Stephen Emmerson

The experience of the flow state in live music performance

This study examined the optimal psychological state of flow in a live music performance context at an Australian tertiary music institution in order to advance understanding of this under-researched experience in music performance and education. The Flow State Scale-2 (FSS-2) was administered to 236 students from five instrument families immediately after their performance examinations. A further aim was to examine the psychometric properties of the FSS-2 in order to determine its suitability for use as a measure of flow in music performance domains. The findings provided the first empirical confirmation of the validity and reliability of the flow model in live music performance. The flow experience was found to be consistent with findings from sport performance and did not vary substantially according to instrument type, year level, or gender. Most students in the sample did not believe they were sufficiently skilled to meet the challenge of the performance and most did not experience it as absorbing or enjoyable. The implications of the findings for the enhancement of teaching and learning methods were examined. Future research directions were discussed, particularly in regards to psychological skills training to help improve the music performance experience.

Ecological development and validation of a music performance rating scale for five instrument families

This study investigated ways to improve the quality of music performance evaluation in an effort to address the accountability imperative in tertiary music education. An enhanced scientific methodology was employed incorporating ecological validity and using recognized qualitative methods involving grounded theory and quantitative methods involving confirmatory factor analyses. By distilling the disciplinary consensus, this approach enabled the specific definition of the constructs and standards used in university student classical music performance examinations, and provided their refinement with the empirical development of standards-based, criterion-specific rating scales for five instrument families. The study found that the examiners in each instrument family used between 15 to 17 constructs and associated descriptors, and at least two general dimensions referring to technical proficiency and another relating to musicality and interpretation. Analyses showed acceptable internal consistency and construct validity for the scales. Findings suggested that, although several construct and general dimension commonalities were found among the items across all scales, the presence of significant instrument-specific differences suggested that the use of generic rating scales may not provide sufficient content validity. Implications for the application of standards in music performance assessment were discussed.

“No Two are the Same”: A Narrative Account of Supervising Two Students Through a Doctor of Musical Arts Program

This chapter reflects upon some of the issues arising from the author’s experience of undertaking and supervising practice-centred research in relation to music performance. My research in this emerging field provides the background against which some of the diverse challenges that have arisen through the process of supervision are illuminated. In particular, this chapter will contrast two cases of students within the Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA), a program that has practice-based research at its core and which the author convened for its first few years since its introduction in 2005. The chapter is written in the form of personal reflections in conjunction with a form of narrative enquiry whereby issues that have arisen through personal experience are presented through fictionalised cases and situations. In particular the chapter contrasts the cases of two fictionalised students in the DMA whose personalities, backgrounds, musical experience and academic abilities present different challenges within an academic context. The emotional vulnerability of both student and supervisor is explored together with the challenges of negotiating both the professional and personal relationships when working with highly creative musicians within this context.