In a series of three video-recorded assignments over a 6-week period, undergraduate music education students (N = 16) enrolled in an instrumental methods course described aloud what they were thinking about as they practiced a three-note melody on a secondary brass instrument. Later, I completed a content analysis of the students' practice…

The purpose of this narrative action research study was to tell Marcus's story as an ensemble director learning how to teach composition in his middle school orchestra program. Marcus collaborated with Sam, a university professor, and designed a study to examine his teaching in his 49-member advanced orchestra class. As time passed, the focus of…

Improvisation is an important element of global musical practices. However, musical improvisation is often neglected in K-12 and collegiate music education programs, with some music educators suggesting that improvisation cannot be taught. Rather, improvisation must be facilitated, enabled, and fostered. In this review of literature, I examined…

The purpose of this descriptive research study was to examine collegiate instrumentalists' applications of practice strategies and their motivation orientations to practice. Respondents (N = 128) were music majors who enrolled in concert band or orchestra. Results indicated that pianists spent more time in practice followed by percussionists,…

Intonation is one of the most challenging performance elements for developing wind instrumentalists. There is a need to provide in-service band directors with evidence-based instructional strategies that can be used when teaching their students to perform with accurate intonation. The purposes of this research-to-resource article are to provide…

Conducting is a multifaceted and essential skill set expected of musicians from many specializations, but certainly for music educators who often fill ensemble leadership roles. For most undergraduate music majors, introductory conducting courses are their first experiences with conducting. Attending to all fundamental components of the…

There are many factors that influence the ability to play with accurate intonation, and this extending-the-discussion article provides contextual information and suggested teaching strategies for helping students develop such abilities. This Part 2 article describes a series of music activities and teaching strategies that can allow teachers to be…

The purpose of this scoping review was to synthesize literature regarding audio streaming in the P-12 music classroom by identifying the varied uses, recommendations for equitable access, and gaps in the knowledge base. A total of 23 publications met the criteria for inclusion. Ensemble and general music classrooms in elementary, middle, and high…

Music reading is a central part of most band programs, yet research about music reading has rarely included articulation markings. The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of four experimental practice conditions to a control condition on woodwind players' performance of slur, accent, and staccato markings. A secondary purpose was to…

Rote versus note beginning instrumental pedagogy has been an active topic for music educators. Traditional method books have often comprised a significant portion of beginning instrumental curricula, though content has varied and may have been based on convention. Advocates of a rote-before-note approach have recommended that singing, movement,…

String musicians put a high priority on ear training in order to be successful on their instruments. Research suggests that delaying music reading to teach by ear does not negatively affect sight-reading performance in the long term, may improve music literacy skills, and also may improve student perceptions of accomplishment. The pedagogy of…

Recent curriculum policy changes in British Columbia (BC) require that educators in all subject areas--including music--embed local Indigenous knowledge, pedagogies, and worldviews in their classes. Yet facilitating such decolonizing cross-cultural music education activities requires knowledge that music educators may not currently possess. We use…

Conducting courses are a common component of undergraduate instrumental music education programs. The experiences students have in those courses vary across and sometimes within institutions. This variation is due to many factors including choice of instructional materials and sequences, as well as whether textbooks or other instructional…

The purpose of this study was to examine secondary band directors' self-efficacy toward concert, marching, and jazz ensemble pedagogy. Secondary purposes were to investigate potential relationships between secondary band directors' self-efficacy in concert, marching, and jazz ensemble pedagogy and their respective (a) demographics and (b) previous…

The purpose of this article was to review and synthesize research literature on the verbal behaviors of secondary school band and orchestra teachers in their classrooms. A comprehensive search of four journal indices was conducted, which resulted in 35 studies that met the inclusion criteria and were therefore included in this review. A wide range…