An investigation of the relationships between performance-based aural musicianship, music achievement, and socialization of first-year music majors.

Abstract

Problems of the study included investigation of: (1) relationships between instrumental ear-to-hand coordination and selected indices of music achievement, (2) effects of computer-assisted keyboard ear-to-hand training on Test of Melodic Ear-to-Hand Coordination (TMEHC) scores and on relationships between instrumental ear-to-hand coordination and selected indices of music achievement, and (3) relationships between deficiencies in performance-based aural musicianship, selected indices of music achievement, and socialization. The study was conducted during the 1992-1993 academic year at the University of Michigan School of Music. Seventy-one first-year students authorized access to academic records for collection of music achievement data and participated in testing of performance-based aural musicianship (TMEHC). Sixteen of these students subsequently became subjects in exploratory computer-assisted keyboard ear-to-hand training. Of these sixteen subjects, the four with lowest TMEHC pretest scores became subjects in case studies of relationships between deficiencies in performance-based aural musicianship, selected indices of music achievement, and socialization. Analyses revealed: (1) significantly higher TMEHC pretest mean scores ($p\le .05$) for keyboard students; (2) no substantive relationships between TMEHC pretest scores and grades in music history, written music theory, or class piano; (3) a strong positive, significant relationship (r =.70; $p\le .01$) between TMEHC pretest scores and grades in aural music theory; (4) significantly higher TMEHC posttest scores ($p\le .0001$) for ear-to-hand training subjects; (5) no effect of computer-assisted keyboard ear-to-hand training on relationships between TMEHC scores and selected indices of music achievement; and (6) four unique profiles of students with severe deficiencies in aural musicianship. Conclusions included: (1) many first-year students begin music degree programs with potentially serious deficiencies in performance-based aural musicianship and, consequently, potentially serious threats to success; (2) instrumental ear-to-hand coordination can be improved through training; (3) keyboard ear-to-hand training improves performance-based aural musicianship regardless of one's principal instrument; (4) computer-assisted keyboard ear-to-hand training eliminates significant disparities in instrumental ear-to-hand coordination by grouped principal instrument; (5) computer-assisted keyboard ear-to-hand training has no effect on relationships between TMEHC scores and selected indices of music achievement; (6) severe deficiencies in performance-based aural musicianship negatively affect socio-musical self-esteem; and (7) improvement of severe deficiencies in performance-based aural musicianship positively affects socio-musical self-esteem.