An Investigation of the Retention of Keyboard Skills of Non-Piano Music Majors at the Collegiate Level
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AN INVESTIGATION OF THE RETENTION OF KEYBOARD SKILLS OF NON-PIANO MUSIC MAJORS AT THE COLLEGIATE LEVEL Rachel D. Mauricio A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF MUSIC August 2009 Committee: Cynthia Stephens Benson, Advisor Vincent J. Kantorski © 2009 Rachel Mauricio All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT Cynthia Stephens Benson, Advisor The purpose of this study was to assess the retention of Class Piano skills of undergraduate non-piano Music Education majors. Twenty students, who had passed all Class Piano requirements but who had not yet graduated, completed a survey regarding their Class Piano experience and took a skill playing exam in which they demonstrated scale playing, solo accompaniment, harmonization, two-hand accompaniment, and score reading skills learned in Class Piano. The results of the study addressed the following: (a) how well former Class Piano students retained the skills learned in their courses, (b) what aspects of these skills were and were not retained, and (c) the relationship between the students’ perceptions and values of these skills and their ability to demonstrate retention. All 20 students showed an overall retention of Class Piano skills, and 13 of the 20 students retained all five skills. The highest retained skill was harmonization, with 100% of the students showing retention, followed by two-hand accompaniment (95%), scales (90%), solo accompaniment (90%), and score reading (81%). The students’ degree, instrument, number of semesters since last taking Class Piano, and number of Class Piano teachers did not seem to affect their ability to retain Class Piano skills. There was an occasional, although inconsistent, connection among how important or useful the students thought the skills were and whether or not the students thought they needed to improve or could still play the skills with the students’ actual ability to play the skills. Generally, the students who considered a skill to be important, one they could still play, iv and one they would use in teaching, was also a skill where they showed greater retention than those who did not consider the skill to be important or one that would be used in teaching. Implications for Class Piano pedagogy include teaching scales in the context of exercises and more solo repertoire pieces, requiring scale performance tempos in order to ensure a high level of proficiency and retention is reached, consistently using and assessing dynamics and damper pedal more frequently in order to ensure that the students reach a proficient level in these areas, integrating choral warm-up, vocal score reading, and instrumental transposition exercises earlier and more frequently into the Class Piano curriculum, and consistently emphasizing and assessing proper posture at the keyboard. v This thesis is dedicated to Mrs. Janice Cook, my first piano pedagogy teacher, my inspiration to excel in my career as a music educator, and my friend. vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Thank you to Dr. Cynthia Stephens Benson, for her scholarly expertise and direction with this project, even during her sabbatical. I am also extremely grateful for her invaluable instruction, guidance, and support during my pedagogical endeavors at Bowling Green, particularly in Class Piano. Thank you to Dr. Vincent J. Kantorski, for his editing prowess, consummate professionalism, and generous gift of time to assist with the completion of this project. Thank you to all the Music Education students who participated in my study. Their contribution of time and effort has made this project possible. Thank you to my graduate student colleagues, Christopher Baumgartner, Ryan Yahl, Ellen Pagan, Janet Fu, and Pamela Klueck, for their assistance in either pilot testing or participant recruitment – or both – for my study. Thank you to all my piano and piano pedagogy teachers throughout the years. Their wisdom, pragmatism, and dedication have inspired me to continue on a career path where I hope to impart as much joy in music making and music teaching to my students as they have to me. I would most especially like to thank my parents, my brother Andrew, and my fiancé Jared, for their ceaseless love and support. Without them I would not be where I am today. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER II. REVIEW OF LITERATURE ....................................................................... 3 Retention ............................................................................................................ 3 Learning ............................................................................................................ 4 Memory ............................................................................................................ 6 Research on Retention ............................................................................................... 8 Recall ............................................................................................................ 10 Retention and Class Piano ......................................................................................... 13 Research Question ..................................................................................................... 16 CHAPTER III. METHOD .................................................................................................... 17 Survey ............................................................................................................ 17 Skill Playing Exam .................................................................................................... 18 Evaluation and Scoring.............................................................................................. 19 CHAPTER IV. RESULTS.................................................................................................... 24 Survey ............................................................................................................ 24 Skill Playing Exam .................................................................................................... 35 Overall Mean Score....................................................................................... 36 Scales ............................................................................................................ 38 Solo Accompaniment..................................................................................... 41 Harmonization................................................................................................ 44 Two-hand Accompaniment............................................................................ 47 viii Score Reading ................................................................................................ 49 Hand Position and Posture............................................................................. 52 Keyboard Awareness..................................................................................... 53 Pedal Usage.................................................................................................... 54 Comparison of Skill Playing Exam With Survey Responses .................................... 55 Scales ............................................................................................................ 55 Solo Accompaniment..................................................................................... 57 Harmonization................................................................................................ 58 Two-hand Accompaniment............................................................................ 60 Score Reading................................................................................................ 62 CHAPTER V. DISCUSSION............................................................................................... 65 Survey ............................................................................................................ 65 Skills Not Tested in the Skill Playing Exam...................................... 66 The Role of Piano Before and After Taking Class Piano .................. 68 How Well Do Former Class Piano Students Retain the Skills Learned in Their Class Piano Courses?..................................................................................... 70 What Aspects of Each Skill Were and Were Not Retained? ......................... 70 Scales ................................................................................................. 70 Solo Accompaniment......................................................................... 72 Harmonization.................................................................................... 72 Two-hand accompaniment................................................................. 73 Score Reading.................................................................................... 73 ix Hand Position and Posture................................................................. 74 Keyboard Awareness......................................................................... 74 Pedal Usage........................................................................................ 76 Is There a Relationship Between the Students’ Values of These Skills and Their Ability to Demonstrate Retention? ................................................................ 77 Implications for Class Piano Pedagogy