Instrumental music teachers' views on expressivity: a report from music conservatoires

Abstract

Expressivity is generally regarded as a crucial component of a successful musical performance, but at present there is little knowledge of how it is addressed in instrumental music education. To achieve a better understanding of how teachers approach expressivity, instrumental music teachers (n = 51) from music conservatoires in Sweden and England were asked to fill out a questionnaire that focused on the following issues: (i) what constitutes musical expressivity? (ii) How can expressive skills be taught to music students? (iii) What are the prospects of using computer‐based instruction in teaching expressive skills? The results suggest that expressivity is the most appreciated characteristic in performers, and that a majority of the teachers define expressivity primarily in terms of communicating emotion. Modelling and verbal‐based instruction focusing on the students' felt emotions were the preferred methods for teaching expressive skills. The teachers would also like to spend more time on teaching expressive skills, but they were sceptical regarding the utility of computer‐based instruction. Expression and emotion seem to play important roles in the professional lives of the teachers, and it is suggested that expressive skills deserve more attention in higher instrumental music education.

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