Musical Skill Acquisition Research Articles

The importance of observing the master's hand: Action Observation Training promotes the acquisition of new musical skills.

Via mirror mechanism, motor training approaches based on the alternation of action observation and execution (i.e., Action Observation Training-AOT) promote the acquisition of motor abilities. Previous studies showed that both visual and auditory stimuli may elicit a common motor representation of music-related gestures; however, the potentialities of AOT for the acquisition of musical skills are still underexplored. Twenty-one music-naïve participants underwent two blocks of training: AOT and Key-light Observation Training (KOT). AOT consisted of the observation of a melodic sequence played on a keyboard with the right hand by an expert model, followed by participant's imitation. Observation and execution were repeated six consecutive times (T1-T6). KOT followed the same procedure, except for the visual content of the stimulus, depicting the sequential highlighting of the piano keys corresponding to the melody. The rate of correct notes (C), the trainee-model similarity of key-pressure strength (S), and the trainee-model consistency of note duration (R) were collected across T1-T6. Both AOT and KOT improved musical performance. Noteworthy, AOT showed a higher learning magnitude relative to KOT in terms of C and S. Action Observation Training promotes the acquisition of key elements of melodic sequences, encompassing not only the accurate sequencing of notes but also their expressive characteristics, such as key-pressure dynamics. The convergence of listening and observation of actions onto a shared motor representation not only explains several pedagogical approaches applied in all musical cultures worldwide, but also enhances the potential efficacy of current procedures for music training.

Use of animated stories to improve music education practices of trainee primary school teachers in Spain

AbstractThis article analyses an interdisciplinary educational experience combining music, ICT, language and art to create an animated story with active listening as a means of improving knowledge of music education practices. The method consisted of a qualitative, exploratory and descriptive study, with a semi-structured open-ended interview and analysis of the corresponding portfolio by both students and teachers with the aim of encouraging systematic reflection on practices and optimising teaching-learning in the nature of action research. The research population consisted of 104 students of the Bachelor’s Degree in Teaching of the Faculty of Education of the University of Alicante (Spain). The results indicated an improvement in music education practices relating to active listening following the pedagogical intervention, leading to the conclusion that inclusion of ICT in music education facilitates real and effective insertion and enhances students’ autonomy in the process of acquisition of musical skills.

Perspectives of teachers at music schools toward children's extra-musical abilities promoted by music lessons.

Musical activities foster children's social ability. However, the question remains whether professional music teachers consider musical training to have an influence on extra-musical abilities or only on the acquisition of musical skills. We conducted an online survey to collect open-ended responses regarding this question from over 2,000 music teachers in one of the biggest extracurricular fee-charging music school groups in Japan. Teachers' free descriptions were classified into non-cognitive skills, and frequently occurring words were extracted through text mining. The results showed that, although the primary goal of music teachers who provide fee-charging lessons may be to teach musical skills to their students, they were aware of the effects of music lessons on children's non-cognitive development. Our study's main findings include: (1) despite free-descriptions, 92% of teachers reported that children acquired extra-musical abilities, and 98% of these responses were categorized as non-cognitive skills, (2) the most common responses within non-cognitive skills were "collaboration," "task performance," and "engaging with others", and (3) there was a significant positive correlation between teaching experience and frequency of mentioning non-cognitive skills. Views on extra-musical abilities, which experienced music teachers especially had, may improve less-experienced teachers' perspectives on teaching as well as their social roles and occupational awareness.

Putting practice under the microscope: The perceived uses and limitations of slow instrumental music practice

Practicing slowly is a commonly used, intuitive approach to music learning, and is widely considered the bedrock of musical skill acquisition. Yet, little is known about the different approaches and techniques musicians use when practicing slowly. This study investigated instrumental musicians’ perspectives on the uses, limitations, and specific techniques of slow music practice, through qualitative thematic analysis of responses to an online questionnaire. Generally, slow practice was perceived as a useful, and often necessary, part of learning. Furthermore, we identified four perceived functions of slow practice. They were managing information load; building a foundation for motor learning; creative and critical problem-solving; and regulating emotional, mental, and perceptual states. We propose a possible underlying mechanism of these functions: reduction of extrinsic cognitive load and stimulation of germane cognitive processes. Respondents also perceived potential technical-practical and emotional-cognitive malfunctions of slow practice, as well as possible strategic pitfalls of using slow practice. Specific techniques of slow practice included the use of tempo organization methods and strategies to complement slow practice. This provided insight into how biomechanical differences between slow and fast playing might be bridged. Findings have implications for music education and understanding the psychology of musical skill acquisition.

Learning Music From Each Other: Synchronization, Turn-taking, or Imitation?

In an experimental study, we investigated how well novices can learn from each other in situations of technology-aided musical skill acquisition, comparing joint and solo learning, and learning through imitation, synchronization, and turn-taking. Fifty-four participants became familiar, either solo or in pairs, with three short musical melodies and then individually performed each from memory. Each melody was learned in a different way: participants from the solo group were asked via an instructional video to: 1) play in synchrony with the video, 2) take turns with the video, or 3) imitate the video. Participants from the duo group engaged in the same learning trials, but with a partner. Novices in both groups performed more accurately in pitch and time when learning in synchrony and turn-taking than in imitation. No differences were found between solo and joint learning. These results suggest that musical learning benefits from a shared, in-the-moment, musical experience, where responsibilities and cognitive resources are distributed between biological (i.e., peers) and hybrid (i.e., participant(s) and computer) assemblies.

Predicting piano skill acquisition in beginners: The role of general intelligence, music aptitude, and mindset

This study was designed to investigate sources of individual differences in musical skill acquisition. We had 171 undergraduates with little or no piano-playing experience attempt to learn a piece of piano music with the aid of a video-guide, and then, following practice with the guide, attempt to perform the piece from memory. A panel of musicians evaluated the performances based on their melodic and rhythmic accuracy. Participants also completed tests of working memory capacity, fluid intelligence, crystallized intelligence, processing speed, and two tests of music aptitude (the Swedish Music Discrimination Test and the Advanced Measures of Music Audiation). Measures of general intelligence and music aptitude correlated significantly with skill acquisition, but mindset did not. Structural equation modeling revealed that general intelligence, music aptitude, and mindset together accounted for 22.4% of the variance in skill acquisition. However, only general intelligence contributed significantly to the model (β = 0.44, p < .001). The contributions of music aptitude (β = 0.08, p = .39) and mindset (β = −0.06, p = .50) were non-significant after accounting for general intelligence. We also found that openness to experience did not significantly predict skill acquisition or music aptitude. Overall, the results suggest that after accounting for individual differences in general intelligence, music aptitude and mindset do not predict piano skill acquisition in beginners.

4E Music Pedagogy and the Principles of Self-Organization.

Recent approaches in the cognitive and psychological sciences conceive of mind as an Embodied, Embedded, Extended, and Enactive (or 4E) phenomenon. While this has stimulated important discussions and debates across a vast array of disciplines, its principles, applications, and explanatory power have not yet been properly addressed in the domain of musical development. Accordingly, it remains unclear how the cognitive processes involved in the acquisition of musical skills might be understood through the lenses of this approach, and what this might offer for practical areas like music education. To begin filling this gap, the present contribution aims to explore central aspects of music pedagogy through the lenses of 4E cognitive science. By discussing cross-disciplinary research in music, pedagogy, psychology, and philosophy of mind, we will provide novel insights that may help inspire a richer understanding of what musical learning entails. In doing so, we will develop conceptual bridges between the notion of ‘autopoiesis’ (the property of continuous self-regeneration that characterizes living systems) and the emergent dynamics contributing to the flourishing of one’s musical life. This will reveal important continuities between a number of new teaching approaches and principles of self-organization. In conclusion, we will briefly consider how these conceptual tools align with recent work in interactive cognition and collective music pedagogy, promoting the close collaboration of musicians, pedagogues, and cognitive scientists.

Apollos Gift and Curse: Making Music as a model for Adaptive and Maladaptive Plasticity

Abstract Musicians with extensive training and playing experience provide an excellent model for studying plasticity of the human brain. The demands placed on the nervous system by music performance are very high and provide a uniquely rich multisensory and motor experience to the player. As confirmed by neuroimaging studies, playing music depends on a strong coupling of perception and action mediated by sensory, motor, and multimodal integration regions distributed throughout the brain. A pianist, for example, must draw on a whole set of complex skills, including translating visual analysis of musical notation into motor movements, coordinating multisensory information with bimanual motor activity, developing fine motor skills in both hands coupled with metric precision, and monitoring auditory feedback to fine-tune a performance as it progresses. This article summarizes research on the effects of musical training on brain function, brain connectivity and brain structure. First we address factors inducing and continuously driving brain plasticity in dedicated musicians, arguing that prolonged goal-directed practice, multi-sensory-motor integration, high arousal, and emotional and social rewards contribute to these plasticity-induced brain adaptations. Subsequently, we briefly review the neuroanatomy and neurophysiology underpinning musical activities. Here we focus on the perception of sound, integration of sound and movement, and the physiology of motor planning and motor control. We then review the literature on functional changes in brain activation and brain connectivity along with the acquisition of musical skills, be they auditory or sensory-motor. In the following section we focus on structural adaptions in the gray matter of the brain and in fiber-tract density associated with music learning. Here we critically discuss the findings that structural changes are mostly seen when starting musical training after age seven, whereas functional optimization is more effective before this age. We then address the phenomenon of de-expertise, reviewing studies which provide evidence that intensive music-making can induce dysfunctional changes which are accompanied by a degradation of skilled motor behavior, also termed “musician’s dystonia”. This condition, which is frequently highly disabling, mainly affects male classical musicians with a history of compulsive working behavior, anxiety disorder or chronic pain. Functional and structural brain changes in these musicians are suggestive of deficient inhibition and excess excitation in the central nervous system, which leads to co-activation of antagonistic pairs of muscles during performance, reducing movement speed and quality. We conclude with a concise summary of the role of brain plasticity, metaplasticity and maladaptive plasticity in the acquisition and loss of musicians’ expertise.

The Effect of a Peer Mentorship Program on Perceptions of Success in Choral Ensembles: Pairing Students With and Without Disabilities

The purpose of this research was to investigate the effects of a peer mentorship program on students’ perceptions of comfort, skills obtained, and feelings of success while working with a peer with dissimilar abilities. The participants ( N = 14), enrolled in choral ensemble classes, were divided into two groups: the peer mentors ( n = 7), who were typically developing students, and the peer mentees ( n = 7), who were students with disabilities who had an individualized education program. The researchers created a pretest–posttest survey, and all questions were measured using a 5-point Likert-type scale. Peer mentee self-perceptions of success in the choral classroom revealed slight negative changes from the beginning to the end of the program. However, while some did not want to continue in the program for music skill acquisition, they all indicated a desire to remain in their peer pair for social reasons.

Short-term Music Training Enhances Complex, Distributed Neural Communication during Music and Linguistic Tasks.

Musical training is frequently associated with benefits to linguistic abilities, and recent focus has been placed on possible benefits of bilingualism to lifelong executive functions; however, the neural mechanisms for such effects are unclear. The aim of this study was to gain better understanding of the whole-brain functional effects of music and second-language training that could support such previously observed cognitive transfer effects. We conducted a 28-day longitudinal study of monolingual English-speaking 4- to 6-year-old children randomly selected to receive daily music or French language training, excluding weekends. Children completed passive EEG music note and French vowel auditory oddball detection tasks before and after training. Brain signal complexity was measured on source waveforms at multiple temporal scales as an index of neural information processing and network communication load. Comparing pretraining with posttraining, musical training was associated with increased EEG complexity at coarse temporal scales during the music and French vowel tasks in widely distributed cortical regions. Conversely, very minimal decreases in complexity at fine scales and trends toward coarse-scale increases were displayed after French training during the tasks. Spectral analysis failed to distinguish between training types and found overall theta (3.5-7.5 Hz) power increases after all training forms, with spatially fewer decreases in power at higher frequencies (>10 Hz). These findings demonstrate that musical training increased diversity of brain network states to support domain-specific music skill acquisition and music-to-language transfer effects.

Music enables the holistic development and discovery of self: A phenomenological study of two Christian musicians

Music draws on body, space, time and relationships to offer a sacred experience. Musicking makes personal, social, emotional and spiritual connections with people. Cultural identity is formed through the arts, and the spirituality in music is a medium through which people explore their identities. This study examines how music facilitates the holistic development of two Melbourne-born Chinese-Australian Christian musicians. The Confucian Evolving Self Model, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Human Needs, and music education aims offer conceptualising scaffolds to illuminate their self-discovery. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to report on multiple semi-structured interviews undertaken over three years. This study considered the interaction of various value systems – the fusion of Confucianism, Christian and psychological cultures in the process of musical development and identity formation. It fills a research gap and complements existing approaches to understanding the social contexts influencing the acquisition of musical skills and musicians’ occupational choices. The permissive parenting that both participants experienced might account for them being able to follow a career in music without familial resistance. The current findings can advocate for music education because the spiritual aspects of musical experiences were perceived as a mirror in fostering the holistic development of both participants.

Motor and Audiovisual Learning Consolidate Auditory Memory of Tonally Ambiguous Melodies

The present study investigated the role of motor and audiovisual learning in the memorization of four tonally ambiguous melodies for piano. A total of one hundred and twenty participants divided into three groups — pianists, other musicians (i.e., not pianists), and nonmusicians — learned the melodies through either playing them on a keyboard (playing condition), through performing the melodies on a piano without auditory feedback (silent playing condition), through watching a video with a performer playing the melodies (seeing condition), or through listening to them (control condition). Participants were exposed to each melody four times during the learning phase (in additional to hearing it once during a familiarization phase). This exposure consisted of an alternation between hearing the melody and engaging with the melody in the way determined by the learning condition. Participants in the control group only received the auditory aspect of the learning phase and listened to each melody twice. Memory of the melodies was tested after a 10-minute break. Our results indicate a benefit of motor learning for all groups of participants, suggesting that active sensorimotor experience plays a key role in musical skill acquisition.

Effects of Model Performances on Music Skill Acquisition and Overnight Memory Consolidation

This study was designed to investigate the extent to which the presentation of an auditory model prior to learning a novel melody affects performance during active practice and the overnight consolidation of procedural memory. During evening training sessions, 32 nonpianist musicians practiced a 13-note keyboard melody with their left (nondominant) hand in twelve 30-s practice intervals separated by 30-s rest intervals. Participants were instructed to play the sequence “as quickly, accurately, and evenly as possible.” Approximately half the participants, prior to the first practice interval, listened to 10 repetitions of the target melody played at 552 tones per minute (half note = 138). All participants were tested on the target melody the following morning, approximately 12 hr after training, in three 30-s blocks separated by 30-s rest intervals. Performance was measured in terms of the mean number of correct key presses per 30-s block (CKP/B). Consistent with previous research, participants made considerable improvements in CKP/B during the evening training sessions and between the end of training and the morning test sessions. Learners who listened to the model made significantly larger gains in performance during training and between the end of training and test than did those who did not hear the model.

Starting from scratch: Forming a community of practice in an Australian late starters’ wind

Abstract Musical participation is a powerful form of community engagement, offering agency in positive ageing. Community music endeavours usually involve active music-making and acquisition of musical skills and understandings. Participants in such programmes elect to become involved, often taking responsibility for the survival of the group. This case study explores the understandings of members of a community band, the Second Wind Ensemble, formed in 1998 in Adelaide, South Australia. Initially, the band offered late starters the opportunity to learn an instrument. The ensemble now has approximately 60 players with a regular programme of concerts, rehearsals, tutorials and social gatherings. The band conductor is a professional music educator. This study chronicles the development of a community of practice with the band members gradually assuming responsibility for their ensemble. This discussion considers only the first two years in the history of the ensemble, during which time the roles of participants evolved. In this case study, the founder, conductor, organizer and a number of participants were interviewed and data analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). The themes identified from these multiple perspectives focus on well-being, active engagement with community, the development of musical skills and understandings, and the formation of a community of practice.

Temporal guidance of musicians’ performance movement is an acquired skill

The ancillary (non-sounding) body movements made by expert musicians during performance have been shown to indicate expressive, emotional, and structural features of the music to observers, even if the sound of the performance is absent. If such ancillary body movements are a component of skilled musical performance, then it should follow that acquiring the temporal control of such movements is a feature of musical skill acquisition. This proposition is tested using measures derived from a theory of temporal guidance of movement, "General Tau Theory" (Lee in Ecol Psychol 10:221-250, 1998; Lee et al. in Exp Brain Res 139:151-159, 2001), to compare movements made during performances of intermediate-level clarinetists before and after learning a new piece of music. Results indicate that the temporal control of ancillary body movements made by participants was stronger in performances after the music had been learned and was closer to the measures of temporal control found for an expert musician's movements. These findings provide evidence that the temporal control of musicians' ancillary body movements develops with musical learning. These results have implications for other skillful behaviors and nonverbal communication.

How can surgical training benefit from theories of skilled motor development, musical skill acquisition and performance psychology?

Trainee surgeons must acquire expert status in the context of reduced hours, reduced operating room time and the need to learn complex skills involving screen-mediated techniques, computers and robotics. Ever more sophisticated surgical simulation strategies have been helpful in providing surgeons with the opportunity to practise, but not all of these strategies are widely available. Similarities in the motor skills required in skilled musical performance and surgery suggest that models of music learning, and particularly skilled motor development, may be applicable in training surgeons. More attention should be paid to factors associated with optimal arousal and optimal performance in surgical training - lessons learned from helping anxious musicians optimise performance and manage anxiety may also be transferable to trainee surgeons. The ways in which the trainee surgeon moves from novice to expert need to be better understood so that this process can be expedited using current knowledge in other disciplines requiring the performance of complex fine motor tasks with high cognitive load under pressure.

Do prior experience, gender, or level of study influence music students’ perspectives on master classes?

The cyclic process of self-regulated learning has been identified as a predictor of achievement in musical skill acquisition and musical performance. Meta-cognition, intrinsic to the self-regulation process, develops as the student takes greater responsibility for their own learning. From this perspective we consider music students’ responses to a questionnaire exploring the value and purpose of master classes. Overall, students valued the opportunity to perform in master classes, to receive relevant expert advice and to engage with ideas about interpretation and style. Students with prior experience of performing in master classes were more likely than those lacking performing experience to learn by listening to their peers, to regard master classes as motivational and as an opportunity to perform. In addition, significantly more female than male students listened to master classes, used peer-learning strategies while listening and were more likely to report negative perceptions of the content of the master class. Large effect sizes were found for level of study on the extent of experience as a performer, as a listener and for overall experience in master classes. These findings are discussed in terms of making a successful transition from conservatoire music student to young professional musician.

Making Connections

The Musical Play program is designed to assist children ages 2 to 5 and their parents. The program creators sought to he families build a repertoire of songs and activities for everyday living and to encourage musical play at home. The progra includes developmentally appropriate songs, materials, and activities and incorporates a wide variety of topics, presentation and interactions. The songs and activities presented contribute to the well-being of children, both cognitively and emotio ally. Music centers remain the basis of the program, as the program was designed to incorporate musical free play. The ce ters are the vehicles for engaging children in thinking and playing with music. Through these centers, parents may learn ne ways to play musically with their children. The child's acquisition of musical skills, within this rich environment, empowe and enhances personal and musical expression, as well as aids in language acquisition and coordination development.

Identity formation through participation in the Rochester New Horizons Band programme

Results of this qualitative study suggest that membership in the Rochester New Horizons Band programme provides an important vehicle for identity construction and revision in later life. Identities emerge from and are shaped by the social interactions among members in the ensemble setting. Players form new musical identities, reclaim identities that were important in their youth, or revise existing identities by taking up new, social instruments. These musical identities are distinguished not merely by the acquisition of musical skills, but also by the adoption of roles as valuable contributors to a larger musical ensemble. The approval and encouragement of significant others appears to confirm and reinforce musical identity, regardless of whether those others are themselves musicians. Members also use social interaction to negotiate identities as healthy, productive older people. Communal engagement provides structure for time and a new sense of purpose, and it contributes to physical, mental and spiritual health.

South Africa, the arts and youth in conflict with the law

This article describes the Diversion into Music Education (DIME) youth intervention programme that originated in South Africa in 2001. DIME offers instruction in African marimba and djembe ensemble performance to juvenile offenders. Conceived as community collaboration among organizations in the cities of Cape Town, South Africa and Tampa, United States of America (including the University of the Western Cape and the University of South Florida), DIME offers a unique example of community music and multicultural music education. Its distinctive nature lies in an intervention format that integrates music teaching, mentoring and intercultural exchanges aimed at both the acquisition of musical skills that offer opportunities for healthy diversion from crime and at successful reintegration into society.