University of Northern Iowa UNI ScholarWorks Graduate Research Papers Student Work 2011 The development of musical improvisation in second grade children Akiko Yoshizawa University of Northern Iowa Let us know how access to this document benefits ouy Copyright ©2011 Akiko Yoshizawa Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.uni.edu/grp Part of the Curriculum and Instruction Commons, and the Music Education Commons Recommended Citation Yoshizawa, Akiko, "The development of musical improvisation in second grade children" (2011). Graduate Research Papers. 256. https://scholarworks.uni.edu/grp/256 This Open Access Graduate Research Paper is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Work at UNI ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Research Papers by an authorized administrator of UNI ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The development of musical improvisation in second grade children Abstract The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate if second-grade children could develop a solo improvisation on an Orff xylophone. Participants were five African-American children who attended a model school that followed an inquiry-based approach curriculum. These children also had a chance to learn music from a faculty and the researcher, who had been exploring constructivist methods of teaching music, with a special emphasis on invented songs, instruments, and notations. The three-day study focused on how children were able to create a solo improvisation. The study was guided by the following questions: (1) Can second grade children develop improvisations on a song they have just learned? (2) What kind of improvisations do they develop? (3) Can second-grade children analyze their own improvisations? If so, how do they describe them? In order to analyze their level of musical complexity, a coding, based on Music Educators National Conference (MENC) K-4 performance standard, was developed to analyze the progression of children's improvisation. Children's interviews, done immediately after the improvisations, were transcribed and analyzed to demonstrate children's reflection. The data revealed that all children could improvise. Those who played and improvised other songs in the classroom embedded those songs in their improvisation. Implications are provided for researchers and teachers in the field of early childhood education. This open access graduate research paper is available at UNI ScholarWorks: https://scholarworks.uni.edu/grp/256 141 '. t ; · _/ Copyright by AKIKO YOSHIZAWA 2011 All Rights Reserved THE DEVELOPMENT OF MUSICAL IMPROVISATION IN SECOND GRADE CHILDREN An Abstract of a Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in Education Akiko Yoshizawa University of Northern Iowa December 2011 ABSTRACT The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate if second-grade children could develop a solo improvisation on an Orff xylophone. Participants were five African-American children who attended a model school that followed an inquiry-based approach curriculum. These children also had a chance to learn music from a faculty and the researcher, who had been exploring constructivist methods of teaching music, with a special emphasis on invented songs, instruments, and notations. The three-day study focused on how children were able to create a solo improvisation. The study was guided by the following questions: (1) Can second grade children develop improvisations on a song they have just learned? (2) What kind of improvisations do they develop? (3) Can second-grade children analyze their own improvisations? If so, how do they describe them? In order to analyze their level of musical complexity, a coding, based on Music Educators National Conference (MENC) K-4 performance standard, was developed to analyze the progression of children's improvisation. Children's interviews, done immediately after the improvisations, were transcribed and analyzed to demonstrate children's reflection. The data revealed that all children could improvise. Those who played and improvised other songs in the classroom embedded those songs in their improvisation. Implications are provided for researchers and teachers in the field of early childhood education. THE DEVELOPMENT OF MUSICAL IMPROVISATION IN SECOND GRADE CHILDREN A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in Education Akiko Yoshizawa University of Northern Iowa December 2011 11 This Study by: Akiko Yoshizawa Entitled: The Development of Musical Improvisation in Second Grade Children has been approved as meeting the thesis requirement for the Degree of Master of Arts in Education lu• s / -t/ Date } 0- 'S /- I I Date I 1-- 4 - / I Date Dr. Carolyn Hilde randt, Thesis Committee Member ll1 TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE LIST OF TABLES .................... .... ...................................................... ........ .............. .... ..... V CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ....................................... ... ... .......................................... 1 Overview of Improvisation ................................................................................ ... ......... 3 Statement of the Problem ......... ..................................................................................... 9 Relevance of the Study ................................................................................................ 10 Research Questions ............ .................................... ..................................................... 10 CHAPTER 2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE .................................................................... 12 Process-Oriented Studies of Children's Music Improvisation ....... ............................. 12 Product-Oriented Studies of Children's Music Improvisation ... .................. ............... 19 Chapter Summary .......... ..... .. ....... ............................. .... .. ..................................... ... ..... 23 CHAPTER 3. METHODOLOGY ..................................... .. ... ......... ... .............................. 24 Research Design ......................................... ... .. .. .................................................... ... ... 24 Data Procedures .................. .. ........ ...................... ..... .................... ............................. ... 27 CHAPTER 4. RESULTS ............................. .. ............... ..... ........................... ........ ... ... .... .. 32 Making Rhythmic and Melodic Improvisation from a Japanese Folk Song ............... 33 Children's Semi-Formal Interviews and Their Thought Process on Improvisation ... .47 Summary ....... ......................... .................. ..... ............................................................... 51 IV PAGE CHAPTER 5. DISCUSSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS .. .............................................. .. 53 Summary of Study .. ............ .. ...... .. ............................................................................... 53 Findings .................. ........... ............................... ............................. .... .... ...................... 54 Implications ...................................................... ............ ... ........ ... ... .... ............ ...... ... .... 56 Suggestions for Future Research ...................... ........................... .................. ...... .. ...... 57 REFERENCES ... ....................................... ........ .. .................................... .......................... 59 APPENDIX A: MUSICAL TERMS MENTIONED IN THIS STUDY ... ....................... 63 APPENDIX B: TULIP SONG ....... .... .... .. ......... .. ... ......... ................ .... ... .... ... .. ................. 66 APPENDIX C: PARTICIPANTS' INTERVIEW .. .... ..................... .... ... .......................... 68 APPENDIX D: CONSENT FORM .. ....... .. ................ .. ..... ...... ......... .... ............................ 79 V LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE 1 Participants, Gender and Age ...... ......... ..... .... .. ............. ........ ... ......................... ..... 26 2 Patterned Regularities of Melodic and Rhythmic Variations ................................ 34 3 Songs That Influenced Children's Melodic and Rhythmic Improvisation .. .......... 40 4 Summary of Children's Improvisations .... .................................... ..... ................... 44 5 Songs That Influenced Children's Improvisation From Children's Perspective .. .49 1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION This study originated from my personal struggle to find an appropriate learning environment to improvise on a music instrument, something I have been passionate about since my childhood. I was raised in an artistic but traditional Japanese family, and my experience with music improvisation was always based on a behaviorist, teacher-directed method. My father was a composer, maestro and a classical piano teacher who strongly followed a traditional music instruction method. My daily piano practice was more about perfecting technical and artistic skills through a great amount of practice rather than being creative. During breaks, I remember improvising pieces from a popular song, and being scolded. "Practice more and memorize your piece first," my father used to say. "You play later," referring to improvisation as something optional and less serious. He also added that there were appropriate instructions on how