Circumscribing Tonality

Circumscribing Tonality Niklas Rudbäck Circumscribing Tonality Upper Secondary Music Students Learning the Circle of Fifths Academy of Music and Drama, Faculty of Fine, Applied, and Performing Arts, University of Gothenburg Abstract Title: Circumscribing Tonality: Upper Secondary Music Students Learning the Circle of Fifths Svensk titel: Att ringa in tonalitet: Gymnasieelever på estetiskt program lär sig kvintcirkeln Author: Niklas Rudbäck Research subject: Research on Arts Education Language: English with summary in Swedish Keywords: music theory pedagogy; circle of fifths; key; tonic; upper secondary school; scientific concepts; learning ISBN: 978-91-8009-028-5 (Printed) ISBN: 978-91-8009-029-2 (Digital) URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2077/66147 The fundamental motivation for this research project is that listening is central to all musical activities, and that semiotic means for visualizing, representing, and conceptualizing music are central to educational endeavors aimed at developing trained listening. There is, however, a lack of research on how such semiotic means are taught and learned, especially in the aural skills and music theory subjects and in secondary education. Therefore, this thesis investigates upper secondary music students’ processes of learning the circle of fifths and some associated music- theoretical concepts, and how those processes relate to the practice of aural skills and music theory education they are engaged in. I ask two research questions: 1 How do participants introduce, reproduce, and use the circle of fifths in the educational practice? 2 How do the specific ways in which the circle of fifths is introduced, repro- duced, and used in the educational practice facilitate learning processes? Theoretically, the study draws on Vygotsky’s distinction between scientific and everyday concepts, and conceives of the circle of fifths as an inscription. The study takes a qualitative case study approach, combining interviews with students and observation of lessons, both documented by video. The analysis focuses on how participants interact, how they use inscriptions, and on how this constitutes co-constructive microgenetic processes. The analysis shows an educational practice where the circle of fifths is deployed as a tool for solving transposing problems, and where the ability to use mnemonic techniques to reproduce the diagram is highly valued. This focus on mnemonics and algorithms for problem-solving tends to foreground the logic of the representations, rather than the logic being represented, which makes it difficult for students to apply the algorithms on different kinds of problems. For example, circumscribing a group of chords in the diagram is used to represent a key. This makes it difficult to distinguish major and minor keys, and to conceive of key as a property of melodies. The circle of fifths is used to visualize central concepts, which are then used to explicate the circle of fifths, creating a circular conceptual system. While some circularity may be unavoidable given the previous knowledge of the students, it is proposed that the circularity is exacerbated by a lack of musical examples and formal definitions. This work is dedicated to my mother, Marie-Anne “Lantan” Rudbäck, who was my first music teacher. Yippee-ti-oh-ti-ay. Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Research on Arts Education (Estetiska uttrycksformer med inriktning mot utbildnings vetenskap) at the Academy of Music and Drama, Faculty of Fine, Applied and Performing Arts, University of Gothenburg. Published by Göteborgs universitet (Avhandlingar) This doctoral dissertation is No. 80 in the series ArtMonitor Doctoral Dissertations and Licentiate Theses, at the Faculty of Fine, Applied and Performing Arts, University of Gothenburg. www.konst.gu.se/artmonitor This doctoral thesis has been conducted within the framework of the Gradu- ate School in Educational Science at the Centre for Educational Science and Teacher Research, University of Gothenburg. Centre for Educational Science and Teacher Research, CUL Graduate School in Educational Science Centre for Educational Science and Teacher Research (CUL) Doctoral Thesis no. 86 In 2004 the University of Gothenburg established the Centre for Educational Science and Teacher Research (CUL). CUL aims to promote and support research and third-cycle studies linked to the teaching profession and the teacher training programme. The graduate school is an interfaculty initiative carried out jointly by the faculties involved in the teacher training programme at the University of Gothenburg and in co-operation with municipalities, school governing bodies and university colleges. www.cul.gu.se Layout: Daniel Flodin Cover illustration: Niklas Rudbäck English Proofreading: Rachel Rudbäck Printing: Stema Speciatryck AB © Niklas Rudbäck 2020 NMÄ NE RK A E V T S ISBN 978-91-8009-028-5 (Printed) Trycksak ISBN 978-91-8009-029-2 (Digital) 3041 0234 Contents Abstract ............................................................................................. v Acknowledgments .......................................................................xiii 1. Introduction .................................................................................1 1.1 Conceptual-Symbolic Knowledge and Music Education .......................................................................................4 1.2 A Brief Introduction to the Circle of Fifths .........................................8 1.3 Small Glossary of Music-Theoretical Terminology and Notes on Translation ..............................................12 1.4 Guidance for Readers .............................................................................15 2. Previous Research ......................................................................17 2.1 Music Perception, Cognition, and Musical Understanding ............18 2.2 Concepts, Terminology, and Graphic Representations of Music ......................................................................22 2.3 Concepts, Terminology, and Representations of Music in Secondary Music Classrooms ..........................................32 2.4 Music Theory and Aural Skills as Subjects in Music Education ... 41 2.5 Conventional Music Notations ............................................................49 2.6 Graphs, Diagrams, and Visual Representations in Other Subject Domains ..........................................................................51 2.7 Previous Research in Summation ........................................................57 3. Research Problem and Research Questions ........................59 4. Theoretical Framework ......................................................... 63 4.1 The Circle of Fifths: Inscription, Representation, Concept, and Model .................................................63 4.2 What Is an Inscription? .........................................................................66 4.3 What Is a Concept? ................................................................................72 4.4 Scientific and Everyday Concepts — Mediated and Situated Conceptualization ........................................78 4.5 Spontaneous, Potential, and Musical Concepts ................................84 4.6 Tools, Signs, and Mediation .................................................................89 4.7 Learning, Appropriation, and Internalization ..................................94 4.8 Learning, Instruction, and Development ..........................................97 4.9 Co-Construction and Inclusive Separation ......................................101 ix Contents 5. Methodology and Ethics ........................................................105 5.1 Methodology ..........................................................................................105 5.1.1 Units of Analysis .....................................................................107 5.1.2 Qualitative Case Studies ..........................................................111 5.1.3 Studying the Co-Construction of Sign-Meaning through Interaction ................................................................. 113 5.1.4 Microgenesis ............................................................................. 115 5.1.5 Abductive and Inductive Reasoning in Qualitative Research ...............................................................117 5.1.6 Interviews in Music .................................................................120 5.2 Ethics....................................................................................................... 124 5.2.1 Some Examples of Practical Ethical Challenges Encountered during the Study ............................................. 126 6. Method ..........................................................................................131 6.1 Setting, Access, Participants, and Sampling..................................... 133 6.2 Preparations ............................................................................................135 6.3 Interviews ................................................................................................136 6.3.1 Interview-Round 1 ....................................................................138 6.3.2 Interview-Round 2 ...................................................................141 6.4 Observing and Documenting Lessons ............................................. 143 6.4.1 Selection of Relevant Lessons and Limitations of the Lesson-Material ...........................................................147

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