This review provides a summary and discussion of the 'Music Literacy' strand (day 1) of the Society for Music Analysis's OxMAC conference (University of Oxford, July 2023). The review highlights how the ever-expanding range of musics currently studied in higher education calls for an increasingly multifaceted understanding of the term 'music…

In music educators' endeavoring to integrate equity into our curriculum, adopting a rhizomatic approach could provide a valuable perspective for reassessing the Western classical tradition as the norm. From a philosophical perspective, the rhizome is perceived as an interconnected multiplicity, where various elements are intricately connected…

Although music education researchers often utilize music major status as a single-item proxy variable for musician status--and with this designation presume musical competencies or abilities of research participants--there is a lack of research demonstrating links between status as a music major and those assumed competencies. In this study, we…

Background: Inclusive research advocates for the involvement of people with intellectual disabilities to be more than passive participants within the research process. Methods: This study used a participatory design with proxies to consult with 13 people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities, on their musical preferences. Four…

The protests during the summer of 2020 were an awakening for many people to the realities of systemic racism. Music education had a full-blown reckoning with the insidious ways racism manifests in the profession. One way that systemic racism manifests in individual classrooms and programs, and one not always easily identified, is cultural…

This article explores bells, and objects in general, from a philosophical perspective. More specifically, it explores the way objects orient our being, but only partially as aspects of things always remain withdrawn from access. Through an exploration of the elemental forms of bells, this article positions object exploration as a wholly spiritual…

Since post-war II, music education has advocated its presumed aesthetic benefits. "Aesthetic advocacy" became instituted through the abundance of publications by Bennett Reimer (e.g., 1970, 1989, 1995, 2003). That aesthetic meme is still influential. The debate about "Music Education as Aesthetic Education" MEAE may be…

After learning about Frank Sinatra's life, the first author sensed the need to study him in depth. Sinatra played many roles during his lifetime, the most significant of these as an actor, singer, and producer. Sinatra was one of the greatest influential artists in the 20th century. The first author sought personal and professional growth and…

Suzhou Pingtan is a traditional Chinese opera originating from Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, known for its melodic tunes, storytelling, and expressive performances. The objective of this study was to explore the transmission process of Suzhou Pingtan Chinese Opera in Jiangsu, China, and its impact on education and literacy. This study utilizes a…

This article examines and discusses the musical and artistic characteristics of Shaanxi folk songs, as well as how they can be more effectively disseminated in today's rapidly changing social environment. This also provides some beneficial information for the dissemination and development of Shaanxi folk songs, allowing them to be disseminated and…

This article develops the concept of "low-end phonographic pedagogies" through a life-long engagement with vinyl records and the Afro-diasporic music practices of reggae, dub, and dancehall. Approaching my record collection as a counter-archive of vibrational feeling and learning, I explore everyday practices of playing and listening to…

A liberal arts education for Christians is about finding God's truth; therefore, Christian students need to be educated in a broad range of subjects, including music. While a music appreciation course is thought to be about gaining knowledge of music, some music scholars have pointed out that a music curriculum should involve students in…

The local problem addressed in this study was that students at a community college are experiencing stress levels that may impede their ability to learn. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine student perceptions of self-selected music listening as a strategy for learning under stress. The theory of emotional intelligence by Goleman…

This phenomenological study explores the lived experience of music teacher educators with diverse musical soundscapes. I define a soundscape as the aural vista always present in one's consciousness. This study is grounded in the phenomenological underpinnings of Hans Georg-Gadamer, Martin Heidegger, Maurice Merleau-Ponty and Max van Manen, as well…

In this article, the author offers a perspective on why humans like music and what it means for music education. The author builds his discussion around the following five basic premises: (1) since the dawn of civilization, humans have used their voices and the musical instruments they invented to express emotions in sounds that vary in pitch,…