Instrumental music teachers' views on expressivity: a report from music conservatoires

Abstract

Expressivity is generally regarded as a crucial component of a successful musical performance, but at present there is little knowledge of how it is addressed in instrumental music education. To achieve a better understanding of how teachers approach expressivity, instrumental music teachers (n ϭ 51) from music conservatoires in Sweden and England were asked to fill out a questionnaire that focused on the following issues: (i) what constitutes musical expressivity? (ii) How can expressive skills be taught to music students? (iii) What are the prospects of using computer-based instruction in teaching expressive skills? The results suggest that expressivity is the most appreciated characteristic in performers, and that a majority of the teachers define expressivity primarily in terms of communicating emotion. Modelling and verbal-based instruction focusing on the students' felt emotions were the preferred methods for teaching expressive skills. The teachers would also like to spend more time on teaching expressive skills, but they were sceptical regarding the utility of computer-based instruction. Expression and emotion seem to play important roles in the professional lives of the teachers, and it is suggested that expressive skills deserve more attention in higher instrumental music education.

Play it again with feeling: Computer feedback in musical communication of emotions.

“…Although this indeed seems to be the case (Laukka, 2004), many studies have suggested that music teaching focuses mainly on technique rather than on expressivity (Hepler, 1986;Persson, 1993;Rostvall & West, 2001;Tait, 1992), and many method books for music instrument teaching do not cover expressive aspects at all (e.g., Rostwall & West, 2001). This neglect of expressivity may result in students developing expressive skills rather late in their artistic development.…”

“…Many music students and teachers believe that the emotions must be felt by the performer in order to be communicated well (e.g., Laukka, 2004;Lindström et al, 2003). However, felt emotion provides no guarantee that the emotion will be successfully conveyed to listeners, neither is it necessary to feel the emotion in order to communicate it successfully.…”

“…People become moved by particularly expressive performances, which for many listeners is the essence of music. Moreover, questionnaire research suggests that performers and music teachers view expression as the most crucial aspect of a performer's skills (e.g., Laukka, 2004;Lindström, Juslin, Bresin, & Williamon, 2003). Clearly, good technique is required to master a musical instrument, but expression is what really sets performers apart (see Boyd & George-Warren, 1992, pp.…”

The effects of projected films on singers’ expressivity in choral performance.

“…156. ) In fact, music educators and performers have viewed expression as the most important aspect of a performance (Laukka, 2004). While researchers have also found the study of expression to be of great importance (Persson, 1995, Marchand, 1970, the pedagogical methods of achieving expressivity have been absent in these studies (Tait & Haack, 1984).…”

¿Cómo enseñan nuestros maestros de instrumento musical? Situación de la enseñanza de estrategias de práctica efectiva en seis escuelas de música en México

“…Por lo que se limitan generalmente a abordar aspectos técnicos y expresivos de las piezas que están tocando los estudiantes, sin involucrarse en el proceso de aprendizaje del alumno (Duke, Simmons y Cash, 2009;Gaunt, 2008;Jorgensen, 2000;Koopman et ál., 2007, Laukka, 2004.…”