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Musical Experience in Our Lives: Things We Learn and Meanings We Make PDF

359 Pages·2009·1.12 MB·English
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Music • Instruction & Study “Jody L. Kerchner and Carlos R. Abril’s Musical Experience in Our Lives takes us a giant step toward what the fi eld of music education most needs to become: more real. In chapter after chapter by the assembled writers, the actual musical lives being lived by people at every stage, from early childhood through older adulthood, are portrayed thoughtfully and delightfully, demonstrating how rich and diverse those lives can be and how minimally related they are to traditional music programs in the schools. This is an indispensable book for all music educators, eye-opening, refreshing, mind-expanding, and hopeful for its encouragement of an invigorated profession.” —Bennett Reimer, John W. Beattie Professor of Music Education Emeritus, Northwestern University “Musical Experience in Our Lives is a compelling text that masterfully conveys the inherent value of ‘school music’ within the larger dynamic landscape of engagement, learning, socialization, and meaning-making. Invoking an overdue and welcome lifespan perspective, Jody L. Kerchner and Carlos R. Abril have shaped the work so that chapters collectively bridge the too-frequent divide between music in school and music in life. A must-read for those who are serious about music edu- cation as a crucial element of meaningful living.” —David E. Myers, professor and director, School of Music, University of Minnesota “What a valuable resource for music education! Musical Experience in Our Lives addresses the essence of the musical experience through eighteen engaging topics, prepared by leading experts in the fi eld. This very readable and insightful text spotlights the importance of musical experiences occurring in a variety of settings from the more formal to the informal, and resulting in the ultimate quest for life-long music makers.” —Carolynn A. Lindeman, profesor emerita, San Francisco State University, Musical Experience in Our Lives and past president, MENC: The National Association for Music Education Things We Learn and Meanings We Make Jody L. Kerchner is associate professor and director of music education at the Oberlin Conserva- tory of Music, where she is the secondary school music and choral music education specialist. Her research focuses on music listening and cognitive processing, portfolio assessment, college—public school collaboration, and music teacher identity. Carlos R. Abril is assistant professor of music education at Northwestern University, where he teaches courses in general music, multiculturalism, and philosophy. His research focuses on the sociocultural dimensions of the music teaching and learning process, music perception, and policy. For orders and information please contact the publisher ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD EDUCATION A Division of Rowman & Littlefi eld Publishers, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefi eld Publishing Group, Inc. Published in Partnership with MENC: The National Association for Music Education 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200 Lanham, Maryland 20706 1-800-462-6420 • fax 717-794-3803 www.rowmaneducation.com edited by JODY L. KERCHNER and CARLOS R. ABRIL MusicalExerperienceLITHO.indd 1 MusicalExerperienceLITHO.indd 1 3/4/09 4:42:19 PM 3/4/09 4:42:19 PM KERCHNER Musical Experience in Our Lives & ABRIL Musical Experience in Our Lives PRAISE FOR MUSICAL EXPERIENCE IN OUR LIVES. . . . “I opened this book and was immediately engaged. This is a book about alignment, about broadening our perspectives on music education, about identifying the range of music learners in our society and discovering what they can teach us when we take time to watch and listen. Jody L. Kerchner and Carlos R. Abril have created a compelling collection that should be a part of every musician’s library of inspirational books, and one that provides exceptional models for continuing research into the meaning of musical experience. There is no other publication like this in our music education literature. Kerchner and Abril hope that readers of this book will consider new di- rections for music education in response. I say: Follow them—they are lead- ing the way with this publication!”—Donna Brink Fox, associate dean of academic and student affairs and Eisenhart Professor of Music Education, Eastman School of Music, University of Rochester. “Jody L. Kerchner and Carlos R. Abril break new ground in this book by bringing together in one publication a series of narratives and case studies that illuminate the nature and meaning of musical engagement in formal and informal settings across the lifespan. Set in rich social and cultural con- texts and authored by scholars with diverse interests, each study brings the reader to the heart of musical experience and meaning-making at different developmental stages—infancy and early childhood, childhood, adoles- cence, and adulthood and older adulthood. The collection serves as a cata- lyst for expanding the vision and reach of music education and reassessing the impact of music on the human condition.”—Marie McCarthy, profes- sor and chair of music education, University of Michigan. “Musical Experience in Our Lives features a veritable pantheon of outstand- ing researchers and thinkers in the field of music education. They bring to this work important perspectives on the transmission, learning, and joy of music-making from the youngest child to people in their later years. These qualitative studies provide a detailed description of the sociological dimensions of music learning, helping us to understand that what is learned far transcends a particular classroom, teacher, or setting.”—Carol Scott- Kassner, retired professor of music education, author, and consultant. Musical Experience in Our Lives Things We Learn and Meanings We Make Jody L. Kerchner and Carlos R. Abril Published in partnership with MENC: The National Association for Music Education R OW M A N & L I T T L E F I E L D E D U C AT I O N Lanham • New York • Toronto • Plymouth, UK Published in partnership with MENC: The National Association for Music Education Published in the United States of America by Rowman & Littlefield Education A Division of Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 www.rowmaneducation.com Estover Road Plymouth PL6 7PY United Kingdom Copyright © 2009 by MENC: The National Association for Music Education All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Musical experience in our lives : things we learn and meanings we make / [edited by] Jody L. Kerchner & Carlos R. Abril. p. cm. “Published in partnership with MENC, the National Association for Music Education.” ISBN-13: 978-1-57886-945-9 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 1-57886-945-5 (cloth : alk. paper) eISBN-13: 978-1-57886-947-3 eISBN-10: 1-57886-947-1 1. Music—Instruction and study. 2. Music, Influence of. 3. Music—Philosophy and aesthetics. I. Kerchner, Jody L., 1964– II. Abril, Carlos R., 1970– MT6.M9628 2009 780.71—dc22 2008035000 ⬁™ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992. Manufactured in the United States of America. Contents Acknowledgments vii Introduction 1 Carlos R. Abril and Jody L. Kerchner Part I: Infancy and Early Childhood 1 Songs of Belonging: Musical Interactions in Early Life 21 Beatriz Ilari 2 From the Teacher’s View: Observations of Toddlers’ Musical Development 39 Wendy H. Valerio 3 A Community Music Program for Parents and Children with and without Special Needs 59 Marcia Earl Humpal 4 Musical Portraits, Musical Pathways: Stories of Meaning Making in the Lives of Six Families 77 Lori A. Custodero Part II: Childhood 5 Pulling the Curtain Back on Performance in the Elementary School 93 Carlos R. Abril 6 “El Camaleon”: The Musical Secrets of Mirella Valdez 113 Chee Hoo Lum and Patricia Shehan Campbell v vi Contents 7 Improvisatory Musical Experiences in the Lives of Children with Severe Disabilities 127 Kimberly A. McCord 8 Composing in the Classroom: The Journey of Five Children 145 Betty Anne Younker Part III: Adolescence 9 Strings Attached: The Reality Show 165 Margaret H. Berg 10 Drawing Middle-Schoolers’ Attention to Music 183 Jody L. Kerchner 11 At-Risk Teens: Making Sense of Life through Music Composition 199 Maud Hickey 12 Boys’ Voices: Inside and Outside Choral Music 217 Patrick K. Freer 13 Music in Motion: An Overture to the Student Experience in the High-School Marching Band 239 Cecil Adderley 14 The Violin and the Fiddle: Narratives of Music and Musician in a High-School Setting 255 Matthew D. Thibeault Part IV: Adulthood and Older Adulthood 15 Creation to Performance: The Journey of an African American Community Gospel-Jazz Ensemble 277 Marvelene C. Moore 16 Both Sides of the Coin: Experienced Musicians Tell of Lives Lived and Shared 297 Katherine Strand 17 Dancing Inside: Dalcroze Eurhythmics in a Therapeutic Setting 313 R. J. David Frego 18 Voices of Experience: Lessons from Older Adult Amateur Musicians 331 Don D. Coffman About the Contributors 347 Acknowledgments We extend heartfelt thanks to the many contributors, who brought their personal brands of musicianship, pedagogy, and scholarship to this book. Their dedication to the project and patience with the publication process have been exemplary. We are most grateful for the astute editorial eyes of Frances Ponick (MENC) and the publication team at Rowman & Littlefield—Thomas Ko- erner, Maera Stratton, and Catherine Forrest Getzie. Thank you for your guidance and careful attention to this project, about which we remain so passionate. We would like to thank our many colleagues who offered valuable com- mentary throughout the project. We are especially grateful to Peggy Bennett, Maud Hickey, Katy Strand, and Betty Anne Younker. We also thank the re- viewers of the manuscript when the book, in its infant stages, needed focus and finesse. Finally, we celebrate the lives and musical experiences of those infants, children, adolescents, adults, teachers, student-teachers, and parents who graciously invited us into their musical worlds in order to inform those of us examining, interpreting, writing, and reading about their experiences. By sharing their intimate musical experiences, they underscored the richness of being human and the connection and meaning that music teaching and learning bring to our lives. J. L. K. C. R. A. vii Introduction Carlos R. Abril and Jody L. Kerchner Musical experiences are an important part of our lives, from birth to the cusp of death. In the earliest years of life we perceive and process the music surrounding us in our minds, and produce and respond to music through our bodies and voices. Throughout our lives, we exercise and develop our innate musicality through singing, playing instruments, moving, compos- ing, and listening. Alone and with others, we engage in musical experiences to challenge us, comfort us, and bind us to others. These experiences help us construct meaning and understanding of music, and help us come to un- derstand ourselves, our cultures, and our world. Many of these experiences are musically educative in that they involve music teaching and learning processes, conscious or unconscious. Other ex- periences are therapeutic in that they facilitate physical and mental healing. Some musical experiences help to bind two people or large social groups to- gether. The authors of the chapters that comprise this book examine the myriad dimensions of the musical experience within their sociocultural contexts in formal and informal settings. They also seek to emphasize the meaning people construct from these experiences and consider implica- tions for music education. The purpose of this introduction is to provide a conceptual and theoret- ical framework for the book. In so doing, we begin by describing the nature of musical experience, its relation to social contexts, and the construction of meaning. We also provide a brief overview of musical experience in relation to the lifespan and explain our reasons for conceptualizing this book as such. We then describe transmission and enculturation, as concepts that sit- uate culture at the heart of music learning. Finally we lay out the plan for 1

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