Building Better Dictation Skills

by Nathan O. Buonviri

Overview

Melodic dictation plays an important role in music theory classes, but instruction is often based on tradition rather than research. Dictation teachers and students do not just need more exercises and drills; they need to see deeper into the materials, consider how we connect to them, and practice wisely. Building Better Dictation Skills offers teachers and students the “why” and “how” of melodic dictation, through research-based exercises aimed at developing proactive musical listening. During dictation, students must actively involve themselves in the unfolding of an unfamiliar melody—using all of their musical skills in a concerted effort—to get into the composer’s mind and understand what is played. The author’s published research, on which this book is based, provides a level of insight unlikely to be discovered simply through drilling more melodies. Building Better Dictation Skills provides music educators and students with a concise, specific, and affordable resource that focuses on what they really need: dictation strategies aimed at learning beyond the “right answer.”

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781475813913
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	08/14/2015
Pages:	156
Product dimensions:	7.10(w) x 10.10(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Nathan O. Buonviri is an Assistant Professor of Music Education at Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. He has published in the top research journals in his field, and has presented papers and workshops across the United States and around the world on aural skills training, percussion pedagogy, and instrumental improvisation.

Table of Contents

Part I. Attention Direction
Chapter 1. Mental Preparation
Chapter 2. The Big Picture
Chapter 3. Ignoring Extraneous Information
Part II. Task Prioritization
Chapter 4. Pitch and Rhythm
Chapter 5. Chronological Decisions
Chapter 6. Changing Priorities
Part III. Skills Coordination
Chapter 7. Incorporating Musical Skills
Chapter 8. Notation Strategies
Chapter 9. Musical Proofreading
Chapter 10. Polishing Your Personal Approach
Appendix A. Answer Key
Appendix B. Brief Description of the Research Base
Glossary

Editorial Reviews

Building Better Dictation Skills provides a phenomenal resource for teachers and students of aural skills. It covers important musical concepts in an easy-to-use format. Buonviri truly understands that by building better dictation skills, we are building better musicians, and he shows us how to accomplish this lofty and meaningful goal.

American Music Teacher

This is a well-crafted resource in which Dr. Buonviri treats the melodic dictation process like an art form. The carefully sequenced methodology presented in this book will assuredly equip musicians with the tools and strategies necessary to be proficient and successful.

Rollo A. Dilworth

Dictation skills can clearly be developed by us all with good resources like this and with good teaching. I only wish I had been able to use such a book years ago.

Peter R. Webster

This is a thoughtful, well-sequenced, easy-to-use book that I would have loved to have used when I was a student struggling with aural theory. Dr. Buonviri breaks complicated tasks down into their component parts and encourages the learner to keep trying and to love learning.

Andrew Paney