Audiation

Musicians depend on good aural perception and understanding of musical sound to perform accurately, expressively, and in response to others in performance. All instruments present their own challenges, but skills in pitch and rhythm recognition and manipulation are two of the first essential fundamentals young brass players must develop. While the mechanics of some instruments allow young students to press a key, strike an instrument, or finger a string to produce the correct pitch, brass players must first hear the pitch and then physically manipulate both body and instrument to reproduce it. Simply pressing the correct valves and blowing will not result in successful production.

 

Many students enter instrumental instruction with the abilities to sing on pitch and move in time, gained from general music curricula and their many experiences outside of school. Others lack those skills, which comprise the readiness to begin instrumental instruction (Grunow 1999). Regardless, instrumental music curricula should include many sequenced and specific opportunities for ear training, singing, and rhythmic movement. After all, if we require university music majors to continue to develop these skills in their ear training and sight singing courses, why would we assume that younger students don’t need the same?

 

Gordon (1997) defines audiation as the ability to hear musical sound in one’s head when the actual sound may or may not be present. If you’ve ever caught yourself whistling a tune or tapping your foot to the music you’re hearing in your head, you are audiating. This skill allows us to hear pitches before they are played and put them together to form melodies, whether replicated or original. Audiation provides meaning to musical performance. Without it, performance becomes mechanical at best and students rely on guesswork to play correct pitches, rhythms, and musical expression. With good audiation skills, students are able to self-correct and engage in musical creativity rather than unthinking replication and musical conjecture. Arnold Jacobs, a very well-regarded brass pedagogue and tuba player, refers to the same phenomenon through Song and Wind.

 

Students develop melodic, harmonic, rhythmic, and expressive conceptions as they develop their audiation skills. In the same way, they develop understanding of excellent instrumental tone. Technology offers an overwhelming number of access points to models, from recordings, videos, and lectures to interactive sites. Teachers shouldn’t overlook models closer to home, however! In university courses, friends and colleagues are terrific resources. In k-12 settings, older students can serve as good models for younger students.

 

 

 

Gordon, E. (1997). Learning Sequences in Music. Chicago: GIA Publications, Inc.

Grunow, R. (1999). When to begin instrumental lessons? Journal of Music and Movement-based Learning 5(4).