Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-c4f8m Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-19T07:28:25.127Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Informal music making in studio music instruction: A Canadian case study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 March 2017

Julia Brook ,
Rena Upitis  and
Wynnpaul Varela
Julia Brook
Affiliation:
Room 307, Harrison-LeCaine Hall, Queen's University, 99 University Avenue, Kingston, ON, Canada K7L 3N6Julia.brook@queensu.ca
Rena Upitis
Affiliation:
Faculty of Education, Queen's University, Duncan McArthur Hall, 511 Union St., Kingston, ON, CanadaK7M 5R7uptisr@queensu.ca
Wynnpaul Varela
Affiliation:
Concordia University, Centre for the Study of Learning and Performance (CSLP), 1211 Rue Saint Mathieu, Montreal, Quebec, H3H 2S2w_varela@education.concordia.ca
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to gain an in-depth understanding of how one classically trained musician adapted his pedagogical practices to accommodate the needs and interests of his students. A case-study methodology was employed to explore the perceptions and practices of this teacher, and data were collected over a two-year period through interviews and observations. Findings indicated that students were engaged in music-making throughout the lesson, and that many of the lesson characteristics aligned with Lucy Green's (2002, 2008) descriptions of an informal pedagogical orientation. The overarching aim of the teacher's instruction was to support students’ development of musical knowledge and skills that would enhance their learning, and to expand their understanding of musical genres and performance practices.

Type
Research Article
Information
British Journal of Music Education , Volume 34 , Issue 2 , July 2017 , pp. 153 - 167
Check for updates
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2017 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

BAKER, D. & GREEN, L. (2013) Ear playing and aural development in the instrumental lesson: Results from a case-control experiment. Research Studies in Music Education, 35 (2), 141–159. doi: 10.1177/1321103X13508254.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
BROOK, J., UPITIS, R. & TROOP, M. (2016) Developing responsive curricula for studio music instruction. Problems in Music Pedagogy, 15 (1), 7–21.Google Scholar
BURWELL, K. (2005) A degree of independence: teachers’ approaches to instrumental tuition in a university college. British Journal of Music Education, 22, 199–215.Google Scholar
CREECH, A. & GAUNT, H. (2012) The changing face of individual instrumental tuition: Value, purpose and potential. In McPherson, G. & Welch, G. (Eds.), Oxford Handbook of Music Education (pp. 694–711). Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
DAVIDSON, J. W. & JORDAN, N. (2007) ‘Private teaching, private learning’: An exploration of music instrument learning in the private studio, junior and senior conservatories. In Bresler, L. (Ed.), International Handbook of Research in Arts Education (pp. 729–747). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer.Google Scholar
DELIÈGE, I. & SLOBODA, J. (Eds.) (1996) Music Beginnings: Origins and Development of Musical Competence. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
DUKE, R. A. & SIMMONS, A. L. (2006) The nature of expertise: Narrative descriptions of 19 common elements observed in the lessons of three renowned artist-teachers. Bulletin of the Council of Research in Music Education, 170, 7–19.Google Scholar
EVANS, S., BEAUCHAMP, G. & JOHN, V. (2015) Learners’ experience and perceptions of informal learning in Key Stage 3 music: A collective case study, explore the implementation of Musical Futures in three secondary schools in Wales. Music Education Research, 17, 1–16. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14613808.2014.950212.Google Scholar
FINNEY, J. & PHILPOTT, C. (2010) Informal learning and meta-pedagogy in initial teacher education in England. British Journal of Music Education, 27, 7–19. doi: 10.1017/S0265051709990167.Google Scholar
FOLKESTAD, G. (2006) Formal and informal learning situations or practices vs. formal and informal ways of knowing. British Journal of Music Education, 23, 135–145. doi:10.1017/S0265051706006887.Google Scholar
GREEN, L. (2002) How Popular Musicians Learn. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing.Google Scholar
GREEN, L. (2008) Music, Informal Learning and the School: A New Classroom Pedagogy. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing.Google Scholar
GREEN, L. (2014) Hear, Listen, Play!: How to Free Your Students' Aural, Improvisation, and Performance Skills. London: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
HALLAM, S. (1997) Approaches to instrumental music practice of experts and novices: Implications for education. In Jørgensen, H. & Lehmann, A. C. (Eds.), Does Practice Make Perfect? Current Theory and Research on Instrumental Music Practice (pp. 89–108). Oslo, Norway: Nørges musikkhøgskole.Google Scholar
JENKINS, P. (2011) Formal and informal music educational practices. Philosophy of Music Education Review, 19 (2), 179–197.Google Scholar
KARLSEN, S. (2010) BoomTown Music Education and the need for authenticity: Informal learning put into practice in Swedish post-compulsory music education. British Journal of Music Education, 27 (1), 35–46. DOI:10.1017/S0265051709990180 Google Scholar
KOSTKA, M. (1984) An investigation of reinforcements, time use, and student attentiveness in piano lessons. Journal of Research in Music Education, 32 (2), 113–122.Google Scholar
LOPINSKI, J. (2005 May/June) The elementary piano pedagogy certificate. Music Matters, 1 (2), 1.Google Scholar
MAINWARING, J. (1941) The meaning of musicianship: A problem in the teaching of music. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 11, 205–2014.Google Scholar
McPHERSON, G. E., DAVIDSON, J. W. & FAULKNER, R. (2012) Music in Our Lives: Rethinking Musical Ability, Development & Identity. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
NIELSON, S. (2010) Epistemic beliefs and self-regulated learning in music students. Psychology of Music, 40, 324–338. doi: 10.1177/0305735610385509.Google Scholar
PIKE, P. D. (2013) Profiles in successful group piano for children: a collective case study of children's group-piano lessons. Music Education Research, 15 (1), 92–106, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14613808.2012.754416.Google Scholar
PRIEST, P. (1989) Playing by ear: Its nature and application to instrumental learning. British Journal of Music Education, 6, 173–191.Google Scholar
ROBINSON, T. (2012) Popular musicians and instrumental teachers: The influence of informal learning on teaching strategies. British Journal of Music Education, 29, 359–370. doi:10.1017/S0265051712000162.Google Scholar
SIMONES, L. L., RODGER, M. & SCHROEDER, F. (2015) Communicating musical knowledge through gesture: Piano teachers’ gestural behaviours across different levels of student proficiency. Psychology of Music, 43 (5), 723–735. doi: 10.1177/0305735614535830.Google Scholar
SODERMAN, J. & FOLKESTAD, G. (2004) How hip-hop musicians learn: Strategies in informal creative music learning. Music Education Research, 6, 313–326.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
UPITIS, R., ABRAMI, P. C, BROOK, J., BOESE, K. & KING, M. (2016) Characteristics of independent music teachers. Music Education Research. DOI: 10.1080/14613808.2016.1204277.Google Scholar
UPITIS, R., ABRAMI, P. C., BROOK, J., & KING, M. (2016): Parental involvement in children's independent music lessons. Music Education Research. DOI: 10.1080/14613808.2016.1202220 Google Scholar
UPITIS, R., ABRAMI, P. C., VARELA, W., KING, M. & BROOK, J. (2016) Student experiences with studio instruction. Music Education Research. DOI: 10.1080/14613808.2016.1202221 Google Scholar
UPITIS, R., BROOK, J., ABRAMI, P. C. & VARELA, W. (2015) Exploring the studio music practices of independent music teachers. Canadian Music Educator, 56 (4), 4–12.Google Scholar
VARIVARIGOU, M. (2014) ‘Play it by ear’ – teachers’ responses to ear-playing tasks during one-to-one instrumental lessons. Music Education Research, 16, 471–484. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14613808.2013.878326.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
WRIGHT, R. (2011) Musical Futures: A new approach to music education. Canadian Music Educator, 53 (2), 19–21.Google Scholar
WRIGHT, R. (2012) Tuning into the future: Sharing initial insights about the 2012 Musical Futures pilot project in Ontario. Canadian Music Educator, 53 (4), 14–18.Google Scholar
WRIGHT, R. & KANELLOPOULOS, P. (2010) Informal music learning, improvisation and teacher education. British Journal of Music Education, 27, 71–87. doi: 10.1017/S026505170999210.Google Scholar
YIN, R. (2014) Case Study Research: Design and Methods (5th edn). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
ZHUKOV, K. (2007) Student learning styles in advanced instrumental music lessons. Music Education Research, 9 (1), 111–127. doi: 10.1080/14613800601127585 Google Scholar
ZHUKOV, K. (2012) Interpersonal interactions in instrumental lessons: Teacher/student verbal and non-verbal behaviours. Psychology of Music, 41, 466–483. doi: 10.1177/0305735611430434.Google Scholar