Academic literature on the topic 'Tertiary music training'

Over the past two decades the topic of graduate outcomes has increasingly informed the discourse on the changing nature of universities. For conservatoires and university music departments the global shift in audience demand away from western classical music and jazz styles (traditionally the cornerstone tertiary music programs) to contemporary commercial music (CCM) has added an extra dimension to the graduate outcomes discussion with respect to vocation preparation and musicians’ portfolio careers. Few studies have tracked the career paths of music graduates across time with none focused on jazz/contemporary singers. This report discusses the findings from a snapshot study of Jazz/Contemporary Voice graduates (2001 to 2012) of one Australian conservatoire. The purpose of this research was to better describe this population of graduates in terms of employment outcomes, the dynamics of their employment activities, employment-seeking strategies and the relevance of university coursework to their employability. Their responses have implications for tertiary music training programs.

This article reports an exploratory study into applied music teaching at a tertiary level. The study was staged as a case study where the case comprises one performance lecturer of clarinet and eight of her students. The focus of the study is how a performance teacher with no formal teacher training fares in the training of musical performers, how students respond, and what are the particular successful or unsuccessful issues in ‘commonsense teaching’. The data were gathered through participant observation and questionnaires. The findings suggest that the distinction between the role of the pedagogue (skilled in the dynamics and principles of teaching and learning) and the role of the expert performer (skilled mainly in the domain of performance) is an essential distinction to make. However, it is also a distinction that traditional performance teaching at a tertiary level seldom makes. The article concludes by tentatively proposing some pedagogical considerations for applied music teaching, as drawn from the case study.

Tertiary music students show patterns of playing-related musculoskeletal disorders (PRMDs) similar to professionals, indicating the need for effective education in management and prevention during student years. When problems occur, music students are most likely to seek advice from their instrumental teachers; therefore, it is important for teachers to be involved in ensuring education programs are relevant to the occupational and artistic needs of both student and professional musicians. Musicians have previously reported improvements in outcomes associated with PRMDs and performance quality following Alexander Technique (AT) classes. In this study, 12 university music students and eight of their teachers evaluated video-recordings filmed before and after a semester of weekly, purpose-designed AT classes. Positive changes were observed in muscle tension, posture, tonal resonance, breathing, instrumental technique, and movement quality. Noted improvements were consistent with student participants’ subjective experiences, reported previously from questionnaire data. The results suggest that AT training at the instrument may have a direct positive impact on key factors associated with PRMDs as well as playing quality. Use of video assessments as a component of controlled, mixed-method studies with larger populations is recommended to establish the potential value of AT for inclusion in music training.

Background: The cochlear implant (CI) is one of the most important recent technological advances in healthcare. Even with this new technology, participants continue to have complaints regarding the performance of the CI. Auditory training is a procedure that provides the individual with performance improvements in auditory skills. One possible auditory training is music therapy. Objective: To verify the influence of music therapy on spoken language comprehension in participants who are post-lingual users of cochlear implants. Design and setting: The current research is a cross-sectional study. It was carried out in a university public institution, with a tertiary healthcare ranking. Method: Nine post-lingual implanted individuals participated in this study (average age: 52 years). These individuals had ten music therapy sessions, conducted once a week. The sentence comprehension test was used for hearing evaluation. All participants underwent a homework moment before the music therapy, and they were evaluated at three different times. Results: We observed significant improvement in understanding spoken sentences after music therapy. Conclusion: Music therapy was a useful tool for improving auditory and speech comprehension skills in post-lingual users of cochlear implants.

Music is ever-present in early childhood but does not feature strongly in the national curriculum framework – The Early Years Learning Framework in Australia or in the intentional practice of educators in early childhood education and care settings. This is mainly due to a lack of knowledge and confidence or self-efficacy to engage musically with the children. Preservice educator training plays a critical role in the development of effective pedagogical skills, knowledge and understanding. This article explored the music education preparation that preservice educators receive in initial training. A content analysis approach was used to review course content of all approved preservice educator programmes in Australia by the Australian Children’s Education & Care Quality Authority. Interviews with tertiary teachers explored content taught. The findings offer rich insight into the extent of music education provided for preservice early childhood educators and implications for the development for future programmes.

This article reports an exploratory study into applied music teaching at a tertiary level. The study was staged as a case study where the case comprises one performance teacher of piano and nine students. The focus of the study is how a performance teacher with no formal training fares in the training of musical performers, how students respond, and what are the particular successful or unsuccessful issues in what could feasibly be termed ‘commonsense teaching’. The data were gathered through participant observation, informal interviews and questionnaires. The findings suggest, after content analysis, that the distinction between the role of the instrumental teachers and the role of the expert performer is an essential distinction. In spite of good intentions the participating teacher failed to provide a successful instructional strategy. The article concludes by tentatively proposing some instructional considerations for applied music teaching, as drawn from the case study.

The study explores the music development, achievement and aspirations of adolescent students who participate in pre-tertiary specialised music programs. A theoretical model is developed for the study to investigate the role and influence of such training in the development of music skills, and explores relationships amongst music experience, music engagement, academic achievement, interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships, personal learning styles, and affective response to music. The data source for the study was the Young Conservatorium program (YCP) at Griffith University. Three sub-studies formed the investigation, two focussing on music development, and one, the program. The first sub-study involved 117 enrolled students, the second, 44 teachers and 112 former students, and the third, 15 case studies. Quantitative and qualitative data were obtained using surveys, tasks, tests, interviews, discussions, reflective journals, and practice logs. A large body of literature has identified a continued need for research that traces the music development of young musicians in adolescence, research that utilises both large and small sampling (particularly case studies), and is conducted at the time of training. The present study was conducted over two years, utilised a larger population than many previous studies, involved case studies, and combined contemporaneous and retrospective approaches. Research findings contribute to knowledge regarding young musicians' music training and learning in pre-tertiary specialised music programs, and the nature of pre-tertiary specialised music programs themselves: their rationale, methods of instruction, and overall effectiveness. They highlight the types of music programs and music training provisions available to young Australian musicians, and, though showing students to frequently engage in multiple music learning environments, confirm the need for individuals demonstrating above-average music ability to access specialised music tuition and opportunities, develop in a supportive learning environment, and interact with students of similar interests and abilities. Although also suggesting there to be a number of factors associated with pre-tertiary specialised music training that can deter some students, such factors tend to be non-musical in nature. In all, the study does show a trend for the families of young, above-average musicians to choose to provide for their children access to pre-tertiary specialised training, and for participants to gain from this experience. The study seeks to enhance understanding of the conditions though which music development is nurtured; it confirms the importance of exposure and opportunity, the collective efforts of the family and community, and the need for hard work and perseverance to usually be exercised by young musicians themselves. Common trends associated with the music development of young, above-average musicians pertained to music training and influences, characteristics, goals, and achievement. Early music exposure, guidance, and positive music experiences were found to be conducive to music learning. The establishment of a practice routine, increasing engagement with music, the formation of broad music preferences, demonstration of high music aptitude, musical and academic achievement, and goal-setting all characterised the experiences and marked the qualities of students sustaining their music interests in adolescence. Interpersonal support and developing intrapersonal attributes, personal learning styles and increasing affective response to music, together with developing cognitive and metacognitive skills, were generally shown to typify the music development of young, above-average musicians in adolescence.

“Aural training” forms a vital component of conventional music education and practice and has done so for a considerable amount of time, yet it remains a difficult area with regards to student engagement in its practice and application both at school and university level. Apart from extensive scholarly debates on approaches to and methodology of aural education, a crucial issue in need of addressing deals with the student experience on a cultural, environmental and psychological plane. Despite a long-standing history of approaches, methods and concepts having been proffered in advancing aural education, their success rests on the student being reachable, engageable, willing, autonomously motivated and possessing an effective set of problem-solving strategies. This study investigated student perception, motivation and problem-solving strategies in the aural courses at the South African College of Music, University of Cape Town. A mixed methods approach was adopted including semistructured interviews, a questionnaire-based survey and a brief comparative statistical analysis of student aural and theory marks over a five-year period. The theoretical framework adopted for this study consist of merging Embodied Cognition Theory, Dynamic Systems Theory and Self-determination Theory. Participants included current students enrolled in the Aural Intro, Aural I and Aural II courses as well as current tutors, former tutors and other professionals in this field. Findings with possible relevance outside of this demarcated study range from the variance in music education background of incoming students to a lack of problem-solving strategies, exercising various degrees of influence over student perception and motivation and thus directly impacting the effectiveness of an aural education system.

This doctoral thesis, submitted to the University of Adelaide, examines the education programmes of symphony orchestras in Australia and the United Kingdom, both past and present. Through this detailed exploration the thesis considers directions for future development. In Australia, orchestras increasingly look to their education departments to both foster the next generation of musicians and to maintain social relevance. However, there is a mismatch between the evident importance of such work and the relative lack of research in the field. The research presented here aims to fill this gap by presenting the first comprehensive overview of current practice and historical development in the field. At the time of writing orchestral education programmes are in a period of growth in Australia. Several Australian orchestras have made connections with British specialists, in acknowledgment that the United Kingdom is a world leader in participatory, creative orchestral education programming. The thesis analyses the reasons behind the United Kingdom’s strength in this area, giving particular attention to the development of the creative music workshop format. Other key topics in the thesis include: the implications of the growth of orchestral education work for classical music training at the tertiary level; the importance of partnership between arts and education organisations and the international impact of the Venezuelan El Sistema upon music education. New primary source materials have been generated in the form of interviews with leading figures in the field, including Managing Directors and Education Directors of orchestras in both Britain and Australia. The detailed insight gained from these interviews highlights current best practice in the field and reveals possibilities for further growth. The conclusion of this thesis offers a blueprint for future orchestral education programming.
Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, Elder Conservatorium of Music, 2016.