Musical Communication Research Articles

Factors influencing the effectiveness of music communication in Disney animated films

Factors influencing the effectiveness of music communication in Disney animated films

Commentary on “Embodiment Consciousness in Music Performance Pedagogy” by Alves and Nogueira

This commentary on Alves and Nogueira (2024) proposes a potential approach to compare expert and non-expert music teachers’ use of embodied teaching strategies in one-to-one lessons with advanced performance students. The approach is hypothesis-driven, and builds on Alves and Nogueira’s theoretical framework of expert competency domains, as well as empirical studies of musical communication and one-to-one teaching strategies. It is argued that a comprehensive definition of embodied teaching strategies should be conceptualized in terms of the quality of teacher–student interactions and the measurable outcomes of those interactions, and that it should account for the wide range of verbal and non-verbal forms of embodied musical communication that arise.

Pedagogical conditions for developing the readiness of master's degree applicants for intercultural interaction in the process of professional (piano) training

The article defines and characterizes the pedagogical conditions for forming the readiness of master's degree applicants for intercultural interaction in the process of professional (piano) training. It is emphasized that the tasks of the modern professional training of the applicants of the piano master's degree are not only to ensure a high level of professional knowledge of students, but also their practical preparation for social life and self-realization as an individual. It is emphasized that the humanization of the process of formation of the readiness for intercultural interaction in applicants of the professional master's degree implies the use of the latest technologies, active teaching methods, which would form the motives of educational and artistic activity, contribute to the discovery and development of the creative potential of the education applicant, self-realization of his/her personality; included in the process of learning the sphere of emotions, contributed to the development of cooperation. It has been proven that in the process of forming value orientations in the conditions of a multicultural artistic and educational environment, individual support of piano master's students is successfully implemented through individual counseling, creation of a positive moral and psychological climate in classes, mentoring support of the artistic and educational process, building an individual educational trajectory. Considering the formation and transformation of music-pedagogical and artistic-aesthetic paradigms in the system of modern music education, it is emphasized that the change in the paradigm of music education involves a shift of emphasis from the development in applicants of a complex of special knowledge, abilities and skills, focused on the formation of professional multicultural competence in the conditions of intercultural interaction, which allows us to interpret the artistic and educational space as a unity of creative personalities, united by channels of musical communication, who feel a sense of empathy for each other, mutual interest, are capable of active creative joint activity, overcoming interaction problems, creating a cross-cultural space

Jakub Józef Orliński’s work in the mirror of modern trends in the art of countertenors

Statement of the problem. The art of countertenors is a phenomenon of today’s world musical culture. Within the limits of historically informed performance, the art of countertenors is gaining a new round of popularity, taking into account new forms of musical communication. The interest in carriers of this type of singing voice was stipulated by the development of baroque culture, which, in turn, after a period of loss of relevance, became an object of stylization and a sign of stylistic pluralism of the culture of the second half of the 20th – the beginning of the 21st centuries. Today, the directors of the leading Europe opera houses, in particular of Ukraine, and attract countertenors to participate in opera performances of the composers of the Baroque era, and also the tradition of training countertenors, which includes several generations of singers, was formed. Objectives, methods, and novelty of the research. Despite a certain interest of researchers in the revival of the art of countertenors in the European cultural space (Ravens, 2014; Reetz, 2018; Braithwaite, 2020; Sherman, 2021; Hovorukhina, 2017; Hiholaieva-Yurchenko, 2022, etc.), the work of the Polish singer Jakub Józef Orliński, one of the most famous countertenors in the modern musical world, has not yet been the subject of special research in Ukrainian musicology. The purpose of the research is to carry out an interpretative and stylistic analysis of J. J. Orliński’s creativity, in the context of modern trends in the art of countertenors. To reveal the topic, the following methods are used: the historical to reveal the genesis of the art of countertenors; the value-based one for understanding the singer’s outlook; and the interpretative and stylistic one to examine the creative evolution and psycho-type of the performer. Results and conclusion. On the example of J. J. Orliński’s work representing the latest stage of developing the art of countertenors, the main features of his performance style were determined. 1. Historicism, which manifests itself in several important aspects. The singer researches and analyses of little-known and unknown works of baroque music; actively cooperates with orchestras and ensembles that perform baroque music on authentic instruments; consults with musicologists and historians to ensure the accuracy of his interpretations. At the same time, the desire for authenticity is combined with the search for modern methods of reading in order to bring baroque music closer to the audience. 2. Technical arsenal. Orliński demonstrates the perfection of vocal technique basing on a deep understanding of the anatomy of the voice. The free operation of the vocal apparatus allows him to perform complex baroque coloraturas, ornaments, controlled vibrato, and legato singing. A wide range, purity of intonation and flexibility, perfect mastery of breathing, phrasing, dynamic contrasts, and articulation help him to convey all the nuances of musical works and stylistically accurately interpret baroque music. 3. Vocal and stage image. Reincarnation. Artistry. The vocal and stage image of the singer is formed thanks to the combination of his exceptional vocal abilities, stage and acting skills. Orliński is able to skilfully interpret a wide range of roles, from classical baroque characters to modern opera heroes, demonstrating impressive vocal and vivid emotionality. The singer uses his excellent physical training as a break-dancer to emphasize the characters’ gestures and movements. In addition, he experiments on stage, brings elements of modern choreography to the performance of ancient music, thereby increasing his charismatic influence on the audience, satisfying the aesthetic needs of viewers of various age categories. 4. Psychological features. The singer’s approach to creative work is characterized by thoroughness and attention to detail, which allows him to achieve high results. The transformation of Orliński into stage images is the result of a deep study of the typology of each character, psychological and emotional aspects of the role. He demonstrates an exceptional capacity for empathy, which allows him to deeply feel and convey the emotional state of his scenic characters. This ability creates an impressive suggestive effect, which allows the singer to be a brilliant performer, especially of baroque works, from the point of view not only of vocal technique, but also of a singer’s psycho-type, which is characterized by inner emotionality and the ability to reincarnate as a key feature of performance style. Interest in the creative work of one of the most famous singers of our time, the bright representative of the Polish culture in modern musical world, served as the basis for developing a methodology for researching the phenomenology of the performer’s personality. The specified parameters of the performance style analysis can serve as milestones on the way to the study of such a complex phenomenon as countertenor singing.

Expanding self-referential awareness in music learning: utilising the expressive arts to facilitate reflection during group free improvisation

ABSTRACT Traditional music education has prioritised external over internal performance aims, leading some learners to prioritise external motivations. I facilitated a workshop series for participants who experienced music performance anxiety when improvising, to examine if free improvisation coupled with expressive art response could cultivate self-knowledge and self-referential awareness to balance internal and external motivations and restore healthful evaluations of the participants’ music-making. Using case study and art-based research, I invited six participants to improvise, journal, engage in art response during the playback of improvisations, and participate in group discussions. Findings suggest that participants learnt to identify self-referents and expand their conscious awareness of inner dialogue, emotions, and physical sensations during music-making. They were able to use this expanded awareness to begin to redirect their focus from self-conscious thoughts to more non-judgmental or creative states. Internalised fear-based motivation was identified as a barrier to effective musical communication during improvisation.

Interpersonal Music Communication in the Serenade Bunga Bangsa Music Group in the Song Anjayeng Bawana

Interpersonal Music Communication in the Serenade Bunga Bangsa Music Group in the Song Anjayeng Bawana

Reflections on the Dissemination and Development of Ethnic Music Culture in the Context of New Media

Modern digital music platforms and social media tools have become the mainstream form of music and culture dissemination. These platforms can optimize the efficiency of folk music dissemination, and at the same time, integrate folk cultural resources to present to people in a three-dimensional way. New media platforms integrate traditional music culture and modern art culture, and lay an important foundation for the globalization of folk music. The article explores the characteristics of ethnic music communication in the context of new media, analyses its main ideas and future development trends, with a view to providing important references for professionals.

The Practical Humanities Implications of Pitch Standardization History

Practical humanities, as a methodological approach for establishing the social value of humanities, embodies a proactive attitude and an effort to innovate the lack of social communication in the humanities, which has been identified as a root cause of the so-called crisis within this humanities. The standard pitch acts as an international linguistic convention within the musical domain, serving as a mediator for musical communication and is deeply linked to socio-cultural texts. These texts merge musical traditions with the modern era, significantly broadening the discourse-generating logic within practical humanities into a pivotal cultural code. This research aims to construct a methodological model to explore the social implementation of practical humanities by clarifying the historical identities of 435Hz and 440Hz, which lead the narrative of pitch standardization. 435Hz addressed the reality of inconsistent pitch prevalent across the 19th century European musical practice scene by establishing an intermediary pitch standard for musical practice. 440Hz reflects the characteristics of a universal and practical pitch aimed at enhancing the efficiency of musical communication, against the backdrop of the expanding social topography which is linked to pragmatic thinking in the early 20th century.

]MA[ – The Space between the Interval

<p>“]MA[ – The Space between the Interval” is the fourth movement of ]MA[, a multidisciplinary performance created in 2013 by Thingamajigs Performance Group (TPG) and performed at the UC Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive. In 2019, group member Dylan Bolles conducted and recomposed a series of interviews in which TPG reflected on the process of making and performing ]MA[. We asked questions such as: How does embodiment create particular amalgamations of influence and technique that trouble distinctions between thoughts of East and West? How do cultural artifacts change when passed through different bodies and contexts? What are the underlying principles which allow for sometimes effortless musical communication between seemingly distant cultural representatives? Our conversations, disjointed as they are, intermingle both shared and previously unshared experiences from many years working together and apart on intercultural performance projects. What emerges is a glimpse into a process of intercultural integration in motion.</p>

Music-themed museums serve as institutions that preserve musical instruments

The article discusses music museums that collect, preserve, study, and display materials related to the development of music culture. It notes that the main foundation of each music museum's collection is a collection of musical instruments. The article also highlights the active involvement of scientific-research and public centers in the dissemination of music culture experience of music-profile museums and the implementation of music communication. There is information about museums as the Russian National Music Museum, located in Russia's capital city, Moscow, which has one of the oldest and richest collections of museums; music museum situated in the music city (Cité de la Musique) of Paris, France; National Music Museum in Lisbon, Portugal, which boasts a rich collection of academic and folk musical instruments from Portugal and other countries around the world; The Music Instrument Museum in Phoenix, Arizona, USA, established through the personal initiative of businessman Robert Ulrich; the Musical Instruments Museum near the Royal College of Music in London houses a collection of over 800 musical instruments and accessories from Europe, Asia, and Africa, dating back to the 15th century; in Yakutsk, Russia, Museum and Center of The Khomus of The People of The World, founded in 1990, preserves around 10,000 museum items. Finally, the Hamamatsu Musical Instruments Museum, established in 1995, stands out as Japan's first and perhaps only museum dedicated solely to musical instruments.

The function of timbre in the perception of affective intentions: Effect of enculturation in different musical traditions

Timbre has been identified as a potential component in the communication of affect in music. Although its function as a carrier of perceptually useful information about sound source mechanics has been established, less is understood about whether and how it functions as a carrier of information for communicating affect in music. To investigate these issues, listeners trained in Chinese and Western musical traditions were presented with Phrases, Measures, and Notes of recorded excerpts interpreted with a variety of affective intentions by performers on instruments from the two cultures. Results showed greater accuracy and more extreme responses in Chinese musician listeners and lowest accuracy in nonmusicians suggesting that musical training plays a role in listeners’ decoding of affective intention. Responses were more differentiated and more accurate with more musical information. Excerpts were also analyzed to determine acoustic features that are correlated with timbre characteristics. Temporal, spectral, and spectrotemporal attributes were consistently used in judging affective intent in music, suggesting purposeful use of these properties by listeners. Comparison between listeners’ use of acoustic features reveals a greater number of shared features between Western musicians and nonmusicians compared to Chinese musicians for valence, although the three groups shared more features for arousal. How timbre is utilized in musical communication appears to be different across musical traditions, and valence responses seem to be more culture-specific and arousal responses more similar across cultures.

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT IN THE STRUCTURE OF PERFORMANCE THINKING

The article examines the specifics of the processes of musical thinking and the formation of this concept in musical communication and philosophical research. The relationship and interaction of emotional-imaginative and logical components of musical intelligence, aesthetics and intonation are analyzed, and the operating mechanisms of musical thinking are considered.

Effects of absolute pitch on brain activation and functional connectivity during hearing-in-noise perception

Hearing-in-noise (HIN) ability is crucial in speech and music communication. Recent evidence suggests that absolute pitch (AP), the ability to identify isolated musical notes, is associated with HIN benefits. A theoretical account postulates a link between AP ability and neural network indices of segregation. However, how AP ability modulates the brain activation and functional connectivity underlying HIN perception remains unclear. Here we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to contrast brain responses among a sample (n = 45) comprising 15 AP musicians, 15 non-AP musicians, and 15 non-musicians in perceiving Mandarin speech and melody targets under varying signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs: No-Noise, 0, −9 dB). Results reveal that AP musicians exhibited increased activation in auditory and superior frontal regions across both HIN domains (music and speech), irrespective of noise levels. Notably, substantially higher sensorimotor activation was found in AP musicians when the target was music compared to speech. Furthermore, we examined AP effects on neural connectivity using psychophysiological interaction analysis with the auditory cortex as the seed region. AP musicians showed decreased functional connectivity with the sensorimotor and middle frontal gyrus compared to non-AP musicians. Crucially, AP differentially affected connectivity with parietal and frontal brain regions depending on the HIN domain being music or speech. These findings suggest that AP plays a critical role in HIN perception, manifested by increased activation and functional independence between auditory and sensorimotor regions for perceiving music and speech streams.

From gesture to image: the conductor’s activity in the aspect of musical communication

The activity of a conductor requires significant competences, knowledge, skills and abilities used in working with a team of musicians. Ukrainian humanitarian studies hardly cover issues related to the interaction of the conductor with the orchestra during the rehearsal process. Depending on the quantitative and qualitative composition of the orchestra and creative tasks, the conductor may use different means of communication, which makes this profession complex and to some extent unpredictable. To identify the role of verbal and non-verbal means of communication, audio and video recordings of rehearsals of world-famous conductors with leading orchestras were processed and analysed. The novelty of the article lies in addressing the issue of conductor communication from both scientific and practical perspectives, as well as in focusing on the importance of non-verbal communication and its effectiveness in the rehearsal process. The work will contribute to broadening the understanding of the work of famous contemporary conductors and will help current and future conductors to anticipate or avoid difficulties that facilitate or hinder interaction with orchestra members during joint performances and may be related to the lack of research on musical communication.

АКАДЕМИЧЕСКАЯ МУЗЫКА ХХ – ПЕРВОЙ ЧЕТВЕРТИ ХХI ВЕКА: НА ПУТИ К ОСВОЕНИЮ

In the musical environment of philharmonic concert venues and musical educational institutions, the compositions of past centuries prevail over the music of modern styles and trends. This article discusses a number of issues related to the causes of this imbalance and analyses its impact on the formation of the repertoire preferences of the audience and the development of musical thinking of the admirers of academic music. In addition, the author brings up for professional discussion the topic of the responsibility of performing musicians for the formation of a sound environment that plays a decisive role in shaping public thinking. The article raises a delicate topic of evaluating the actions of some representatives of the musical and educational community who claim a monopoly of absolute truth regarding which styles and trends in modern music are worthy of being performed in the “temple of art” and which are not. When identifying the reasons for the current attitude of performing musicians towards the work of modern composers, the author of the article, based on the provisions of information theory, suggests considering a musical work both as a result of the composer’s creative activity and as an example of creating an information message for society. This approach allows drawing performers’ attention to the need for mastering the modern musical language, whose synthetic sign system is uniform for all participants in musical communication: the composer, the performer and the audience. The proposals for addressing this important problem are outlined in the final part of the article.

The Role of Ethnic Minority Music Communication in Regional Ethnic Identity and Cultural Diversity

The Role of Ethnic Minority Music Communication in Regional Ethnic Identity and Cultural Diversity

Microanalysis of a Music Therapy Session Segment With an Autistic Child

"The following microanalysis helps analyze an essential aspect of a music therapy session with a child diagnosed with autism. This detailed analysis highlights how essential music is in this little girl’s life, both in expression and communication. Microanalysis in music therapy aims to critically analyze the therapy process, focusing even on the smallest elements from a musical and therapeutic view. The music therapy sessions with this client and the analysis are based on the theory of communicative musicality developed by Trevarthen and Malloch. Just as Malloch argues that communicative musicality between mother and infant has three essential parts - pulse, timbre, and narrative - so it is observed that the analyses of the segments chosen were based on these principles. The narrative of the musical interaction between the client and therapist points to the fact that it expresses innate motives for sharing emotion and experience with other people and creating meaning in shared activity. It allows two people to share a sense of passing time and to create and share the emotional framework that evolves through this shared time. Keywords: Music therapy, autism, communicative musicality, microanalysis, attunement, psychology."

René Espere’s concert pieces: from the composer’s concept to the performance interpretation

Statement of the problem. Under consideration is René Eespere’s piano works created during the period of his maturity. The composer’s work is marked not only by its depth and originality, but also reflects the spiritual wealth and national identity of the Estonian people. Estonian music remains little known in Ukraine, therefore the article proposes to popularize the work of René Eespere, which will contribute to the establishment of cultural communication between Ukraine and Estonia. The research is based on performance experience and scientific analysis of three concert pieces by the composer: “Ludus tactus”, “Alter ego” and “Persona mea”. Analysis of recent research and publications. The article based upon the studies by K. Pappel (1992) and S. Pylypenko (2021, 2023) who highlight René Eespere’s piano works created by him during the period of creative searches (until 1995). Information pertaining to the mature phase of the composer’s career, is derived from various sources: the press materials (Hinn, 2016), interviews (Colucci, 2012), and our personal correspondence with the composer. The theoretical base of the study is formed by the works of Ukrainian musicologists, contributed to the theory of interpretation of musical works (Moskalenko, 2013) and musical communication as an interpretive phenomenon (Nikolaievska, 2021), performance issues (Bezborodko, 2017; Verkina, Bondarenko, Sagalova, & Timofeyeva, 2020; Chernyavska, Ivanova, Timofeyeva, Syriatska, & Mits, 2023), typologies of compositional styles (Serhaniuk, Shapovalova, Shehda, Kazymyriv, & Kolubayev, 2021). Objectives, methods, and novelty of the research. The purpose of the study is to highlight the conceptual aspects of compositional thinking and its embodiment in performance on the example of René Eespere’s three concert pieces for piano. The genre and stylistic, functional and structural, compositional and dramaturgical, as well as interpretive methods were used in the study. The article presents the first theoretical and performance analysis of René Eespere’s concert pieces in the Ukrainian musicological field. Research results and conclusion. The history of creation of works is described; the conceptual principles of compositional and performing thinking are highlighted; the regularities of the musical dramaturgy of each of the opuses were analyzed; a complex of expressive means is revealed; a brief description of the content and a scientific analysis of the works are given. It has been established that the concert piece “Ludus tactus” has significant compositional and performing potential, because the multifaceted author’s idea of the piece requires of flexibility and freedom in its pianistic implementation. The first performance of the piece by Ralf Taal is analyzed, which is of great interest, because the pianist’s artistic and technical skill allows him to find harmony between the author’s idea and his own performance vision of the composition . The piece “Alter ego” is aimed at revealing the artistic possibilities of a pianist, promotes the development of his artistic and emotional thinking, which is demonstrated by Polina Abolimova’s interpretation of the piece, the young performer who skillfully conveys its content aspects, its artistic sophistication. The piece “Persona mea” is the composer’s “small-format self-portrait”, an example of sound self- expression of the artist. The rendition of the piece by famous Estonian pianist Kalle Randalu, analyzed in the article from the point of view of the objectification of the composer’s idea, is a bright example of its interpretation, impeccable in the technical aspect, exceptionally detailed and refined in the sound.

Musical Relationships: Towards a Phenomenological Analysis of Early Mother-Infant Interactions

"This paper investigates musical relationships in the case of the early mother-infant dyadic interactions. To accomplish this task, it is first needed to come back to some important authors from the tradition of both phenomenology and psychoanalysis. The theories of Husserl, Schutz and Taipale will prove themselves to be useful. Secondly, I shall deepen the investigation of the early mother-infant interactions through the prism of theories coming from Winnicott, Stern and Thomas Fuchs. My main task will be to demonstrate that these early interactions have a musical quality, similar to Colwyn Trevarthen’s thematization of communicative musicality. To prove my point, I have to first establish the features that make these early interactions be musical-like. Winnicott’s potential space and the example of babbling will follow my argumentation. I will also stress on the importance of the face-to-face interaction through affect attunement and mutual tuning-in. All these interactions are modes of being-with-another (Stern). An example will be found throughout this paper, namely a specific mode of being-with-another, which was called by Winnicott the primary maternal preoccupation. Keywords: musical relationships, babbling, potential space, face-to-face interaction, mutual tuning-in, affect attunement, primary maternal preoccupation, synchronization, rhythm, being-with. "

An Analysis of Users Self-Presentation in Different Online Interaction Modes: Taking QQ Music as an Example

With the advancement of media technology, the evolution and development of music media have become more prominent; a single listening tool has evolved into an online interactive community. As media platforms adapted, this online comment section evolved into an entire online music communication community where users could interact online in other ways besides the comment section. So, this paper mainly focuses on the QQ music platform as the primary research object, analysing the interactive behaviour of users in the online music community, and obtaining the effects of different interactive modes on users self-expression. The study utilised discourse analysis and data analysis to analyse users self-presentations in online community interactions and to understand their behaviour in different modules. According to research, online social interactions and community development have a significant impact on listeners behaviors. They can guide the development of creative design strategies for digital media, such as music, movies, and video games. It also showed that commenting interactions and fan group interactions in online music communities are the most emotionally engaging modules for users, and that users in the comment section are better at sharing themselves and interacting with each other.