How do we motivate students to practice and persist when facing challenges inherent in learning to play an instrument? In this article, I synthesize research findings into strategies to encourage students' mastery goal orientations and intrinsic motivation. Educators can use these strategies in the classroom or as inspiration to create innovative…

Children have a natural curiosity about sound. This is particularly evident in the context of musical play. The potential of play for music learning may be overshadowed by a teacher-led and performance-focused approach to music education rather than an organic, self-initiated approach. By bringing together the child's natural curiosity about…

The author, John Whitener, traveled to Mongolia, "the land of blue sky," in the summer of 2013 and again in summer of 2016. Mongolia is a land of awe-inspiring geography, similar in many respects to the wilds of Alaska. Approximately half the country's population has migrated to Ulaan-Baatar and other urban areas because of harsh winters…

This article describes a sequential approach to improvisation teaching that can be used with students at various age and ability levels by any educator, regardless of improvisation experience. The 2014 National Core Music Standards include improvisation as a central component in musical learning and promote instructional approaches that are…

Multicultural choral music has distinct characteristics in that indigenous folk elements are frequently incorporated into a Western European tonal system. Because of this, multicultural choral music is often taught using Western styles (e.g., "bel canto") rather than through traditional singing techniques from their cultures of origin.…

When beginning music teachers enter a new classroom for the first time, they start a journey toward understanding a new context and community. Place consciousness develops as they become embedded in their community and begin to recognize how its culture and environment interact with their teaching practices. By mapping the objects, people, and…

Before our current notation system was widely adopted by musicians, improvisation was a key component of music throughout the Western world. One of the fundamental elements of the baroque style, namely, using improvised embellishment, offered musicians great artist liberty. During the baroque period, improvisation spread across Europe and beyond.…

A number of scholars have investigated the roots of the "Arirang," although the origins are debated. Most agree that the original form of the song "Arirang" was first found upstream from Seoul along the Han River. The lyrics told the story of a woman waiting for her lover on the bank of the river. The term "Arirang"…

The sound of the Native American flute seems to convey care, sadness, loneliness, longing, heartfelt emotion, a sense of the natural world, wisdom, the human spirit, and a sense of culture. It is a sound that competes for attention, dramatically punctuating messages about First Nation peoples on television and in movies. A relatively small group…

String educators must find a way to strengthen the development of rhythmic abilities so that their students play with a steady beat and accurate rhythm. Perhaps it is not what they teach their students as much as the sequence of instruction they use to teach them. String educators teach rhythm only as it pertains to the instrument, either through…

Tablet computers, engaging and dynamic teaching and learning tools, are increasingly prevalent in K-12 schools and university settings. To help music educators make informed technology choices for their classrooms, this article contains preservice teachers' reflections on how they used iPads to enhance their musicianship, teacher preparation,…

In times of difficulty, it is easy to see what many policymakers value. It would seem that many of them view the arts as a noncrucial element of a child's school curriculum. They want to cut music because they do not value music for its own sake, nor can they see how music could possibly help students in math, reading, or science. But what do the…

The risk of injury in musicians has been well established over the past twenty-five years. Concerns about the risk of becoming injured have been increasingly present in the music world. Research in performing arts medicine has demonstrated that approximately 25 percent of music students experience a playing-related injury. Since musicians'…

Many music educators incorporate chamber music in their ensemble programs--an excellent way to promote musical independence. However, they rarely think of the large ensemble as myriad chamber interactions. Rehearsals become more productive when greater responsibility for music-making is placed on the individual student. This article presents some…

This article outlines how to make music programs more inclusive and therefore enable music teachers to compete more effectively for enrollment. Fortunately, music affords teachers many compelling options to win the hearts and minds of students, and thereby to create a more musically literate and supportive public. The author suggests that music…