A Lens for Applied Practitioners: A Case Study of An Applied Clarinet Lesson

Abstract

The pedagogy of the American collegiate clarinet studio professor is grounded in a deep tradition of artistry and collective experience. Their work has produced many successful practitioners of the clarinet throughout fields in performance, academia, education, and a multitude of other musical facets. However, upon review of the literature, little can be found with respect to lesson observation. This work, in part, documents the teacher/student interaction in an applied clarinet studio. Researchers in the field of education have concurrently developed theories of learning and teaching that educators regularly use to ground their work. These theories have been developed by researchers in the fields of both education and psychology. Music education researchers have also taken interest in these theories and observed how they may or may not be present in the music classroom. Behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism are three of these recognized theories. While the professional music educator in the k-12 teaching environment has many resources connecting music education to these theories, the postsecondary clarinet teacher does not enjoy the same resources. This document is an attempt to deepen the dialogue between the postsecondary clarinet educator and education researchers by making observations about the clarinet studio with respect to behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism. Connections to learning theories were made through the observation of a clarinet lesson and subsequent interviews.