Jennifer Blackwell, Central Michigan University Music Education, Recording Technology, and the Illusion of Perfection
This paper investigates professional music recordings and their effect on the physical and psychological well-being of music students. Feminist theories that explore eating disor- ders and body shame in relation to the modelling industry are used as a framework for comparison to the effects of the doctoring of music recordings on performance anxiety amongst musicians. The effects of music performance anxi- ety are compared to similar effects on women in a cultural environment that assesses them based solely on their bod- ies. The editing of recordings is compared to edited im- ages in the beauty industry. This comparison suggests that professionally recorded music may not be the best model of performance for students. Suggestions are given for alter- nate models such as live performances, recordings of live performances, and peer listening.
Chris Bulgren, University of Michigan The Educative Role of Guitar in Prisons: A Review of Literature
There are a variety of justifications for providing access to music education in prison contexts. Some of these reasons include developing social skills, coping with prison life, achieving self-discovery, and preparing for life after prison. This review of literature addresses research concerning the arts in prison, community music, social justice in music, and the role of guitar in education.
Examples of studies concerning music as a rehabilita- tive tool in prisons are numerous. Many of these studies highlight the role of music education in prisons. Teachers and directors in these studies employ creative and effec- tive teaching in prisons contexts in order to create better citizens. These studies also exhibit music as a way to cope with doing time as well as create new attitudes and beliefs among participants. While many of these studies do not address instrumental music, or in particular, the use of the guitar, they do offer insights into the creative and rehabila- tory power of music among inmates.
Like prison music, community music seeks to reach mar- ginalized communities who might benefit from music. The review of literature concerning community music has re- vealed a strong international presence. In Europe, commu- nity music seeks to support marginalized societies through music in order to rehabilitate and avoid negative lifestyles.
The motivation for providing music to inmates can be il- luminated through issues of social justice. Authors have
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pointed out the need to instill a caring attitude in students. Social justice seeks to give students the ability to perceive and act against injustices. Teachers in the prison context may gain knowledge by applying these notions from the classroom context.
Literature regarding the guitar reveals that people are drawn to the guitar for various reasons including self- expression and independence. Extant literature reveals that the guitar is an instrument used by students who have trouble participating in typical school settings. Students and clients are motivated to play this instrument. Participants enjoy the sound of this instrument, and find it gives them a sense of satisfaction. One such group that employs the use of guitar in prisons is Jail, Guitar, Doors. Founded in the United States by Wayne Kramer in 2009, this program provides guitars and songwriting workshops for prisoners in order to give them a creative outlet for rehabilitation.
In summary, examining current programs that employ mu- sic in prisons may shed light on the possible uses and role of guitar in prison. A further understanding of community music and social justice may also deepen the understanding of guitar as a rehabilitative tool.
Patrick Cooper, Arizona State University Examining Correlations when Using Amabile’s Consensual Assessment Technique to Support Validity of Music Teachers as Expert Judges of Children’s Musical Creativity
As standardized testing becomes more prevalent and the demand for authentic assessments increases, the arts has struggled to define what we should be assessing and why. Creativity is a highly desired trait amongst high level busi- ness professionals and those involved in the arts. In many arts institutions, professors and grade-level teachers alike have been asked to assess the creativity of their students’ projects. The score attached to creativity can be serious enough to warrant the completion or matriculation in a course of study. Because of this, we must have reliable and authentic assessments for creativity. For anyone tasked with this endeavor, quickly it is realized, how do we define cre- ativity? One solution to assess creativity revolves around a technique called Amabile’s Consensual Assessment Tech- nique (CAT). To date, this technique has been applied to a wide range of arts assessments while proving to be a reli- able assessor of creativity in a product, but in the field of children’s instrumental compositions, evidence is lacking.
The purpose of this paper was to 1) test the reliability of different assessment groups when Amabile’s (CAT) is used to score children’s musical compositions on a variety of subjective ratings, 2) examine why we get the results we
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