones only regarding the creation and development of the competence of communication in the Romanian Language. The studied texts have been grouped into correspondence/epistolary discourse, diaries, memoires and (auto)biography as fiction. Vasile Alecsandri, Sanda Stolojan, Paul Goma, Neagoe Basarab, Norman Manea, Mircea Eliade are just a few of the writers concerned, submitted to discussions with the help of a theoretical toolbox, offered to the students as recordings of cultural broadcasts, like Profesioniștii or Rezistența prin cultură etc. The consequences of this complex approach consisted, on the one hand, of the expansion of the readings for the students and, on the other hand, in choosing to write dissertations on these topics. A “tangible” result of Emilia Ivancu’s course is the elaboration of a volume entitled România la persoana întâi, perspective la persoana a treia (Romania in the first person, perspectives in the third person), containing seven articles written by Polish Master’s students. Master’s theses, a PhD thesis, several translations into the Polish language are also “fruits” of the initiated course. Of all these, the author extracted several conclusions supporting the merits and usefulness of her initiative. The volume ends with a review signed by Adina Curta (1 Decembrie 1918 University of Alba Iulia), “The Romanian language, a modern, wanted language. Iuliana Wainberg-Drăghiciu – Textbook of Romanian language as a foreign language”. The textbook elaborated by Iuliana Wainberg-Drăghiciu (“1 Decembrie 1918” University of Alba Iulia) respects the CEFRL suggestions, points at the communicative competences (linguistic, sociolinguistic and pragmatic) described for levels A1 and A2, has a high degree of accessibility through a trilingual dictionary (Romanian-English-French) which it offers to foreign students and through the phonetic transcription of new vocabulary units.

Abstract Organ craftsmanship and music are inextricably linked with each other. In Germany, a particularly rich symbiosis between craftspeople, composers, and performing artists has evolved over the centuries. In recognizing the transmission of this intangible cultural know-how from generation to generation, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) inscribed organ craftsmanship and music together in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2017. This article elucidates how this inscription influences the perception and self-concept of organ craftsmanship and music, both in theoretic-intellectual and in virtual terms. Complementing the qualitative content analysis of literature and documents, narrative first-hand accounts/expert interviews with organ craftspeople/organ builders have been conducted and interpreted. Taking into account a dual nexus of cultural sustainability and intangible cultural heritage, sustainable value creation, substantial claims, multi-perspective visibility, and facilitative reassurance were analyzed and assessed vis-à-vis organ craftsmanship and music. Including organ craftsmanship and music in UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity demonstrates an appreciation for sustainable value creation related to the quadruple bottom-line of sustainability – that is, addressing economic, environmental, and societal aspects, including culture as a fully integrated dimension; claims substantial rights for safeguarding and invoking/activating heritage; enhances visibility of performing organists, assigned organ builders, frequent practitioners, and nominated organ experts; and enables reassurance of passion and self-positioning with organ craftsmanship and music.

Methodological approaches to the problem of arrangements of polyphonic material for bandura are presented. The problem of comparative comparison of performance capabilities of Kyiv and Kharkiv banduras, the corresponding ways of playing them when performing a polyphonic texture is raised. Prospects for wider involvement of the Kharkiv bandura in performing and educational practice are considered. The professional training of a modern bandura performer should be focused on overcoming certain stereotypes about the technical capabilities of the instrument. The task is to expand the means of performance, to develop new methods and techniques, and to enrich the original and interpreted repertoire of various epoch-making, national and individual compositional styles. A modern bandura performer must develop his musical thinking, aimed at mastering different types of textures, including atypical for the instrument, samples of different types of polyphonic presentation. The aim of the article is a methodological analysis of arrangements of a number of polyphonic works by J.-S. Bach for bandura, consideration of possibilities and variants of interpretations of polyphonic material for bandura of Kharkiv type. Among the examples it is a comparison of modern bandura teachers’ interpretations of “Short Preludes and Fugues for Organ” by J.-S. Bach. Our author’s versions of the interpretation of these and other polyphonic works by J.-S. Bach for Kharkiv type bandura have been presented in the performance classes at Ternopil Volodymyr Hnatiuk National Pedagogical University and Ternopil Solomia Krushelnytska Vocational Music College The research methodology consists in applying a set of relevant methods: the method of systematic analysis, historical-stylistic method to consider the problem of arrangement, comparative method for comparing the features of transcriptions for Kyiv and Kharkiv bandura, and generalization method to formulate relevant conclusions. There has been introduced the arrangement of the Prelude and Fugue № 13 Fis-Dur from the 1-st volume of DTK J.-S. Bach for a bandura of Kharkiv type with a mechanism (design by V. Gerasymenko), which made it possible to illustrate the technical and expressive possibilities that the performer of the bandura of Kharkiv type gives. Thus, Kharkiv way of playing and the modern construction of the bandura of Kharkiv type by V. Gerasymenko proves its perspective in many aspects concerning arrangement and performance of polyphonic works, show significant potential of technical and expressive possibilities for performing Baroque and Classicism music at a high artistic level and is a powerful stimulus for further development of bandura performance in Ukraine.

Music situational teaching method aims to mobilize the students’ thoughts in a natural state so as to enhance the attractiveness and efficiency of music classes. In the process of this method, some specific situational are designed according to the characteristics of music and under the guidance of psychology, methodology, pedagogy and other theories, and various sensory organs are employed. Different from traditional teaching method, situational teaching method creates learning situational for students, which is consistent with the characteristics of primary school students' physical and mental development and maximizes students' experience and feeling of music.

The present study consists in proposing the use of the lyrical technique dissociated from the aesthetics of sacred music, opera, and concert music, for which its use has become reputed, to use it as a healthy and efficient tool in the vocal muscular training of the Brazilian popular singer. For this, we carried out a bibliographical review on pedagogy and vocal physiology in the scope of popular Brazilian song, as well as an analysis of small fragments of the repertoire of popular music, through which we seek to justify the use of the lyrical technique by the popular singer. The project aims to open new perspectives on the subject and to point out the musical benefits achieved through the physiological knowledge that the lyrical technique provides: the conscious use of the organs that make the activity of singing possible and the use of the whole body as an instrument.

BACKGROUND: The analysis of brain activity in different conditions is an important research area in neuroscience. OBJECTIVE: This paper analyzed the correlation between the brain and skin activities in rest and stimulations by information-based analysis of electroencephalogram (EEG) and galvanic skin resistance (GSR) signals. METHODS: We recorded EEG and GSR signals of eleven subjects during rest and auditory stimulations using three pieces of music that were differentiated based on their complexity. Then, we calculated the Shannon entropy of these signals to quantify their information contents. RESULTS: The results showed that music with greater complexity has a more significant effect on altering the information contents of EEG and GSR signals. We also found a strong correlation (r= 0.9682) among the variations of the information contents of EEG and GSR signals. Therefore, the activities of the skin and brain are correlated in different conditions. CONCLUSION: This analysis technique can be utilized to evaluate the correlation among the activities of various organs versus brain activity in different conditions.

The evaluation of the correlation between the activations of various organs has great importance. This work investigated the synchronization of the brain and heart responses to different auditory stimuli using complexity-based analysis. We selected three pieces of music based on the difference in the complexity of embedded noise (including white noise, brown noise, and pink noise) in them. We played these pieces of music for 11 subjects (7 M and 4 F) and computed the fractal dimension and sample entropy of EEG signals and R–R time series [as heart rate variability (HRV)]. We found strong correlations ([Formula: see text] in the case of fractal dimension and [Formula: see text] in the case of sample entropy) among the complexities of EEG signals and HRV. This finding demonstrates the synchronization of the brain and heart responses and auditory stimuli from the complexity perspective.

In this work, we investigated the coupling among the activities of the brain and heart versus the changes in auditory stimuli using information-based analysis. Three music were selected based on the difference in their complexity. We applied these auditory stimuli on 11 subjects, and accordingly, computed and compared the Shannon entropy of electroencephalography (EEG) signals and heart rate variability (R–R time series). The results demonstrated a correlation among the alterations of the information contents of EEG signals and R–R time series. This finding shows the coupling between the activities of the brain and heart. This analysis could be expanded to analyze the activities of other organs versus the brain’s reaction in various conditions.

The article notes that the study of art at the stage of emergence is of particular importance because it allows us to trace the directions of evolution, regional features, to identify a set of factors that have catalyzed some of its species. The aim of the article is to study some aspects of the process of evolution of song and music art of Central Ukraine in the Paleolithic era. It is noted that the problems of Paleolithic art are devoted to scientific works of domestic and foreign researchers, which address a wide range of issues related to the evolution of music, song performance and musical instruments, the emergence of symbolism and others. The development of musical art is directly related not only to the formation of new interpersonal relationships, but also to the evolution of man himself, the transformation of the structure of his individual organs. Necessary prerequisites for sound production are anatomical changes in the human body. Based on the results of modern research, it is indicated that anatomical changes have made it possible to emphasize individual sound units and control intonation. This significantly affects the vocal characteristics of the voice. Finds of objects of art and musical culture in the settlements of the late Paleolithic era indicate the availability of free time for their design and manufacture. In addition, it requires planning and organizing the process of making instruments. The results of modern archaeological research allow us to date the period of origin of instrumental music about 48000-50000 years ago. This conclusion is based on a study of archaeological research, including monuments from the cave Divje Babe I (Slovenia). The article presents the results of reproducing the sound of the percussion group of instruments found in the parking lot of the Paleolithic era near the village Mizyn (Ukraine). Comparative analysis with similar instruments and samples of cave painting, allowed to put forward a hypothesis about the musical accompaniment of ritual (proto-shamanic) dances. The author did not find evidence of the emergence of the Paleolithic calendar rituals and the connection of rituals with the seasons.

Dear Colleagues; It is a great honour for us to welcome you as Editor of Cypriot Journal of Educational Sciences, which has accepted publications indexed in qualified databases since 2006. Our main aim is to increase the quality of the journal day by day. We are ready to publish the new issue of Cypriot Journal of Educational Sciences, which has eight articles with authors from various countries. The aim of this issue is to give the researchers an opportunity to share their academic studies. A total number of forty-five (45) manuscripts were submitted for this issue and each paper has been subjected to double-blind peer review process by the reviewers specialized in the related field. At the end of the review process, a total number of twenty one (21) high quality research papers were selected and accepted for publication. First of all, I would like to thank all authors who have contributed to this issue . The focuses of the articles are varied. Investigating the Relationship Between Task Complexity, Cognitive Ability and Disorientation in Hypertext Navigation, Alper Bayazıt, Servet Bayram, Gonca Kızılkaya Cumaoğlu. Problem-based learning in secondary school: Status and prospects, Haris KH. Abushkin, Anna A. Kharitonova, Nikolay N. Khvastunov, Maksim V. Gorshunov. , Shadreck Mandina, Eshiwet Dube. Project technology in the development of communicative competence in schoolchildren: Extracurricular classes of Russian language, Guzel M. Nurullina, Alexandr F. Muraviyov, Anastasiya A. Martyanova, Iskander E. Yarmakeev. Can the storytelling strategy improve students story writing skills? An empirical study, Fatma Mohammed Alkaaf. Using wiki in the design of bilingual online course, Andrew V. Danilov, Rinata R. Zaripova, Nnamdi Anyameluhor. The Effect of Using Performance-based assessment Strategies to Tenth-Grade Students’ Achievement and Self-Efficacy in Jordan, Mohammad Ahmad Alkhateeb. Improving educational process quality in the lessons of natural and mathematical cycle by means of stem-training, Svetlana D. Chernyavskikh, Maxim A. Velichko, Irina B. Kostina, Yulia P. Gladkikh, Lyudmila V. Krasovskaya, Olga N. Satler. Classroom Management Problems Pre-Service Teachers Encounter In Elt, Kübra Keser. The Effect of Learning Styles on Prospective Chemistry and Science Teachers’ Self-Regulated Learning Skills, Sinem Dincol Ozgur. Subjectivity functions in reflexive and intercultural process of linguistic development, Irina Kondrateva, Diana Sabirova, Nailya Plotnikova. Primary School Students’ Mathematics Motivation and Anxieties, Yasemin Deringöl. Relationship between nomophobia and fear of missing out among Turkish university students, Nazire Burcin Hamutoglu, Deniz Mertkan Gezgin, Gozde Sezen-Gultekin, Orhan Gemikonakli. Discovering Learning Style with Active Music Education Practices, Kıvanç Aycan. Augmented reality in education researches (2012–2017): A content analysis, Mustafa Fidan, Meriç Tuncel. Meta-analysis of school leadership effects on student achievement in USA and Turkey, Sengul Uysal, Yılmaz Sarıer. Killing more than two birds with one stone: Teaching topical vocabulary through idioms, Anastasia S. Syunina, Iskander E. Yarmakeev, Tatiana S. Pimenova, Albina R. Abdrafikova. Examining self-regulation skills of elementary school students, Oktay Kızkapan, Oktay Bektaş, Aslı Saylan. Comparative analysis of musical-enlightenment concepts of L. Bernstein and D. Kabalevsky in Russian music education, Anastasia V. Mishina, Zilia M. Yavgildina, Rufina Ildarovna Samigullina, Tamara Yu. Melnik. Comparison of private-institute and public-school English teachers’ motivation towards teaching English in Iran, Shahram Alipour. Humour as a pedagogical tool in the teaching of English and German equivocal words, Alfonso Corbacho Sánchez, Luis Javier Conejero Magro. The topics of the next issue will be different. You can make sure that we will be trying to serve you with our journal with a rich knowledge in which different kinds of topics are discussed in 2018 Volume 13 Issue 4. I would like to present many thanks to all the contributors who helped to publish this issue. Best Regards, Prof. Dr. Huseyin Uzunboylu Editor in Chief

IntroductionCan a person’s tastes in art, music, literature, cinema, sport, humour or other fields be changed through online activity? This article explores that question by comparing recent research findings in the areas of neuroplasticity and flow. Neuroplasticity, also known as brain plasticity, is the idea that the human brain can change its structure and function through thought and activity, even into old age (Doidge). The second concept—flow—comes from the field of psychology, and refers to a deeply satisfying state of focused attention that people sometimes experience while engaging in an enjoyable activity such as browsing the Web (Csikszentmihalyi, Flow). Research into the experiences of web users, conducted from these two different perspectives, reveal interesting connections to the acquisition of taste and opportunities for further investigation. Neuroplasticity The term neuroplasticity comes from the words neuron and plastic. Neurons are the nerve cells in our brains and nervous systems. Plastic, in this context, means flexibility or malleability. Neuroplasticity has replaced the formerly-held belief that the brain is a physiologically static organ, hard-wired like a machine (Kolb, Gibb and Robinson). For much of the last century, scientists believed that adult brains, unlike those of children, could not produce new neurons or build new pathways or connections between neurons. According to this view, any brain function that was lost through damage was irretrievable. Today, research into neuroplasticity has proven that this is not the case. In the late 1960s and 1970s pioneering scientists such as Paul Bach-y-Rita demonstrated that brains change their structure with different activities they perform (Kercel). When certain parts fail, other parts can sometimes take over. Subsequent research by many scientists has validated this once-controversial idea, leading to practical benefits such as the restoration of limb function in stroke victims, and improved cognition and perception in people with learning disabilities (Nowak et al.). Merzenich, for example, has demonstrated how a brain’s processing areas, called brain maps, change in response to what people do over the course of their lives. Different brain maps exist for different activities and functions, including sensory perception, motor skills and higher mental activities. Brain maps are governed by competition for mental resources and the principle of “use it or lose it.” If a person stops exercising particular mental skills, such as speaking Spanish or playing piano, then the brain map space for those skills is handed over to skills that they practise instead. Brain maps are also governed by a principle that is summarised by the expression, “neurons that fire together wire together” (Doidge 63). Neurons in brain maps develop stronger connections to each other when they are activated at the same moment in time. Consequently people are able to form new maps by developing new neural connections. Acquiring Tastes Doidge has illustrated the role that neuroplasticity plays in acquiring new tastes by explaining how habitual viewing of online pornography can shape sexual tastes (102). In the mid- to late-1990s, Doidge (a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst) treated several men who had lost interest in their sexual partners as a consequence of their addiction to online pornography. Doidge explains their change of sexual taste in terms of neuroplasticity, noting that “pornography, delivered by high-speed Internet connections, satisfies every one of the prerequisites for neuroplastic change” (102). The sexual excitement of viewing pornography releases a chemical neurotransmitter named dopamine that activates the brain’s pleasure centres. Since “neurons that fire together wire together”, the repeated viewing of pornography effectively wires the pornographic images into the pleasure centres of the brain with the focused attention required for neuroplastic change. In other words, habitual viewers of pornography develop new brain maps based on the photos and videos they see. And since the brain operates on a “use it or lose it” principle, they long to keep those new maps activated. Consequently, pornography has an addictive power. Like all addicts, the men who Doidge treated developed a tolerance to the photos and videos they observed and sought out progressively higher levels of stimulation for satisfaction. Doidge explains the result: The content of what they found exciting changed as the Web sites introduced themes and scripts that altered their brains without their awareness. Because plasticity is competitive, the brain maps for new, exciting images increased at the expense of what had previously attracted them—the reason, I believe, they began to find their girlfriends less of a turn-on. (109) If the habitual viewing of online pornography can change sexual tastes, what other tastes can be changed through online activity? Art? Music? Literature? Cinema? Sport? Humour? One avenue for investigating this question is to consider existing research into the flow experiences of web users. The term flow refers to a deeply satisfying state of focused attention that was first identified by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (Beyond Boredom) in his studies of optimal experiences. According to Csikszentmihalyi, people in flow “are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter; the experience itself is so enjoyable that people will do it even at great cost, for the sheer sake of doing it” (Flow 4). Flow experiences are characterised by some common elements, which include a balance between the challenges of an activity and the skills required to meet those challenges; clear goals and feedback; concentration on the task at hand; a sense of control; a merging of action and awareness; a loss of self-consciousness; a distorted sense of time; and the autotelic experience. The term autotelic refers to an activity that is done, not with the expectation of some future benefit, but simply because the doing itself is the reward. Whenever people reflect on their flow experiences, they mention some, and often all, of these characteristics. Support for Csikszentmihalyi’s characterisation of flow can be found in studies of many diverse activities, such as playing computer games (Chen) and participating in sport (Jackson), to mention just two examples. The activities that people engage in to experience flow vary enormously, but they describe how it feels in almost identical terms. Pace has developed a grounded theory of the flow experiences of web users engaged in content-seeking activities including directed searching and exploratory browsing. The term grounded in this instance refers to the fact that the theory was developed using the Grounded Theory research method, and its explanations are grounded in the study’s data rather than deduced from research literature (Charmaz). A review of that theory reveals many similarities between the flow experiences of web users engaged in content-seeking activities and the experiences of habitual viewers of online pornography described by Doidge. The following sections will consider several of those similarities. Focused Attention Focused attention is essential for long-term neuroplastic change. Goleman notes that “when practice occurs while we are focusing elsewhere, the brain does not rewire the relevant circuitry for that particular routine” (164). In a series of brain mapping experiments with monkeys, Merzenich discovered that “lasting changes occurred only when his monkeys paid close attention” (Doidge 68). When the animals performed tasks without paying close attention, their brain maps changed, but the changes did not last. Focused attention also plays a central role in the flow experiences of web users. The higher-than-average challenges associated with flow activities require a complete focusing of attention on the task at hand, or as Csikszentmihalyi puts it, “a centering of attention on a limited stimulus field” (Beyond Boredom 40). An important by-product of this fact is that flow leaves no room in one’s consciousness for irrelevant thoughts, worries or distractions (Csikszentmihalyi, Flow 58). People who experience flow frequently report that, while it lasts, they are able to forget about the unpleasant aspects of life. Consider the following comment from a 42-year-old male’s recollection of experiencing flow while using the Web: “It’s a total concentration experience. You’re so interested in doing what it is you’re doing that nothing’s interrupting you.” In everyday life, one’s concentration is rarely so intense that all preoccupations disappear from consciousness, but that is precisely what happens in a flow experience. All of the troubling thoughts that normally occupy the mind are temporarily suspended while the pressing demands of the flow activity consume one’s attention. Let’s now consider a second similarity between the flow experiences of web users and the taste-changing experiences of habitual viewers of online pornography. Enjoyment The pleasure experienced by the pornography addicts treated by Doidge played an important role in the alteration of their brain maps and sexual tastes. Since “neurons that fire together wire together”, the repeated viewing of pornographic photos and videos wired those images into the pleasure centres of their brains with the focused attention required for neuroplastic change. Web users in flow also experience enjoyment, but possibly a different kind of enjoyment to the pleasure described by Doidge. Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi make the following distinction between pleasure and enjoyment: Pleasure is the good feeling that comes from satisfying homeostatic needs such as hunger, sex, and bodily comfort. Enjoyment, on the other hand, refers to the good feelings people experience when they break through the limits of homeostasis—when they do something that stretches them beyond what they were—in an athletic event, an artistic performance, a good deed, a stimulating conversation. (12) The enjoyment experienced by people in flow is sometimes described as “the autotelic experience.” According to Csikszentmihalyi, an autotelic experience is “a self-contained activity, one that is done not with the expectation of some future benefit, but simply because the doing itself is the reward” (Flow 67). Because autotelic experiences are so satisfying, they create a strong desire to repeat the activity that produced the experience. Consider the following comment from a web user about the reasons he enjoys online content-seeking activities that have led to flow: It’s like going to somewhere new. You’re always learning something. You’re always finding something. And you don’t know what it is you’re going to find. There’s so much out there that you’ll go there one day and then you’ll come back, and you’ll actually end up on a different path and finding something different. So it’s investigation of the unknown really. This comment, like many web users’ recollections of their flow experiences, points to a relationship between enjoyment and discovery. This connection is also evident in flow experiences that occur during other kinds of activities. For example, Csikszentmihalyi suggests that “the reason we enjoy a particular activity is not because such pleasure has been previously programmed in our nervous system, but because of something discovered as a result of interaction” (The Evolving Self 189). He illustrates this point with the example of a person who is at first indifferent to or bored by a particular activity, such as listening to classical music. When opportunities for action in the context of the activity become clearer, or when the individual’s skills improve, the activity may start to be interesting and finally gratifying. For example, if a person begins to understand the design underlying a symphony he or she might begin to enjoy the act of listening. This example hints at how discovery, enjoyment and other rewards of flow may engender change in a person’s taste. Let’s now consider a third similarity between the two areas of research. Compulsive Behaviour One consequence of flow experiences being so enjoyable is that they create a strong desire to repeat whatever helped to make them happen. If a person experiences flow while browsing online for new music, for example, he or she will probably want to repeat that activity to enjoy the experience again. Consider the following comment from a 28-year-old female web user who recalled experiencing flow intermittently over a period of three days: “I did go to bed—really late. And then as soon as I got up in the morning I was zoom—straight back on there […] I guess it’s a bit like a gambling addiction.” This study informant’s use of the term addiction highlights another similarity between the flow experiences of web users and habitual viewing of online pornography. Flow experiences can, in a very small percentage of cases, encourage compulsive behaviour and possibly addiction. A study by Khang, Kim and Kim found that “experiences of the flow state significantly influenced media addiction” across three media forms: the Internet, mobile phones and video games (2423). Examples of problems associated with excessive Internet use include sleep deprivation, poor eating and exercise habits, conflict with family members, and neglect of academic, interpersonal, financial and, occupational responsibilities (Douglas et al). Some heavy Internet users report feelings of moodiness and anxiety while they are offline, along with an intense desire to log in. Doidge states that “the addictiveness of Internet pornography is not a metaphor” (106), but many researchers are reluctant to apply the term addiction to heavy Internet use. Internet addiction first came to the attention of the research community in the mid-1990s when Young conceptualised it as an impulse-control disorder and proposed a set of diagnostic criteria based on the diagnostic criteria for pathological gambling in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. However, after more than fifteen years of research on this subject, there is still no agreement on a definition or diagnostic criteria for Internet addiction. Some researchers argue that Internet addiction is not a true addiction and may be no more than a symptom of other existing disorders such as anxiety or depression (Weinstein and Lejoyeux). Regardless of this controversy, the potential for compulsive behaviour is another clear similarity between the flow experiences of web users and the neuroplastic change caused by habitual viewing of online pornography. One more similarity will be considered. Sidetracks In Pace’s study of the flow experiences of web users, informants reported engaging in two general types of content-seeking behaviour: (1) a directed searching mode in which one is motivated to find a particular piece of content such as the answer to a question or a specific music video; and (2) an exploratory browsing mode that is characterised by diffuse motives such as passing time or seeking stimulation. Directed searching and exploratory browsing are not dichotomous forms of navigation behaviour. On the contrary, they are closely interrelated. Web users move back and forth between the two modes, often many times within the same session. Just as web users can change from one navigation mode to another, they can also get sidetracked from one topic to another. For instance, it is reportedly quite common for a web user engaged in a content-seeking activity to decide to pursue a different goal because his or her curiosity is aroused by interesting content or links that are not directly relevant to the task at hand. Consider the following comment from a 21-year-old female web user whose desire to find contact details for a local Tai Chi group disappeared when a link to the Sportsgirl web site attracted her attention: I think I typed in “sports” […] I was actually looking for a place to do Tai Chi and that sort of thing. So I was looking for a sport. And it ended up coming up with the Sportsgirl web site. And I ended up looking at clothes all afternoon. So that was kind of cool. Sidetracks are a common feature of the flow experiences of web users. They are also a prominent feature of the description that Doidge provided of the pornography addicts’ neuroplastic change (109). The content of what the men found exciting changed as the web sites they viewed introduced “themes and scripts” or sidetracks that altered their brain maps. “Without being fully aware of what they were looking for, they scanned hundreds of images and scenarios until they hit upon an image or sexual script that touched some buried theme that really excited them”, Doidge notes (110). Conclusion Can a person’s tastes in art, music, literature, cinema, sport, humour or some other field be changed through online activity, just as sexual tastes can? This article alone cannot conclusively answer that question, but significant similarities between the flow experiences of web users and the neuroplastic change experienced by habitual viewers of online pornography suggest that flow theory could be a fruitful line of investigation. Can the flow experiences of web users lead to changes in taste, just as the neuroplastic change caused by habitual viewing of online pornography can lead to changes in sexual taste? What is the relationship between flow and neuroplastic change? Is the Internet the most appropriate environment for exploring these questions about taste, or do offline flow activities provide insights that have been neglected? These are some of the unanswered questions arising from this discussion that require further investigation. Advances in the field of neuroplasticity have been described as some of “the most extraordinary discoveries of the twentieth century” (Doidge xv). These advances provide an opportunity to revisit related theories and to enhance our understanding of phenomena such as flow and taste. References Charmaz, Kathy. Constructing Grounded Theory: A Practical Guide Through Qualitative Analysis. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications, 2006. 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