Copyright by Georgios Pandelis Hoplaros 2008 The Dissertation Committee for Georgios Pandelis Hoplaros Certifies that this is the approved version of the following dissertation: The Contribution of Technology to the Teaching of Music Listening: Historical Perspectives and Contemporary Developments Hunter March, Supervisor Rebecca Brooks Eugenia Costa-Giomi Judith Jellison Laurie Scott The Contribution of Technology to the Teaching of Music Listening: Historical Perspectives and Contemporary Developments by Georgios Pandelis Hoplaros, B.A., M.M. Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at Austin in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy The University of Texas at Austin December 2008 Dedication I would like to dedicate this dissertation to my parents, Pandelis and Chrystalla, who have devoted their lives to providing the best educational opportunities for all their five children. The Contribution of Technology to the Teaching of Music Listening: Historical Perspectives and Contemporary Developments Publication No._____________ Georgios Pandelis Hoplaros, Ph.D. The University of Texas at Austin, 2008 Supervisor: Hunter C. March The purpose of the current study is to examine the contribution of technology to the teaching of music listening, to present a comprehensive account of the pertinent educational materials that have been developed in the past to assist teachers during the music listening activity, and to introduce a software application to make it easier for teachers to create music listening guides. The role of technology in the teaching of music listening can be examined in four major historical periods, each roughly corresponding to a quarter of the twentieth century. During the early 1900’s, the invention of the first devices that could reproduce sound – the player piano and the phonograph – allowed music teachers to include music listening activities in classroom music instruction. The largest companies in the player piano and phonograph industry formed educational departments that produced a plethora of educational materials that helped to spread the music appreciation movement throughout the country. v The advent of the radio, followed by the television, constitutes the second historical period to be examined. Both inventions contributed to the establishment of music listening as an integral part of classroom instruction by broadcasting educational programs on a national scale, mostly in the form of youth concerts. Broadcasting companies also issued teacher guides and student workbooks to be used along with the programs. The third period in question concerns the second half of the past century, when several improvements in audio equipment made the production of extensive recorded listening libraries possible. At the same time, the development of new devices enabled the production of educational audiovisual materials, such as films, filmstrips, slides, and transparencies. The accessibility of personal computers marks the fourth and final historical period to be discussed. The new technology allowed the development of educational software for music listening. Most listening materials developed by publishers to accompany the new technologies dictate both the music literature and the musical concepts to be introduced to students. The author has programmed a pertinent computer application to help teachers create their own listening material - specifically, animated versions of listening maps. A description of the computer application and its capabilities are presented in the final chapter of the study. vi Table of Contents List of Figures ....................................................................................................... xii Chapter I 1 Introduction 1 Introduction .....................................................................................................1 Statement of the Problem ................................................................................2 Purpose of the Study .......................................................................................3 Limitations of the Study..................................................................................4 Methodology ...................................................................................................4 Organization of the Chapters ..........................................................................5 Chapter II 8 The First Quarter of the 20th Century: The Advent of the Player Piano and the Phonograph and Their Contribution to the Music Appreciation Movement 8 Introduction .....................................................................................................8 The Beginnings of Music Appreciation in Public Schools .............................9 The Player Piano ...........................................................................................14 The Development of the Player Piano .................................................14 The Impact of Player Piano on American Society ...............................19 The Uses of Player Pianos in Education ..............................................22 Educational Material Using Player Pianos .................................22 A Reconstruction of a Listening Session, Using an Annotated Roll from the World’s Music Series ..................................25 The Use of Player Pianos in Schools ..........................................32 The Benefits of Player Piano as Seen by Music Educators .................33 Detrimental Uses of Player Pianos in Education .................................37 The Phonograph ............................................................................................39 The Development of the Phonograph ..................................................40 The Invention of the Phonograph ...............................................41 Improvements to the Phonograph ...............................................43 vii The Victor Talking Machine Company ......................................45 Frances Elliott Clark and Victor Educational Department ..................47 Victor’s Educational Department’s Contributions to Music Listening .....................................................................................51 Recordings ..................................................................................51 Educational Materials Accompanying Recordings .....................53 Books Published by Victor’s Educational Department ..............53 Victor’s Travelling Representatives ...........................................58 Organization of Music Appreciation Courses for Academic Credit..................................................................................60 Victor and Music Memory Contests ...........................................60 The Promotion of Phonographs at Schools .................................62 The Use of the Phonograph by Music Educators .................................64 The Development of Educational Techniques by the Phonograph Industry for Teaching Music Appreciation during the First Quarter of the 20th Century .........................................................67 The Use of Brief Descriptions ....................................................68 The Use of Notated Themes .......................................................72 Summary .......................................................................................................76 Chapter III 79 Educational Broadcasting: the Contribution of Radio and Television to Teaching Music Appreciation 79 Introduction ...................................................................................................79 The Advent of the Radio ...............................................................................80 The Development of the Radio ............................................................80 The First Stations and Broadcastings ...................................................82 The Radio as a Means of Education ....................................................83 Music Education Radio Programs ................................................................85 The First Radio Programs in Music Appreciation ...............................86 The NBC Music Appreciation Hour (1928-1942) ...............................86 The Development of the Series ...................................................87 viii Series Organization .....................................................................89 Series Contents ............................................................................90 Educational Materials .................................................................92 Influence of the Music Appreciation Hour .................................96 Columbia Broadcasting System’s American School of the Air ...........98 CBS’s Gateways to Music ........................................................100 Educational Materials by CBS ..................................................102 The Standard School Broadcast .........................................................103 Development of the Series ........................................................103 Series Contents ..........................................................................105 Educational Materials ...............................................................106 Radio Programs in Music Appreciation Carried by Commercial Stations and Universities ...........................................................109 The Contribution