This paper, presented upon receiving the Outstanding Long-Term Achievement in String Research Award at the 2025 American String Teachers Association (ASTA) National Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, explores how faculty at non-doctoral institutions overcame challenges related to limited time and institutional support in developing a body of research worthy of national recognition. Through reflections on the author’s personal journey in music and research, the paper suggests that embracing uncharted research topics and innovative research methods, while maintaining rigorous scientific inquiry, led to new discoveries and creative rejuvenation. Ultimately, the author highlights the importance of inspiring the next generation of musicians and scholars to explore their own unique research paths, thereby contributing to the development of string research as a distinct field within music education.

The purpose of this study was to develop and test a framework for teaching self-regulatory skills during private violin lessons. The framework consists of a five-step thinking-action sequence that will allow musicians to evaluate their own playing during practice and equips them to enact necessary changes to their technique to bring their playing closer to a more proficient result. We used microanalysis with a cross-case comparative design to test the efficacy of the proposed framework with two participants (cases), both of similar ages and levels of playing ability, in weekly private lessons over 4 weeks. Trends from the case comparison suggest that this framework has good potential for increasing the use of self-regulatory habits and metacognitive self-reflection skills in students.

We analyzed the movement durations of 14 expert and 18 nonexpert string players as they prepared to play their instruments and in three other physical tasks unrelated to music making. We hypothesized that expert musicians would take more time to prepare their playing than nonexperts, but we found this not to be the case. There were no significant differences in movement duration means between experts and nonexperts in any of the four tasks including the Instrument Task. Surprisingly and somewhat inexplicably, we found that both expert and nonexpert musicians who participated in sports activities ( n = 17) took significantly more time to prepare their playing than did the other participants. Further inspection of the video recordings revealed important differences in how experts’ and nonexperts’ movements unfolded in the Instrument Task. Nonexperts’ movements tended to be uneven and disjunct, whereas experts’ movements were fluid and even from the start, suggesting that experts’ conceptions of “starting a note” begin prior to the onset of movement and not when the bow is in close proximity to the string.

String intonation is a topic of pedagogical interest, but also a domain involving implicit, embodied knowledge that may be hard to convey in words. This study investigated how prominent string musicians approach expressive aspects of intonation, when only verbal means of pedagogical communication are possible. A search through the professional periodical The Strad with the combined keywords “expressive” and “intonation” generated a set of articles that were subjected to narrative analysis. Four approaches emerged in this textual material: Casals’ “expressive intonation” as reference; expressive aspects of intonation as implied between the lines; ambiguous communication surrounding the connection between intonation and expressivity; and intonation and expressivity as separate concepts. Musicians’ strategies for verbal communication varied greatly, and intonation was clearly described as an expressive means in only a quarter of the articles. It is argued that passing on the tacit knowledge of expressive intonation requires not only performance experiences and artistic insights, but also a well-developed and accurate vocabulary in teaching.

Between 1966 and 1991, George Bornoff and his associates published two primary periodicals, the Bornoff String Bulletin (BSB) and String Education Quarterly (SEQ), each of which document aspects of Bornoff Approach to string class instruction. Given that all three periodicals remain largely inaccessible to the public, the purpose of this qualitative content analysis was to provide summative descriptions of the BSB and SEQ that further inform our understanding of Bornoff’s Approach. Our study was guided by three research questions: (a) What was the purpose of the BSB, SEQ1, and SEQ2 publications? (b) What content was addressed in these publications? and (c) Which string instruments are featured more prominently in pedagogical content across periodicals? Through our analysis, we sought to provide a description of each set of periodicals. Analyses revealed four themes in the publications: (a) Promoting the Bornoff Approach, (b) Sharing String Pedagogy, (c) Clarifying Concepts and Procedures, and (d) Training Public School Teachers. Findings provide insights into Bornoff’s pedagogy, the influence of Gestalt philosophy and Bornoff’s efforts to advance string education.

This investigation explored collaborative problem solving with and without a coach by analyzing problem-solving (PS) and problem-solving-prompting (PSP) behaviors by group members and coaches in six total coached rehearsals with three collegiate string quartets, and six autonomous rehearsals with the same string quartets. Teachers’ and learners’ PS and PSP behaviors were compared in three settings: autonomous chamber music rehearsals, chamber music rehearsals with a coach, and one-to-one instruction. Coaches and students performed the same problem-solving component behaviors and most of the same PSP behaviors as observed in one-to-one instruction and in rehearsals of a professional chamber ensemble. As in one-to-one instruction, coaches could engage learners in problem solving, and in this setting invite them to collaborate with one another, by asking questions and varying the specificity of feedback and directives. Coaches’ Attention Directives preceded the most learner problem solving and collaborative engagement. During autonomous rehearsals learners often switched leadership roles fluidly, often prompting one another to problem solve. Implications for a pedagogy of coaching and inclusion of small ensembles within music education are discussed.

Challenges of intonation derive from discrepancies between justly tuned intervals. In theoretical literature, string intonation is depicted as a balancing act between melodic and harmonic ideals, or between distinct tuning systems. However, practical string teachers’ and empirical researchers’ accounts sometimes appear to bypass such theory, focusing instead more informally on listening, kinesthetics, or tools and practice routines. In this survey study, our aim was to see how working string instructors approach questions of intonation, both as teachers and as musicians. A qualitative analysis of 95 Swedish professional string teachers’ responses reveals a rather intuitive approach to the topic, without any traces of intonation theory as such. The participants reported using a rich variety of teaching strategies, but teaching intonation was typically framed simply as helping the student find the right pitch categories. Regarding their own intonation as musicians, the emerging view was that finer pitch adjustments might succeed just by good posture, slow practice, and listening in ensemble contexts. Overcoming the constraints of this practice-based tradition remains an important challenge for string pedagogy in higher music education.

Utilizing Participatory Action Research (PAR), this study centered on the experiences of three young string players and a violin instructor employing storytelling as an approach to enhance expressiveness. Collaborating with the violin instructor to craft an initial approach and framework for the young string players, it was revealed that storytelling approach positively shapes the connection between young string players and their learning. The findings indicated that the storytelling approach facilitated a profound comprehension of tonality, form, articulations, and dynamics, converting technical aspects into elements with which young string players could meaningfully engage. By converting technical intricacies into relatable and expressive components, the storytelling approach emerges as a dynamic pedagogical tool that bridges the gap between theoretical understanding and practical musical engagement for young string players.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the rates, widths, and pitches of university double bass players’ vibrato in relation to pitch height, fingers used, and tempo. Forty ( N = 40) undergraduate and graduate double bass players performed excerpts in first, fourth, and thumb positions. The overall mean vibrato rate and width was 5.17 Hz and 19 cents. Analyses indicated that university double bassists employed faster vibrato rates and increased width as they performed in progressively higher registers. The third and fourth fingers vibrated the fastest, but the second finger produced the largest width. Musical examples played with a fast tempo were both faster and wider (5.35 Hz, 20 cents) than musical examples played with a slow tempo (4.94 Hz, 19 cents). Participants vibrated almost equally above and below the in-tune pitch—overall mean pitches of vibrated and non-vibrated tones varied by 1 cent. Music educators may use these results to create more consistent descriptions of double bass vibrato and, potentially, more efficient methods for teaching vibrato.

This study examined the status of school orchestra and string programs in Louisiana. A manual web search for string programs in parish school districts, student school affiliations from honor orchestra lists, Louisiana members of the American String Teachers Association (ASTA), and members of the Louisiana Music Educators Association was conducted to determine the approximate number of programs in the state. These data were cross-referenced with available data from the Louisiana Department of Education, which listed course offerings by school. A total of 44 teachers serving 97 schools were identified. Semi-structured interviews were then conducted with five-string teachers and two district arts coordinators from around the state to determine the strengths of current string programs and opportunities for growth. Findings from participant interviews revealed the legacy of school segregation, inadequate funding for public education, competition from non-public schools, and the challenges of maintaining program infrastructure due to limited funding and perennial natural disasters. The results of this study were compared with other statewide string program surveys to situate Louisiana string programs in a national context with implications for string teachers, music teacher education, and professional development offered.