Informal and formal pedagogical orientations

Informal teaching methods are often defined in relation to formal teaching methods. Folkestad (Reference FOLKESTAD2006) asserted that formal learning situations focus on ‘learning how to play music (learning how to make music), whereas, in informal learning practice, the mind is directed towards playing music (music-making)’ (p. 138). Formal learning settings have been described as having a predetermined sequence of instruction, which is applied regardless of the students’ needs and is ultimately underpinned by the assumption that students learn through an incremental attainment of skills and knowledge. Conversely, in the informal learning setting, the activities emerge in response to students’ needs (Folkestad, Reference FOLKESTAD2006; Green, Reference GREEN2008; Jenkins, Reference JENKINS2011).

In her seminal book, How Popular Musicians Learn, Green (Reference GREEN2002) described how popular musicians, who were often self-taught, developed their instrumental abilities using an aural process. These musicians developed appropriate playing technique by listening to, and copying, live and recorded performances. Their learning processes seemed to be haphazard, as they acquired technique through performing the repertoire. In spite of difficulties, these musicians were motivated to persevere in order to learn the pieces they selected. These research findings underscore how students are motivated by learning music they like and how the learning processes of non-classical musicians are different from those of musicians who are formally trained. Consequently, if teachers wish to incorporate popular music in their lessons, it would seem important that they also incorporate appropriate learning processes.

In a subsequent book, Green (Reference GREEN2008) documented a study that examined the use of informal music learning methods in the classroom. To begin, Green (Reference GREEN2008) outlined five fundamental principles of informal, student-directed music-making: (a) choosing the repertoire themselves; (b) learning the repertoire through aural copying; (c) working with peers during the learning process, so that they can learn from one another; (d) learning musical skills and knowledge in a haphazard way, so that students learn skills as they are needed; and (e) engaging in listening, performing, improvising, and composing throughout the learning process (Green, Reference GREEN2008).

Using these principles, Green led a research project involving 32 classroom teachers and over 1,500 students in 21 secondary schools in the UK. The project consisted of seven stages in which students applied the principles of informal learning as they learned a variety of popular and classical pieces and gained perspectives from their peers, professional popular musicians, and their teachers. Throughout the project, the music teachers’ main role was to establish behaviour expectations for small-group work, to stand back and observe, and then to provide encouragement, and model or demonstrate, as necessary (Green, Reference GREEN2008).

Green (Reference GREEN2008) observed that although most of the teachers were classically trained, they had also received training in a variety of music-learning strategies, including informal ones. This was confirmed during Green's research project when the teachers were able to learn a piece by mimicking a CD recording. Yet, at the outset of the project, ‘every school teacher in the project found the [informal] strategies new, and in many cases radical and challenging’ (Green, Reference GREEN2008, p. 27). Green attributed the teachers’ trepidation to the risks that these informal strategies would bring to teachers’ professional roles and responsibilities (Green, Reference GREEN2008, p. 29). Teachers in this project, like many teachers around the world, have the responsibility of delivering the curriculum in an engaging and effective manner for all students, despite their background. Teachers must conduct regular assessments and report students’ achievement to parents and principals. Adopting a new type of pedagogy where students direct the content and the learning process could raise classroom management issues, as well as potentially limit the quality of the learning that ensues. The spectre of accountability may also impede teachers from adopting this type of pedagogy.

In fact, however, the students in this study were able to enhance their musical skills and knowledge in meaningful ways. At the end of the project, many of the teachers continued to incorporate informal strategies in their pedagogical practices, and it became clear that teachers could support these types of student-directed learning outcomes, while still meeting their professional obligations.

Other studies have documented the incorporation of informal music education in other jurisdictions, including Wales (e.g., Evans, Beauchamp & John, Reference EVANS, BEAUCHAMP and JOHN2015) and Canada (e.g., Wright, Reference WRIGHT2011, Reference WRIGHT2012; Wright & Kanellopoulos, Reference WRIGHT and KANELLOPOULOS2010)

The aforementioned research findings illuminate how an informal pedagogy can be incorporated into the classroom context. This pedagogical approach may also be applicable within the studio context. However, before examining the application of this pedagogical orientation in the studio, one must also examine how the studio context is both similar to and different from the classroom context. These similarities and differences are explored below.

Teachers’ incorporation of informal pedagogical orientations in the studio context

Studio teaching, like classroom teaching, is steeped in the use of a formal pedagogical orientation. Teachers often incrementally lead their students through a series of predetermined repertoire selections, which is complemented with a variety of skills-based exercises aimed at improving students’ technical facility, sight-reading ability and aural acuity. While studio teachers are not bound by a formalized curriculum, as are their school-based counterparts, many still follow the syllabi of various conservatory or exam programs, such as Canada's Royal Conservatory (www.rcmusic.ca) or the UK-based Associated Board (www.abrsm.org) (Brook, Upitis & Troop, Reference BROOK, UPITIS and TROOP2016; Upitis, Abrami, Brook, Boese & King, Reference UPITIS, ABRAMI, BROOK, BOESE and KING2016), and supplement these programs’ requirements with other repertoire or activities, such as composing or improvising (Brook, Upitis & Troop, Reference BROOK, UPITIS and TROOP2016; Pike, Reference PIKE2013).

Recently, a pilot project that examined the implementation of an informal, ear-based-methods approach was undertaken by Green and her colleagues (Baker & Green, Reference BAKER and GREEN2013; Varivarigou, Reference VARIVARIGOU2014). Baker and Green (Reference BAKER and GREEN2013) documented a pilot study in which four teachers and 15 students engaged in ear-based learning within the studio context, and in which the methodology was reminiscent of the classroom-based, informal pedagogical approach described earlier by Green (Reference GREEN2008). Teachers participating in the study found that the students’ confidence improved (Varivarigou, Reference VARIVARIGOU2014). Within the studio context, specifically, students engaged in three stages of learning: first students were asked to play along to a pop-funk track, where they were required to decipher the notes by ear. Students were expected to work independently to the extent possible, with the teacher providing support when absolutely necessary. After learning this track, students would apply their strategies to learn other tracks, again with teachers providing strategies to support the acquisition of the lines as necessary. In the second stage, this procedure was applied to the learning of one of a select set of classical pieces. In the final stage, the students were asked to bring in an audio file of a piece they wanted to learn. In all these stages, the students were asked to work out the music by ear and the teacher provided strategies as necessary in order to help them solve the problem of deciphering the music. Questionnaires and interview data indicated positive reviews of this method, as many of the students involved in the project aimed to be musicians who could play both from notation and by ear. Similarly, teachers commented on how this approach supported students’ aural skills and memory (Baker & Green, Reference BAKER and GREEN2013; Varivarigou, Reference VARIVARIGOU2014).

Varivarigou (Reference VARIVARIGOU2014) examined the teachers’ use of strategies during this process and found that humming along, singing prolonged notes, and encouraging the students to listen were the most popular strategies. She also noted that there were significant numbers of verbal interactions during these ear-based activities. Teachers also became more aware of how their students could start learning a piece aurally, and of how they could give the students more autonomy even within a one-to-one context (Varivarigou, Reference VARIVARIGOU2014).

Using a pre- and post-test design, Baker and Green (Reference GREEN2014) compared the student participants’ aural skills (pitch, rhythm, contour, tempo, closure) with a matched group of students taking lessons from the same teachers, but not part of this ear-based study. Students in the ear-training group surpassed those in the matched control group in every category. This finding suggested that incorporating an ear-based approach in studio instruction can be an effective component of studio music instruction.

In another study, Robinson (Reference ROBINSON2012) examined the pedagogical practices of two musicians who performed popular music. Both musicians featured in this case study had quit formal music lessons as children, disappointed in the content of their instruction. Later, captivated by new sounds, they had begun learning different instruments and choosing their own repertoire. They learned these new instruments by listening to and watching performers, and from time to time, seeking formal instruction. In short, these teachers were more successful learners when an informal approach was used. Using interviews and lesson observations, Robinson examined the pedagogical methods of these two individuals and found that even though they had similar histories as learners, they had very different teaching styles, and relied on informal methods to varying degrees and incorporated aspects from their formal learning experiences. These participants did not want their students to learn as they had, but rather developed an approach that was infused with strategies and activities they wished their own teachers had used, strategies that relied on both formal and informal approaches with the idea that their students could avoid some of their own shortcomings as performers.

Teachers are always looking for insights to help engage and motivate their students and help them develop skills to become more independent or more self-regulated (Hallam, Reference HALLAM, Jørgensen and Lehmann1997; Nielson, Reference NIELSON2010; McPherson, Davidson & Faulkner, Reference McPHERSON, DAVIDSON and FAULKNER2012; Upitis, Brook & Varela, Reference UPITIS, BROOK, ABRAMI and VARELA2015; Upitis, Abrami, Brook & Varela, Reference UPITIS, BROOK, ABRAMI and VARELA2015). Incorporating pedagogical practices that do not align with the goals of their students may limit student interest and engagement. Developing a different pedagogical approach, such as shifting from a formal to a more informal approach, which includes incorporating more ear-based playing, may serve students’ needs more effectively.

Teacher's musical background

The teacher in this study, Viktor (pseudonym), grew up in Cuba, where he was recruited at a young age to become a musician. ‘I was six-and-a-half and they sent teachers through the neighbourhood, knocking door by door. . .I passed [the music tests] and my sister too, so we took to that right away. . .[and the instructors] said to my parents, “If you like, you can bring the kid to this school, and this will be a special program for him.”’

As a student in what turned out to be a specialist music school, Viktor was assigned to learn the violin and also played the piano. His instruction also included ear training, sight-reading, history, and theory classes.

While Viktor was receiving this comprehensive music training in classical repertoire and techniques, the training did not align with his equally rich, home-based musical environment. Here, pop music and Cuban dance music were prominent, although Viktor acknowledged that eventually he and his sister brought more classical music into the house. By and large, though, the music in his home had little resemblance to what he was learning at school.

As a teenager, Viktor had the opportunity to begin performing in public at restaurants and barbershops. With limited access to sheet music, Viktor transcribed his own scores based on the recordings he found.

Pedagogical approach

In the subsequent section, we explore how the particular characteristics of the teacher's pedagogy, as evidenced by the lessons observed and interviews with the teacher, align with the characteristics of an informal orientation to music teaching, namely: having students choose the repertoire themselves, learning the repertoire through aural copying, integration of skills and knowledge as needed, and engaging in listening, performing, improvising, and composing throughout the learning process (Green, Reference GREEN2008). While learning from peers is also an aspect of informal pedagogy outlined by Green (Reference GREEN2008), this aspect was not part of our findings, which is consistent with the nature of the one-to-one instructional context.

Choosing the repertoire themselves

In the lessons we observed, students were playing pieces such as Too Late to Apologize (originally sung by Justin Timberlake), Jingle Bells, Latin repertoire, or Neil Young songs such as Old Man. Students chose their own repertoire, but were influenced by their parents and the teacher. In some cases, students chose a piece that was meaningful to other family members:

Viktor also had input into what the students focus on in the lessons, and strived to ensure that the complexity of the piece had components that could challenge the students musically:

In other words, Viktor did not discourage students from learning these simpler pieces, but told them that they could play these pieces outside of the lesson.

Viktor also enjoyed the fact that students would sometimes learn repertoire from a variety of genres. ‘It is just to make people understand better music and how to affect it in different ways. You know I like jumping from Bach to Coldplay; you know, it is amazing.’ He also illuminated how students are able to make connections between pieces of different genres. For example, he described how a student was able to elucidate similarities between a Bach Prelude and Turning Tables by Adele:

These accounts show that students’ interests were at the heart of repertoire selection and that Viktor helped students understand the structure of their repertoire. When selecting repertoire, students explored a variety of genres and common structures, such as key and tonality, so that they could begin to transfer ideas and learning strategies between pieces.

Learning the repertoire through aural copying

Mobile devices were regularly accessed during the lessons to listen to various pieces or to play along with them. Students played a sample of the piece for Viktor, and then worked through the piece, with Viktor helping the students establish the key and harmonic progressions.

Over time, students would be able to learn large portions of a song or a piece independently by ear. ‘A lot of people now come and say, “I learned this by myself, my memory is complete”. . .Some people just play by watch[ing] video or where the fingers go.’

In addition to learning the notes and rhythm aurally, students also used the recordings to see if their tempi were appropriate:

Recordings were also used as models of nuance and phrasing. Students played along with various recordings to see if they had mastered the phrasing and nuances of the piece.

Viktor also wanted his students to be able to read from chord and standard notation. We observed some students who referred to recording and notation.

Viktor noted that he wanted his students to eventually be able to learn aurally and by reading notation:

Integration of skills and knowledge as needed

Viktor was responsive to the needs and interests of the students during the lesson. At the beginning of some of the lessons, students came in with their media players and played a portion of the audio file for their teacher to indicate the song they wanted to learn, and this audio file became the focus of the lesson. The lessons started with a performance of a piece, and then Viktor addressed issues that would strengthen the performance. From time to time, he integrated some theoretical or technical drills that were pertinent to the repertoire.

Viktor has been providing studio music instruction for over a decade and provides instruction on violin, piano, guitar, drums and vocals. We observed five hours of lessons taught by Viktor. Table 1 presents an example of a typical lesson, which more closely resembled a jamming session than the traditional lesson documented in the literature (e.g., Duke & Simmons, Reference DUKE and SIMMONS2006).

Table 1.

Outline of lesson

Since most of the lesson consisted of back-to-back jamming, any directions which were given, occurred during fleeting moments – either as the pair played or in between songs. Overall, these directions were related to how the students could improve their improvising skills. During Song 2, for example, Viktor explained that since the singers were singing mostly short phrases, it was better to ‘go behind’ the voices, rather than go ‘on top’ and drown them out. In Song 4, the student seemed to have trouble locating the key and the teacher suggested: ‘Let's find the key first’ (See Table 1). Shifts in mood, rhythmic drive, and harmonic progressions were all initiated by the teacher and executed through the music-making itself. Occasionally, the teacher gave advance notice of upcoming changes through subtle physical gestures, such as raised eyebrows, or head nods.

Engaging in listening, performing, improvising, and composing throughout the learning process

When students were not playing along to recordings, they were often accompanied by Viktor. Viktor likened his lessons to performances: ‘I say my class is like a recital all of the time because we are performing all the time because, it is half an hour or one hour, I want them to feel like they are the superstar and that they have control in all they do.’

In addition to enhancing the students’ musical self-efficacy, Viktor felt that accompanying his students helped them to experience performing first hand while he shouldered the responsibility of the performance by accompanying them. ‘[Y]ou go take lessons to fly a plane but you don't have control to the plane. You are sitting there with someone else, and that happens at first, but in the end you have to fly.’ Replicating a performance was not the final goal of learning the piece; rather, Viktor encouraged the students to create their own version of the song.

Being able to replicate the piece was not the final goal, rather it was to have the students infuse their own ideas into the melody, harmony, lyrics, or structure of the piece. Viktor recognized that having the ability to develop and infuse such ideas was also a skill, and supported this learning process through co-playing during the lesson. Through this process, students were learning to be their own musicians, and their creative ideas were nurtured and celebrated in this process.