Songwriting pedagogy is in its infancy in music education. This article presents a new way to think about pedagogy that utilizes student workgroups that more closely align with the ways songs are written in the real world. Implications for music education's connections to the world of contemporary commercial music are provided.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of model recordings on undergraduate conductors' tempo decisions for selected wind band excerpts. Participants (N = 42) studied three music score excerpts for 5 minutes each either (a) with an increased-tempo recording, (b) with a decreased-tempo recording, or (c) with a metronome set to the…

Musical communication between adults and children is a widely studied phenomenon in the field of music education and psychology. In the research carried out to date, a variety of methodological designs have been used, based mainly on the perceptions of adults, to investigate the different aspects of these musical interactions. Thus, there is…

Part-work is a skill through which an individual performs and maintains one musical part while another part is performed at the same time. Rich and varied part-work experiences feature prominently in the musical lives of children. Despite this, elementary general music teachers often frame part-work as a skill needed in the short term to perform…

This teaching activity builds students' interpersonal competencies in identifying Mark Knapp's Stages of Relationships (Adler, Rosenfeld, Towne, & Scott, 2012, Interplay: The process of interpersonal communication, p. 504, Holt, Rinehart, and Winston). The activity establishes a theoretical understanding of each stage and asks students to use…

The cultural workforce has previously been described as pre-dominantly white, male and middle-class. Internships are often seen as a solution as they would function as a 'democratising path to launch careers'. Nevertheless, previous research has also suggested that there is no smooth path from an internship to paid work for anyone, and even less…

During a five-week research study, a kindergarten class of 14 five- and six-year-old children learned to sing and play soprano ukuleles. The study had a dual purpose: to teach the children foundational music skills, and to teach them to read lyrics at the emergent reader level. Csikszentmihalyi (2009) cites one of the pitfalls of traditional music…

This study reports preschool educators' uses of music in educational settings, as well as challenges faced in incorporating music in the classroom in the U.S. Through a multiple-methods approach, data from two focus groups (N1 = 8, N2 = 6) and a survey (N = 119) are used to gain insight into how frequently preschool educators in the US use various…

This study examines the educational and cultural literacy functions of the Nanyin Pipa, a traditional Chinese musical instrument, in Fujian Province, China. By investigating its cultural significance and historical development, the research employs methodologies from musicology and ethnomusicology. Specifically, it focuses on the role of the…

In this preliminary descriptive study, we surveyed choristers (N = 66) about their experiences in three collegiate soprano-alto (SA) midlevel choirs, where mixed (SATB) ensembles were the premiere ensemble. We examined the musical, social, and personal dimensions of the participants' experiences in a collegiate SA choir and their attitudes…

In this article I examine the generative AI music-making applications of Google called MusicFX DJ and Music AI Sandbox, as well as Udio, an end-to-end generative AI music system created by ex-Google employees. I frame these generative AI music systems designed by Big Tech as part of their neoliberal agenda, which involves influencing music…

The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of musical play on the social skill development of third-grade students and to investigate the opinions of classroom teachers on the effect of musical play on the social skill development of their students. The study sample consists of 60 students: 30 in the experimental group, and 30 in the…

Nearly all music educators assign grades to students. However, not all methods for grading are equally effective at reporting student achievement. This article describes one approach to grading, standards-based grading, that has the potential to support music educators' efforts to achieve grades that are honest, meaningful, and fair. General…

This research targets retired singers from the university choral ensemble, offering an in-depth examination of the older adults' choir experiences, with a focus on their experiences and reflections. Prior studies have highlighted the benefits of musical involvement for retirees, including extending life expectancy, enhancing quality of life, and…

This article presents a close ethnographic reading of an intercultural community choir's experience recording lullabies in a professional studio setting. Bringing together Chadwick's (2020, 2021) posthuman voice analytics with interdisciplinary voice studies, I turn ethnographic ears to the voice-as-vocalised by attuning to its materialities and…