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I agree with everyone about the importance of music to humankind. From this point of view it would be an interesting research study to look at the psychological motivations of
researchers who run studies to "show" the benefits gained by music training for non-music domains of cognition etc. Are they generally just interested in the scientific study of far transfer of learning effects, with music as an example? Or are they
motivated by a need to "prove" music education has non-music benefits based on a perception that music is not well-enough justified for its own sake? Or something like "I love music therefore it would be good to show how good for us it is"?
The tendency for poor design, unsubstantiated claims, and confirmation bias in many existing published studies makes the first option less likely in my opinion.
Discuss....
Professor Colette McKay
Principal Scientist Leader, Translational Hearing Research
Bionics Institute 384-388 Albert St East Melbourne Vic 3002 Office: +61 3 9667 7500 Direct line: +61 3 9667 7541 Mobile: 0408698202 Fax: +61 3 9667 7518 http://www.bionicsinstitute.org/our-staff/Pages/Prof-Colette-McKay.aspx Donate today to help us change lives This email is private and confidential to the intended recipient. If you are not the intended recipient please do not copy it, circulate it or take any action in reliance on it. Kindly notify me that it has been misdirected and then delete it. Thank you. From: AUDITORY - Research in Auditory Perception [AUDITORY@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] on behalf of Ian Cross [ic108@xxxxxxxxx]
Sent: 17 August 2020 16:22 To: AUDITORY@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: Re: [AUDITORY] Papers on lack of effect of musical training I agree: music matters, and it matters ever more in times where those in power have none of it. As Shakespeare put it " The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils; The motions of his spirit are dull as night, And his affections dark as Erebus"
As far as definitions of music are concerned, I'd direct interested parties to Tomas Turino's excellent book Music as Social Life (Turino, T. (2008). Music as social life : the politics of participation. London: University of Chicago Press), ideas he covered in brief in a later paper (Turino, T. (2009). Four Fields of Music Making and Sustainable Living. The World of Music, 51(1), 95-117). As for my own ideas about music — they evolve, but I'd suggest two papers that present ideas point in the direction of definitions: Cross, I. (2012). Cognitive Science and the Cultural Nature of Music. Topics in Cognitive Science, 4(4), 668-677. Cross, I. (2014). Music and communication in music psychology. Psychology of Music, 42(6), 809-819.
Ian Cross |