Music Research Institute (MRI)

Mission Statement: to conduct research that advances the understanding of music and to share new knowledge for the good of society.
$$ = funding in hand; $ = funding applied for or in progress


BioMusic

Neuroimaging

Music-Related Hearing Loss

Genetics

A+ Schools

Music Medicine

Music Education

Ethnomusicology

Music Performance

BioMusic

BioMusic Science Exhibition and Public Programs Project
Dr. Patricia Gray, Clinical Professor and Senior Research Scientist
In August 2004, the National Science Foundation awarded $2.7 million for the development and premiere of a BioMusic Exhibition and Public Programs for informal science centers nationwide and their communities. Created to explore the ‘music of nature and the nature of music’ - the exhibit, including public programs, a children’s radio series, and new commissioned works, will premiere in 2007 at the Science Museum of Minnesota in St. Paul and will tour to 18 additional cities during the next six years providing communities with opportunities for integrated music and science experiences. Collaborative partners include National Musical Arts, the Science Museum of Minnesota, Association of Science-Technology Centers, and Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology.

BioMusic Formal Education Initiative
Dr. Patricia Gray
The MRi, the A+ Schools Foundation at UNCG, and the Biological Sciences Curriculum Studies (based in CO) are developing a BioMusic Formal Education Initiative that will create transdisciplinary approaches to music for middle school music and biology teachers and students. This project is planned to work in tandem with the BioMusic Science Exhibition and Public Programs project.

BioMusic/Bonobo Music Research
Dr. Patricia Gray
This multi-year research project focuses on the music making capacities of our closest primate cousins, Bonobos, and represents the first meaningful scientific inquiries into the deep, primal roots of music. In addition to Patricia Gray, the BioMusic/Bonobo research team includes Mark Tramo (Harvard University), Laurel Trainor (McMasters University), Tecumseh Fitch (St. Andrews University), and is conducted in collaboration with Dr. Sue Savage-Rumbaugh and the Bonobos located at the Great Ape Trust, Inc. These Bonobos have recorded with Peter Gabriel and Paul McCartney, and compose melodies using synthesizers.

BioAcoustic Sound Archive Acquisition
Dr. Donald Hodges, Covington Distinguished Professor of Music Education
The BioAcoustic Sound Archive Acquisition Project will create a major resource for recorded mappings of the world’s sonic resources at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. This BioAcoustic Archive Acquisition Project will initially focus on the Wild Sanctuary Natural Sound Archive, the lifetime work of Bernie Krause, an internationally-recognized bioacoustician. This archive represents an invaluable collection of sound recordings of natural habitats. Based on one of the largest and most comprehensive wildlife sound libraries in private hands, the collection includes over 3,000 hours of raw material representing nearly 15,000 species.

Neuroimaging

Multisensory Processing in Conductors
Dr. Donald Hodges, Jonathan Burdette, M.D. (Wake Forest University School of Medicine), & David Hairston (WFUSM)
This study is an examination of the way in which auditory and visual information is integrated in the brains of highly trained musicians. Experienced conductors and untrained subjects will participate in three behavioral tasks: multisensory processing, temporal order judgments, and spatial localization. They will subsequently undergo fMRI scanning to identify implicated brain regions. Data from this study will be presented at Neurosciences of Music II in Leipzig, May 2005.

Music-Related Hearing Loss

Hearing Acuity of School of Music Undergraduate Music Majors
Dr. Susan Phillips, Associate Professor of Audiology, Dr. Patricia Sink, Associate Professor of Music Education, & Julie Shoemaker, graduate student
Undergraduate music majors in the UNCG School of Music were given audiometric tests during the 2003-2004 academic year. These measurements are continuing and will allow for both cross-sectional and longitudinal data analysis. The purpose is to track hearing acuity in music majors and, particularly, to note any noise-induced hearing loss experienced by students across time.

Sound-level Measurements in Music Practice Rooms
Dr. Susan Phillips, Dr. Patricia Sink, & Sarah Ervin, audiology consultant.
Music majors spend numerous hours practicing their instruments in small practice rooms. Although these rooms are acoustically treated, it was not previously known the extent to which students are at risk of noise-induced hearing loss as a result of their practice sessions. Data analyses indicate differences in risk exposure based on instrument categories— woodwind, brass, keyboard, strings, and voice.

Sound-Level Exposures of Public School Music Teachers
Dr. Patricia Sink & Sandra Mace, MRi Research Assistant
During Spring 2004, public school music teachers wore personal dosebadges that collected sound exposure during two working days. Preliminary data analysis indicates that band directors are more likely to be at risk of noise-induced hearing loss than are choral directors or general music teachers.

Sound-Level Exposures of Drum and Bugle Corps Students and Directors
Doug Presley, doctoral student
During the summer of 2004 one director and 16 members of a drum and bugle corps wore personal dosebadges during two extended days (over 10 hours) of rehearsal. Preliminary data analysis indicates sound exposures far exceeding safe limits, thus putting individuals at risk of permanent hearing loss. This research will continue during summer 2005.

Sound-Level Exposures and Hearing Acuity of Music Performance Faculty
Sandra Mace
During the 2004-2005 academic year, UNCG School of Music performance faculty (i.e., ensemble conductors and those who teach private music lessons) will wear personal dosebadges to determine whether they are at risk of noise-induced hearing loss because of their daily work. Each faculty member will also receive an audiometric test of hearing acuity.

Sound-Level Exposures in Music Ensembles
Dr. Jennifer Stewart, Assistant Professor of Music Education
During the 2004-2005 academic year, conductors and students in UNCG School of Music ensembles (band, orchestra, choir) will wear personal dosebadges during rehearsals to determine whether they are at risk of noise-induced hearing loss.

Sound-Level Exposures in Marching Bands
Dr. Jennifer Stewart
In fall 2005 directors and students in high school marching bands will wear personal dosebadges during rehearsals to determine whether they are at risk of noise-induced hearing loss.

Tinnitus in School of Music Students
Dr. Denise Tucker, Associate Professor of Audiology & Dr. Donald Hodges
Anecdotally adult musicians report a higher prevalence of tinnitus than non-musicians. However, very little data have been collected on this issue and, in particular, it is not known when tinnitus begins or under what musical conditions. Accordingly, middle and high school students attending UNCG Summer Music Camp, UNCG music majors, and adult musicians will be given audiometric tests and screened for tinnitus. A selected number of subjects will be given fMRI scans to identify relevant neurological activations.

Genetics

The Genetic Basis of Human Musicality
Dr. Donald Hodges & Dr. Vince Henrich, Professor of Biology
The purpose of this project is to explore the biological underpinnings of human musicality. A unique strategy will be to triangulate behavioral, neuroimaging, and genetic data. Using a candidate gene approach (e.g., with a population such as Williams Syndrome, a condition associated with definable genetic components) or distinguishing subjects within families who display/do not display musical traits such as absolute pitch (AP), it is possible to identify specific gene markers that influence these sensory and processing capabilities. Students and faculty in the School of Music with and without AP will be identified. Concomitant neuroimaging of subjects will provide both structural and functional data to determine relationships among genetic variations, neurophysiological responses, and musically relevant traits.

A+ Schools

MRi@UNCG and the A+ Schools Program
Dr. Brett Nolker, Assistant Professor of Music Education
The Music Research Institute has begun a formal Collaboration with the A+ Schools program through a series of funded research projects. A major component of this cooperative effort is serving as partners with the Music-In-Education National Consortium funded by the Federal Department of Education’s FIPSE (Funds for the Improvement of Post Secondary Education) and National Endowment for the Arts.
Project 1: Intact chamber ensembles placed in A+ Schools with differeing configurations of interaction and resources or support (professional role development, interdisciplinary instructional practice, etc.)
Project 2: Graduate digital portfolio development
Project 3: “Inter-generational” field experiences

Music Medicine

Music Medicine program at Moses Cone Hospital System
Dr. Donald Hodges, Dr.med. Ralph Spintge, Executive Director, International Society for Music Medicine, & Dr. Michael Thaut, Professor of Music, Colorado State University.
The purpose of this project is to establish a research program at Moses Cone Hospital in the use of music in prescribed medical protocols.

Music Education

Sounds of Learning - The Impact of Music Education
Dr. Donald Hodges, Dr. Patricia Sink, Dr. David Teachout, Associate Professor of Music Education
The purpose of this multi-phase project is to examine the impact that music education programs have on schools. More specifically, what difference does it make to have a quality music education program? Funded by a $300,000 grant from the International Foundation for Music Research. Phase I. Create a document with elements of both The Arts and Education and Critical Links, but more specifically focused on music. A central feature of the document will be a research agenda designed to answer the “essential” questions. Phase II. Identify one or more of the research projects from the agenda and conduct it through the MRi@UNCG. Subcontract other research programs (or individuals) to conduct projects from the agenda in a prioritized order. Phase III. Publish a compendium of research studies from Phase II. Phase IV. Hold a national conference on the impact of music education on schools. Additional information.

The Effects of Beat Competence on Reading Achievement
Dr. Patricia Sink
The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of beat competence and selected music experiences on third-grade through fifth-grade students’ reading achievement. Beat competence is defined operationally as a student’s abilities to perceive and demonstrate steady beats of music presented via an external sound source by tapping, clapping, and walking. Selected music experiences operationally include home, private, and school music experiences, such as “sing as a family at home,” “take private music lessons,” and “provide students with movement-based experiences in music class,” respectively.

Influences and Barriers in Music Teacher Education Doctoral Programs
Dr. David Teachout
Data have been gathered on those factors that encourage or deter students from pursuing a career as university professors of music education. A research paper will be submitted for presentation at the 2005 Desert Skies Symposium on Research in Music Education, Tucson, Arizona and eventually for publication in Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education.

Revision of Undergraduate Music Education Curriculum
Dr. David Teachout
An Advancement of Teaching and Learning Grant proposal to support the process of substantial revisions of the undergraduate music education curriculum has been submitted. Grant monies would fund course releases for music education faculty to invest substantial time/resources in the revision process and to contract consultants from other universities who have recently implemented wide-ranging curricular revisions.

Ensemble Sight–Reading Rating And Sight-Singing Success
Dr. Brett Nolker, Assistant Professor of Music Education
This study presents considerations of the relationship between the success of the ensemble in adjudicated sight-singing and the sight-singing success of the individual members of the ensembles. The researcher found no significant difference in reading success of individual participants, regardless of ensemble reading success. Also considered are effects of individual musical backgrounds and activities on individual sight-singing success.

Individual Sight-Singing Success
Dr. Brett Nolker
This project is an investigation of the effects of testing condition, large ensemble sight-singing rating, school size, and selected background factors on the sight-singing success of the individual choir member. Results are consistent with findings in a previous study. Significant difference was found in testing condition, providing insight to differences between individual and group musical experiences, and the potential for a deeper instructional or sociological connection.

The Effect of Within-Ensemble Testing on Individual Sight-Singing Success
Dr. Brett Nolker
This is a consideration of the differences between reading music alone and reading music as an ensemble member. It is an investigation of the possible effects of individual assessment of reading success for both reading conditions. It is a continuation of previous research using new technology to document the sight-singing success of the individual while reading music within the large ensemble.

Individual Versus Group Outcomes in the Music Ensemble
Dr. Brett Nolker
Results of the previous research in this series indicate a potential effect related to the sociological interactions and expectation of outcomes for the teachers and students involved. This study is an investigation of the effects of differential perceptions of the intended outcomes of music reading instruction, by teacher and student, on the learning success of individual students.

Individual Versus Group Outcomes in Choral Music Education
Dr. Brett Nolker
Investigating another perspective of the findings of previous studies on this series, the researcher will conduct an analysis of instructional materials published for use in choral music education courses. Particular attention will be given to topics and practices promoting individual learning in ensemble settings.

Vocal use and misuse in children
Dr. Valerie Trollinger, Assistant Professor of Music Education
Recordings of 125 children (24-71 months) will be analyzed by voice teachers for healthy phonation, pressed phonation, vocal fry, and retrenched tongues.

Pitch-matching in children
Dr. Valerie Trollinger
This is an examination of visual and aural stimuli versus aural-only stimuli on pitch-matching accuracy in children.

Developing Cross-Cultural Competence in Music Teachers
Dr. Constance McKoy, Assistant Professor of Music Education
Recent research in general education has focused on factors affecting pre-service teachers’ abilities and desires to teach students from a variety of racial and ethnic backgrounds. Factors being investigated include cross-cultural music knowledge, cross-cultural exposures, cross-cultural experiences, and cultural attitudes that may affect pre-service music teachers’ abilities and desires to teach in ways that are responsive to the various culturally-informed knowledge bases that students bring to the music classroom.

Ethnomusicology

Patronage of Music
Dr. Gavin Douglas, Assistant Professor of Ethnomusicology
This research explores the motivations behind and the consequences of the patronage of music in Burma (Myanmar). Government involvement in Burma’s music culture is both sudden and selective and raises many questions concerning the political ideology motivating the patronage and its effects on contemporary musicians, education and historic preservation. Several projects instituted in the past decade (new universities, national competitions, standardized notations, etc.) have made a noticeable impact on the country's music and are controversially regarded by many professional musicians. The theoretical concerns guiding this research are focused on the social creation, control and manipulation of musical meaning and its role in defining tradition and quality. Funded by the Ford Foundation, UNCG Kohler Fund, UNCG New Faculty Grant, UNCG Summer Research Grant.

Cross cultural aesthetics.
Dr. Gavin Douglas
This project explores the notion of authenticity as a marketing label and what it may reveal in an investigation of aesthetics. Several pieces recorded in Burma for the world (not Burmese) market are examined and compared to the same songs designed for the Burmese market. In-studio techniques (layering, reverb, balance), are significantly different in each case and reveal a differing aesthetic orientation to Burmese music (one for those unfamiliar with the tradition, the other for Burmese ears). Musics marketed to the West as authentic and traditional often use production techniques that undermine the traditions they seek to represent.

Music Performance

Visual Feedback for the Instruction of Wind Instrument Timbre
Dr. Kelly Burke, Professor of Clarinet
The traditional method of teaching tone quality on wind instruments relies almost exclusively on use of descriptive words. One of the contributing factors is that it has been impossible until recently to see into the oral cavity, which is central to tone production. Instructors of wind instruments have also tended to neglect the benefits of spectrographic analysis, which is a regular component of vocal pedagogy and speech therapy. Wind players, therefore, develop sound concepts through modeling-listening to other live or recorded musicians. Unfortunately, physical attributes of the model sound are not analyzed in any quantitative manner. If the physical qualities of the sound could be determined to relate to changes that occur in the oral cavity and be further quantified through spectrographic analysis, then it may be easier to obtain the desired objective. Students and instructors will simultaneously compare: 1) spectrographic and power spectrum analyses, 2) intra-oral visualization, 3) external visualization of the embouchure, 4) external audio recording. Each of these four aspects captured simultaneously can either be viewed and compared in real-time, or saved digitally for further analysis and/or comparison. This project is expected to result in a visual aid for teaching sound on wind instruments. Funded by UNCG Advancement of Teaching and Learning Grant.

 

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