Two exploratory studies examine how 12-tone rows are processed cognitively. Tone-rows use each pitch-class once, and were devised by the composer Arnold Schoenberg as a way of structuring music in the absence of tonality, an approach subsequently known as "serialism". One form of "antistructure" implied in the design of tone-rows--eschewal of…

In our recently-published book "Musical Imaginations" (Hargreaves, Miell, & MacDonald, 2012), I suggest that the creative aspects of music "listening" have been neglected, and that putting these at the centre of musical creativity (which is usually seen as being manifested in the activities of composition, improvisation and performance) can lead…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the tonal perception and restoration of thirds within power chords with the instruments and sounds idiosyncratic to the Western rock/pop genre. Four separate chord sequences were performed on electric guitar in four versions; as full chord and power chord versions as well as under both clean-tone and…

How do musicians performing together coordinate their actions to achieve a unified performance? We observed a singer (the first author) and pianist/conductor (the third author) as they prepared for two performances of Ricercar 1 from Stravinsky's Cantata, one for voice and piano and one for voice and ensemble. This article reports a content…

Regardless of the extremely subtle acoustic changes that are perceptible within almost all perception research studies, it is the total overall effect that generally occupies each individual listener. A long line of research indicates that many subtle "music changes" are often not perceived accurately and are actually mistakenly identified.…

This article reports the findings of a research project that investigated the nature of the teaching and learning process in music composition. Over the period of one semester, the formal interactions in one-on-one study sessions between an eminent composer-teacher and an experienced graduate student-composer were videotaped. Following the…

The image of the composer as a lone seeker of creative inspiration is embedded in popular views of the creative artist. This isolationist view ignores the "thought communities" on which composers draw in their development as musicians, composers and teachers, the relationships that hold between composer-teacher and student-composer, and the role…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between students' self-assessments of their musical compositions and experts' assessments. College students (N = 54) who were enrolled in a music fundamentals course for elementary education students participated in this study. Each student completed three composition-performance…

This study examined 48 computer-based compositions produced by adolescents (13-14 years old) using evaluations by specialist music teachers and the adolescents' self-evaluations and self-assessments. Based on previous research (Seddon and O'Neill, 2001), we expected that the teachers' evaluations of the compositions would not differentiate between…

Although an extensive literature exists on creativity and music, there is a lack of published research investigating possible links between musical creativity and Csikszentmihalyi's concept of flow or optimal experience. This article examines a group composition task to study the relationships between creativity, flow and the quality of the…

We focus on the music students at a conservatoire (A) that only trains performers and composers (performers/composers); a conservatoire (B) that also trains classroom teachers (education students); and a university (C) with only education students. We used a questionnaire to compare the experience and beliefs as instrumental teachers of the…

Over the past 25 years there has been an increasing and worldwide research interest in music education, embracing a range of disciplines and perspectives. As well as particular research foci on the nature of curricula, musical behaviour and development, new research literatures have been developed that link music education with ethnomusicology,…