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…

Kantorski examined string education doctoral research between 1935 and 1992 and highlighted potential future areas of research. In this content analysis, I examined dissertations in string education between 1992 and 2022 to determine current trends of doctoral research. I reviewed 393 string education dissertations and coded each to determine the…

The purpose of this article is to revisit the biomechanical concepts of Paul Rolland's scholarship on bowing to provide a new framework of Rolland's underlying bowing principles. First, we discuss how whole body movements help facilitate natural bowing, which can generate better tone efficiently from freedom of movement. Second, we attend to the…

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…

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…

This work presents an analysis of the didactic literature for the initial learning of intonation on violin and viola. Analysis has been conducted through a document-analysis design of 86 methods. The chosen analytic categories were: (1) contents (number of pitches and sequence of pitches presentation); (2) pedagogy (teaching approach and use of…

Playing the violin demands highly skilled motor performance, including advanced bimanual coordination and controlled, independent movement of fingers. Through existing literature, the current study aims to demonstrate how young children's motor development relates to the motor demands of violin playing, specifically the demands on the left hand,…

The purpose of this study was to examine featured articles ("n" = 376) and authors ("n" = 415) published in the "American String Teacher" from 2000 through 2019. Articles were coded into 1 of 24 categories using a researcher-designed codebook based on article content. Authors were coded into one of four professional…

This article presents the findings of a study that explored the composition of Canadian educational music. Particularly, the authors focus on the analyses of composers' scores on creating new string compositions for young musicians within the "New Sounds of Learning Project." On a macro level, the composers predominantly composed…

This report is a summary of two studies. In the first, we compared examples of Irish fiddle performances with Western classical violin performances. Acoustical analyses showed that both classical examples produced average spectral centroids higher in frequency, higher harmonic to noise ratios, more use of vibrato, more disjunct intervals, and less…

Understanding the potential relationships between musicians' different primary personality traits, ages, and their music preferences could be relevant in music teaching and learning. We surveyed participants (N = 362) from four groups: middle school orchestra students, high school orchestra students, collegiate orchestra students, and in-service…

This study was designed to explore nonstring specialists' comfort teaching students in string ensembles. Comfort was defined as an individual's ease when teaching the subject matter. Data were gathered, using a 7-point Likert-type scale related to 15 string topics administered through a researcher-developed study. Participants ("N" =…

This study evaluates the dimensions of fractional-size violin bows in relation to the anthropometric and grip-strength measurements of children and adults. In string education, various methods and devices have been put forward to measure children for the correct violin size, but there is a lack of research regarding the proper bow size. Results…

The purpose of this descriptive study was to examine enrollment in string orchestra instruction across Texas. Three central research questions guided the investigation: (a) How well is orchestra represented in districts and schools across the state of Texas? (b) What are the characteristics (FRPL eligibility, locale, student race/ethnicity,…

The purpose of this study was to examine the assigned ratings, interrater reliability, and possible influences of school level and instrumentation on adjudicators' evaluations of orchestra performances at a national-level adjudicated music festival. Data consisted of the overall ratings assigned to orchestra performances (N = 55) at the 2017,…