Cross-modal experience in music and visual art: their correspondences and a new perspective of appreciation in education Kalaly Chu BA (Music with Hons) MA (Music Education) School of English, Media and Performing Arts Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences The University of New South Wales 2008 Original Statement I hereby declare that this submission is my own work and to the best of my knowledge it contains no materials previously published or written by another person, or substantial proportions of material which have been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma at UNSW or any other educational institution, except where due acknowledgement is made in the thesis. Any contribution made to the research by others, with whom I have worked in UNSW or elsewhere, is explicitly acknowledged in the thesis. I also declare that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own word, except to the extent that assistance from others in the project’s design and conception or in style, presentation and linguistic expression is acknowledged. Signed: Kalaly Chu Date: 29-1-2008 Copyright Statement ‘I hereby grant the University of New South Wales or its agent the right to archive and to make available my thesis or dissertation in whole or part in the University libraries in all form of media, now or here after known, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. I retain all proprietary rights, such as patent rights. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis or dissertation. I also authorise University Microfilms to use the 350 word abstract of my thesis in Dissertation Abstract International (this is applicable to doctoral thesis only). I have either used no substantial portions of copyright material in my thesis or I have obtained permission to use copyright material, where permission has not been granted. I have applied/will apply for a partial restriction of the digital copy of my dissertation due to where permission has not been granted. Acknowledgement I would like to specially thank Professor Robert Walker for his supervision and his belief that I will accomplish this research. His vision has made this dissertation into a finished product. I would also like to express my thankfulness to the University of New South Wales, the Graduate Research School, and the Faculty, which generously supported and funded me to attend overseas conferences in Istanbul, Bali, Malaysia and Thailand. Further, the University Student Union, which assisted, supported and funded me for the organization of several exhibitions for the University and the University’s Artsweek since 2005. My thanks also go to Art Gallery of New South Wales which offered me an invaluable experience and opportunity to learn and work for them as a student ambassador for the past three years. All these experiences have nurtured my knowledge of understanding and presenting the arts. I would also like to extend my gratitude to all the participants of the test: “Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting” in this research. Without the helpfulness of Coast Senior Centre and their administration committee, Sylvania Anglican Church and Young Artist Workshop, this test would not exist in this dissertation. Thanks for all those directly and indirectly inspired and supported me for the making of this dissertation. My thanks also go to my mother, who introduced music and visual art in my life. Julia Kable, an experienced teacher, who provided invaluable suggestions for my linguistic skills and the encouragement that she has given to me for the past years. Lastly, my thanks go to my church, and the church members who kindly supported and prayed for me during my apprenticeship. They are the bonus of my research journey. This research is the accumulation and the synthesis of my cross-modal experience in the arts. I dedicate this dissertation to the heavenly Father. By grace, I finish this research Abstract The originality and significance of this research is to use a‘cross-modal’ perspective to experience the ‘multi-dimensional’ nature of the arts, specifically in the area of music and the visual arts. This research will focus on investigating common cross- disciplinary attributes and apply them in the realm of ‘appreciation’ in aesthetic education in music and visual art. The three major research problems and issues in this dissertation are as follows: (1) What are the common elements in music and the visual arts? (2) Do people make correspondences between music and painting by using the work of painters and musicians? (3) How do we define the role of music and its adaptability in linking with other expressive forms in contemporary education? Ultimately, the entire dissertation serves to redefine the ‘value’ and uniqueness of the arts (music and visual art) in the holistic development of an individual, in particularly in moulding and enhancing the skills of personal and cultural expression. The aims in this research are taken from various angles which correspond with the questions about “interdisciplinary study” and the ideas of “changing teaching and learning” in the 21st century. Interdisciplinary Studies has been a term which has provoked a great deal of controversy in current educational development, particularly in Asian countries, and especially in music education. The originality of this research lies in three areas. First, a cross-modal perspective is used to explore the common elements in music and visual art, especially in the dimensions of ‘brightness’, ‘intensity’ and ‘line’. Second, a cross-modal perspective in music will be adopted. Instead of focusing on the melody, harmony and form of music repertoire, sensory qualities, such as ‘brightness’, ‘intensity’ and ‘line’ will be used as musical vocabulary to interpret cross-modal perception in experiencing the arts. Third, this dissertation will investigate the art experience, especially the thinking and cognitive appraisal in viewing the arts, of the creators and the spectators. Content of the dissertation Prologue The originality and significance of the research Chapter 1 The educational implication of cross-modal experience and its role in art experience 1.1. Cross-modal experience as a means of knowledge acquisition 1.2. The limitations of sensory abilities and their influences in our perceptual and learning experiences 1.3. The multi-modal dimensions of sounds: viewing from a cross-modal perspective 1.4. The cross-modal experience in the arts: the emergence of the image Chapter 2 The role of cross-modal experience in art making: the facets of observation in the palette of the Impressionists 2.1. The facets of observation: a process of selective thinking 2.2. Cultivating the skills of observation: capturing the light in the palette of the Impressionists 2.3. (a) The brightness in Debussy’s music and Whistler’s painting – a multi-modal dimension in ‘listening’ and ‘seeing’ the arts 2.3. (b) The different facets of intensity in Debussy’s music: his treatment of performance directions and dynamics 2.4. The other facets of cultivating the skills of observation in the arts --- from a historical perspective Chapter 3 The role of cross-modal experience in art making: the facets of expression in the palette of the Expressionists 3.1. The palette of inner emotion: Schoenberg’s music and Kandinsky’s painting 3.2. The colours in music and painting: the colour concept of Schoenberg and Kandinsky 3.3. The intensity in music and painting: Schoenberg’s Der kranke Mond and Munch’s painting 3.4. A comparison of the palette of Impressionists and the Expressionists: Portrait of the moon. Chapter 4 The role of cross-modal experience in art making: the facets of imagination and metaphor in the Japanese animation 4.1. The role of imagination and metaphor in art experience 4.2. The synchronization of sound and colour: the facets of metaphor in Japanese TV animation opening and ending songs: 4.3. Analysis of the Japanese animation opening and ending theme songs 4.4. The educational implications of media: the synchronization of music, visual images and words Chapter 5 The cross-modal experience in music and painting A test concerning the perception of ‘Brightness and Darkness in Music and painting’ 5. 1. The purpose of the test 5.2. The procedure and design of the test 5.2.1. Part 1 of the test: Semantic Differential Questionnaire 5.2.2. Part 2 of the test: Rating the Brightness and Darkness of music excerpts and paintings 5.2.3. Part 3 of the test: Matching music excerpts with painting examples 5.3. The background of the subject 5.4. Results 5.4.1. The results of the Semantic Differential questionnaire 5.4.2. Results of Brightness and Darkness in music excerpts 5.4.3. Results of Brightness and Darkness in the painting 5.4.4. The correspondence in the matching of music excerpts and paintings 5.4.5. The subjects’ preference in each music excerpts (Table version) 5.4.6. Music and painting analysis 5.5. The educational Implication of the test, “The Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting”: the value of expression in art experience Chapter 6 Music linked to other expressive forms: redefining the essence of contemporary aesthetic education 6.1. Music as an educative force 6.2. Chinese and Western perspectives on the educational function of music 6. 3. The role of listening and seeing in Arts Education 6.3.1 Listening 6.3.2. Seeing 6.4. The function and value in art experience 6.5. Cross-modal experience in learning and teaching Coda: Conclusion and recommendations Redefine the values of appreciation in aesthetic education and in our life 6.2.1.