Guitar as the Preferred Musical Instrument

2021

The choice to study an instrument is an important decision for a child and family. Research shows that children select instruments because of preferences for sound, to be in community with friends, because of family influences, physical factors, perceived ease, timbre, and gender influences. This study investigated selected instrument choices of my own 3rd grade string students. Children and their parents completed a questionnaire, and this constituted the primary source of data. Open-ended response provided further insight into how children arrived at their instrument selection. Results indicated that string students considered the sound of the instrument most important when choosing, though social influences such as family and gender were also at play

Choice of instrument is among the most important factors in determining the course of a student's music education. Instrument selection can be a lengthy process accomplished through a variety of factors. The stereotyping of instruments by gender can, unfortunately, be one of those factors. The association of gender with particular instruments can significantly influence a student in choosing an instrument, thereby resulting in numerous negative consequencesincluding fewer instrument choices, limited ensemble participation, and peer disapproval. The purpose of this literature review is to examine recent scholarship on this issue and make recommendations for future investigation and possible interventions. By examining post-1996 literature, this article demonstrates that this issue still affects music education; it discusses recent aspects of the issue; and it proposes areas for further inquiry.

Social Sciences and Education Research Review, 2021

This article offers a bird's-eye view of the evolution of guitar learning and pedagogy in the XX and XXI centuries, supported, and often propelled by emerging popular musical styles and new technologies. Specifically, the article discusses how learning to play guitar has evolved from formal teacherstudent lessons in private and academic settings, to informal and self-guided forms of learning through books, magazines, and DVDs. Starting in the late 1990s, technological advancements and the diffusion of high-speed internet brought about technologies and social spaces that contributed to innovating guitar pedagogies and disrupting traditional approaches to teaching and learning the guitar. These technologies include, but are not limited to online archives and communities, social media, apps and software, subscription-based services, augmented reality, virtual worlds, and digital games. Several of these technologies are still in their infancy and their potential for impacting guitar learning and teaching may still to be fully harnessed and explored.

Facta Universitatis, Series: Visual Arts and Music, 2019

The aim of this research was to check potential differences in music preferences between musicians and non-musicians. Music preferences were evinced by a short test on the topic (STOMP-R: Rentfrow & Gosling 2003), of the four types of music: Reflexive and Complex, Intense and Rebellious, Upbeat and Conventional, Energetic and Rhythmic. A sample of 209 students from the University of Niš (M=75; F=134), 112 non-musicians and 97 of musicians, were asked to give their opinion. The results of the t-test showed that there are differences between musicians and non-musicians as far as the preferences for one type of music or another is concerned. Statistically significant differences were found for the Reflexive and Complex music (p=.000), as well as for the Upbeat and Conventional music (p=.001). All statistically significant differences were in favor of the musicians. These results show that musicians prefer Reflexive and Complex as well as Upbeat and Conventional music, while differences...

International Journal of Applied Arts Studies, 2021

The socio-economic status of parents is directly related to parents' participation in activities related to their child's music learning. However, there is insufficient evidence on the impact of parents' socio-economic status on music learning activities and children's choice of instruments. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of socio-economic status of parents on their participation in their children's music learning and children's entertainment with music-related activities. This study examined the value and extent of parental involvement from the perspective of 157 parents with children between 3 and 12 years old, enrolled in music classes in Tehran. The main tool for collecting information required for the research was a questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were used to collect the quantitative data of the questionnaires and the collected data were analyzed using SPSS and Excel statistical software. In addition, children from families with high socio-economic status are more involved in music learning activities. As this study shows, the socio-economic status of parents has a significant impact on their children's participation, perspective and interaction. Therefore, educators should pay more attention to children's backgrounds in order to provide appropriate guidance and support based on the needs of each student and their parents. A more regular communication and interaction between the teacher, the student and the parents about the challenges they face and their expectations will help increase children's learning of music.

An Investigation into Guitar Methods Used in Amateur Guitar Education, 2024

The study examined the content of methods used in amateur guitar education, namely "Guitar Method for Children" (Bülent İşbilen & Özhan Gölebatmaz), "Classical Guitar Method" (Ahmet Kanneci), "Easy Training Method for Classical Guitar" (Bülent İşbilen & Güray Demir), "Classical Guitar Method" (Murat İşbilen), "Arenas I" (Rodriguez Arenas), "Guitar Method I" (Ziya Aydıntan), and "Introductory Method for Classical Guitar" (Bekir Küçükay). The research employed a scanning model. In the data collection phase, methods were obtained, and their contents were examined for topics such as the Historical Development of Classical Guitar, Basic Information, Tuning of the Guitar, Nails, Starting Positions, Visuals, Study and Piece Descriptions, Speed Terminology, and Table of Contents. The results, presented in tables, revealed that two of the methods lacked a table of contents, speed terminology was only presented in one method for all pieces and studies, and topics such as nails and tuning of the guitar were not covered in most methods.

Research Studies in Music Education 32(2) 201-213

Education sciences, 2024

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2013

Are there developmental trends in how individuals experience and engage with music? Data from 2 large cross-sectional studies involving more than a quarter of a million individuals were used to investigate age differences in musical attitudes and preferences from adolescence through middle age. Study 1 investigated age trends in musical engagement. Results indicated that (a) the degree of importance attributed to music declines with age but that adults still consider music important, (b) young people listen to music significantly more often than do middle-aged adults, and (c) young people listen to music in a wide variety of contexts, whereas adults listen to music primarily in private contexts. Study 2 examined age trends in musical preferences. Results indicated that (a) musical preferences can be conceptualized in terms of a 5-dimensional age-invariant model, (b) certain music-preference dimensions decrease with age (e.g., Intense, Contemporary), whereas preferences for other music dimensions increase with age (e.g., Unpretentious, Sophisticated), and (c) age trends in musical preferences are closely associated with personality. Normative age trends in musical preferences corresponded with developmental changes in psychosocial development, personality, and auditory perception. Overall, the findings suggest that musical preferences are subject to a variety of developmental influences throughout the life span.

2018

This research is the integration of qualitative research and quantitative research. The purposes are 1) to study factors and motivation when selecting musical instruments for learning Western music of music students of Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University 2) to study factors for making decision on music careers of music students of Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University and 3) to study relationship between musical instrument selection and professions. The population is 80 music students of Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University. The data are from interview and questionnaires and descriptively-analyzed. According to the result, 1) 90% of the students has their own preferences 2) factors such as friends' suggestion are 5% 3) the other 5% goes to unavoidable situations. The factors for decision-making on music profession are 1) individual aptitude by 50% 2) opportunities for being into the career by 50%. Musical instrument adoption is positively correlated with opportunities for being into the career.

This review is a section within a thesis entitled "Music Preferences of Undergraduates in a Multimusical Country". Music preference is a listening response that indicates the degree of liking/disliking a music stimulus at a certain point in time. It may be a spontaneous reaction and does not necessarily involve aesthetic/cognitive processes. The variables that are presented in this review are the intramusical variables to do with the music i.e. music characteristics [time aspects, pitch aspects, timbre, dynamics and genre]. These variables are of great interest to music educators because they are more easily manipulated in an educational setting than other environmental or social variables. Previous research in the West has shown that preference is one motivation factor towards music learning. Most of the studies reviewed have employed a quantitative approach.

Journal of Research in Music Education, 1995

The effects of age, gender, and musical training on preference ratings for 12 musical style categories were investigated in a sample of 278 British secondary school pupils drawn from the 11–12- and 15–16-year-old age-groups. There were no significant age x gender interactions, but a number of significant main effects were found. There was a general decline in liking with age, and this was particularly apparent for “serious” styles, although those “popular” styles for which the same effect was present showed considerably higher levels of liking at both age levels. Broadly speaking, girls expressed liking for a wider range of styles than did boys, especially “serious” ones, although this might be better expressed as a lower level of disliking. This could be attributable to girls' higher level of training a variable that was positively associated with liking for “serious” styles across the sample as a whole. The implications of these findings are discussed, and directions for furth...

Educational Research and Reviews, 2015

The aim of this study is to examine postgraduate thesis completed on guitar in Turkey. For this purpose, a total of 89 theses were investigated in terms of selected research topics, study participants, and methods for analysis. For the selection of the thesis included in this study three criteria were used; first, theses from 1990 (beginning time for first completed theses on guitar topic) to 2013 period, second, reaching the full text of theses, and third permission of author. The number of thesis investigated in this study represents about 93% (105 at total) of whole completed theses from different institutions in Turkey. Descriptive survey and content analysis method were used for examination of theses. The results of study showed that while selected theses topics reflect more diversity and school related issues at Faculty of Educations (using guitar at school music, teaching methods, etc.), the piece analysis from different compositors was mostly selected study topic at Conservatories and the Fine Art Faculties which parallel to institutions mission. As a conclusion, there are some summarized results and recommendations for upcoming researches on this guitar or guitar education in the light of completed theses and related research literature.

Plos One, 2020

Music is considered a vital element in young people's lives. It functions as an important means for expressing the emotions and feelings they experience in a daily basis. As such, this study explores the music preferences of high school Brazilian students (N = 940), 530 female (56.9%) and 410 male (43.1%) participants between 14 and 20 years old (M = 16.14 years old, SD = 1.22). The main instrument for data collection was the Questionnaire on Musical Style Preferences, which was adapted to the Brazilian context and encompassed 33 different music styles. A principal component analysis resulted in five dimensions representing different musical styles: (1) Intense, (2) Unique, (3) Sophisticated, (4) Contemporary , and (5) Mellow. The results of this study reinforced theory of the five-factor model of musical preference. Results also suggest that Mellow music was the most preferred while Sophisticated music was the least preferred among participants. Regarding gender, male participants showed a greater preference towards Contemporary, Intense, and Sophisticated music, whereas women generally preferred Mellow and Unique. Regarding age, participants under 20 years old showed a greater preference towards Mellow musical styles as compared to older participants. On the one hand, regression analyses showed that preferences towards Intense music decrease with age. On the other hand, gender was a better predictor for music preferences than age. Although the results of this study correspond to those of previous studies, more research studies are necessary to further explain musical preferences within the Brazilian context.

This paper examines research by Susan O’Neill and Michael Boulton which sought to determine whether English boys’ and girls’ preferences for learning to play a musical instrument were a function of gender-stereotyped associations. Many studies carried out in the United States from the late 1950s to the early 1990s imply a strong correlation between gender and instrument preferences; however, these were performed on adolescents and adults when gender stereotyping is known to already affect behaviour. O’Neill and Boulton therefore focussed on primary school children in England to determine whether stereotypes were an influence prior to adolescence and if the experience of the United States was mirrored in England. Their research confirmed that pre-adolescent boys and girls also have distinctly different preferences for musical instruments and that gender-stereotyping may play a role. Other factors, like the sound of the instrument and degree of difficulty. were revealed. This paper also seeks to examine whether children in Trinidad and Tobago have preferences congruent with their English and American counterparts, from which it may be inferred that similar stereotyping exists. The genders of participants, 19 years and younger, in the biennial Music Festivals of 2010 and 2012 were examined in four of the instrument categories studied by O’Neill and Boulton. The results showed similar trends in all but one instrument category, however, gender-stereotyping as a factor could not be confirmed.