Dissertations and Theses @ UNI
Availability
Open Access Thesis
Keywords
Musical instrument selection for children; Musical instruments; Academic theses;
Abstract
The goal of a musical instrument selection process is to have an organized, efficient, and effective method that ensures the best match of student and instrument. Research has suggested that a carefully planned instrument selection process aids recruitment and retention by heightening pre-beginning band students' awareness of the band program and musical instruments. The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors influencing student instrument choices and the instrument selection tests and procedures used by band directors. Also examined were differences in the instrument selection processes between groups determined by: (a) level of teacher education, (b) teacher experience, ( c) program retention rates, ( d) school district size, and ( e) school setting. Directors of beginning bands (n = 100) were randomly selected and sent a researcher designed questionnaire. There were 56 returned questionnaires representing a return rate of 56%. Descriptive analyses, frequency distributions, MANOV As, ANOVAs, and Chisquares were computed. There were significant differences (p ≥ .05) found in instrument selection processes between the director's level of education, director's level of experience, program retention rates, and school sizes. There were no significant differences in instrument selection procedures between directors in different school settings. The procedures most utilized by participants when guiding students to instruments were the analysis of student physical characteristics and playing tests. Fifty eight percent of directors indicated actively recruiting at the grades or schools that feed students into their beginning bands. The familiarization activities of students: (a) touching or holding a variety of instruments, (b) producing sounds on instruments, (c) hearing live performance of instruments, (d) looking at instruments on display, and (e) viewing pictures of musical instruments were frequently used by directors. Tests such as Gordon's Instrument Timbre Preference Test or Seashore's Measures of Musical Talent were rarely used by participants to inform instrument matching.
Year of Submission
2004
Degree Name
Master of Music
Department
School of Music
First Advisor
Jennifer Mishra
Second Advisor
Ronald Johnson
Third Advisor
Rod Chesnutt
Date Original
2004
Object Description
1 PDF file (137 leaves)
Copyright
©2004 Dale Edward Bazan
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Bazan, Dale Edward, "An Investigation of the Instrument Selection Processes Used by Directors of Beginning Bands" (2004). Dissertations and Theses @ UNI. 2015.
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/etd/2015
Comments
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