Colouring in the Violin:
A graphically-mediated approach to the reconstruction of heard melodies.
Author: Susan Sweeney, MSc.
Submission to the EdTech conference,
National College of Ireland,
2009.
Abstract
This qualitative and quantitative study endeavours to investigate some of the key
problems that exist when embarking on the preliminary stages of learning to play the
violin. It seeks to understand the extent to which engagement with musical
composition and problem solving activities via a graphic user interface, will enhance
performing skills. The accompanying artefact facilitates a constructivist approach to
learning with technology (Jonassen, 2000).
This paper adopts the premise that people are born with schemes and tendencies to
organize their thinking processes (Piaget, 1990) and that the physical and technical
demands in learning a musical instrument involve problem solving skills (Odam,
2001). Some students have a difficulty with understanding the concept of standard
notation (Bamberger, 1991); however, the process of learning to play a musical
instrument requires skill and the ability of the user to find a pattern and structure to
what he reads or interprets (Sloboda,1994).
Based on these premises, the accompanying artefact provides a ‘hands on’ approach
to composition that will assist the novice musician in the preliminary stages of
learning to play the violin.
This paper describes “Colouring in the Violin” a graphic user interface which enables
the student to construct melodies using an alternative notation system that matches the
musical instrument itself. The study traces the progress of five novice musicians in a
primary school environment. It describes the implementation of the artefact, and data
includes participant created melody patterns, researcher observation notes and
interviews with participants. The analyses of the collected data was coded and themed
in order to discover emergent trends in the experiences of the participants.
A comparative study of note pattern matching is undertaken in the findings of the
paper. Key observations were encouraging as they indicate that engagement with the
learning artefact enhanced the performing skills of the participants. Findings also
suggest that constraints on the user interface and participant engagement with the
soundplayer element of the interface facilitated learning. Pitch recognition, critical
listening skills, and melodic and visual pattern matching are some of the key elements
in the findings of the paper.
1.0 Introduction
The accompanying artefact provides an alternative music notation system that seeks
to enhance the learning experience.
1.1
The user experience
The student interacts with a graphic user interface:
 The user first listens to a short, simple piece of music, of a standard that can be
performed by a novice violin student.
 Then, using the interface, the user reconstructs the melody on a virtual
representation of the violin fingerboard.
 Having correctly constructed the melody, the user is then enabled to perform
the piece using their reconstruction as a physical map of the note path in the
melody.
1.2
The learning
The musical pattern matching concepts and ideas addressed by the system are:
 Listening Skills: By repeated listening and reconstruction, the learner will
engage with skills in the area of musical perception i.e. by recreating a
piece of music, the learner will learn both the structure and form of the
piece (at note and phrase level) and improve their general standard of aural
skills. Visual and auditory feedback provided by the interface allied to a
system for manipulating note-level musical information enable these
processes for learners with no prior musical experience (Bamberger, 1991)
 Violin Performance Skills: The interface facilitates the transfer of musical
information into a representation of the violin fingerboard. The act of
recreating the melody on this virtual fingerboard will engender an
understanding of the structure and layout of the fingerboard itself, enabling
the user to then recreate the melody on the violin, using this virtual
representation as a ‘road-map’ of the melody.
2.0 Literature Review
2.1 Standard and Alternative Music Notation
Jean Bamberger (1991, 1994) suggests that notation serves a means to conserve,
communicate and conceive our musical intention and meaning.
A complex notation system may act as a barrier to understanding. Musicians who use
notation must concern themselves with the symbol, but musicians who rely on aural
skills are concerned with manipulation of the sound itself. Best practice in music
education is to encourage both methods of learning music (Ferguson, 1973). In light
of the difficulties with traditional notation, much research (Jennings, 2006; Gromko &
Russell, 2002; Conneely, 2007; Burns, 1997) has been carried out in invented notation
using symbols, signs and shapes, to facilitate music perception and promote learning.
2.2 Patterns in music
In the repetitive act of playing scales, the student both acquires technical skill and
absorbs tonal pattern (Manoff, 1982). Copying is a powerful form of learning. As
children remember and copy musical sequences, these sequences of sound take on
meaning for them and are drawn in to their long term memory (Odam, 2001). This
study will focus on visual and melodic pattern matching to achieve its pedagogical
aims.
2.3 Pitch recognition
Pitch is an auditory physical property of sound. Musical sound exists within the
boundaries of pitch determined by our perception and the capability of our voices as
instruments (Manoff, 1982). People adopt many strategies for finding the correct note
or pitch when engaging in music performance including seeking the note from
memory and humming or singing it out loud. Single note humming engages the most
intuitive, intimate and least concrete musical experience and can engender a strong
feeling of satisfaction after completion (Odam, 2001).
3.0 Design
3.1
The opening screen
The researcher was keen to portray an aesthetically pleasing environment. The
interface is uncluttered and seeks to be intuitive. The use of primary colours and the
graphic image of an artist seek to appeal to a young audience. The headings at the top
cross bar are limited in order to confine browse options. The researcher added a ‘let’s
begin’ button to direct student to the learning module of the interface.
Figure 3.1 The opening screen
3.2. The scales screen
The first step in the learning process enables the student to become familiar with the
formation of scales. When the student selects the ‘let’s begin’ button, a new screen
appears that offers a choice of learning three separate scales. The researcher devised a
colour representation of scales to replace the traditional notation method i.e. the scale
of ‘C’ is the green/blue scale. Engagement with the formation and pattern of scales
facilitates recognition of the conventions of the tool and enables the student to
practice moving the musical notes from the virtual fingerboard to the virtual fretboard
timeline above.
Figure 3.2 The scales screen
3.3. The teaching and learning tool
The next screen represents the chosen music scale and delivers the student to the
learning module of the artefact. The student listens to the scale by pressing the play
button on the virtual songplayer. This engagement with the artefact enables the
student to listen, construct, test and play a melody.
Figure 3.3 The teaching and learning tool
4.0 Methodology
4.1
Introducing the artefact and task
Each participant was asked to listen to two songs, the first of which was ‘Frère
Jacques’ (familiar to all students) and the second song was ‘Celtic Song’ (an
unfamiliar melody). Students were asked to reconstruct each melody on a virtual
timeline. Participants were then shown how to operate the embedded soundplayer. In
order to scaffold the learning, the researcher used the following instructions:
 Listen to the song.
 Sing the note.
 Is the note higher or lower?
 Sing or hum the song out loud.
 Is anything the same in this bit?
 Let’s listen to the song again.
Once the participants understood the process, the researcher took an observational
role. The second phase of implementation involved students reading their musical
score from the computer screen and recreating their constructed heard melody on the
violin instrument.
5.0 Findings
5.1
Phase 1: Findings from analyses of data
Clear categories emerged from the analyses of quantitative and qualitative data in
phase 1. The principle factors and themes from the data relate to:
 Pitch Recognition
 Critical Listening
 Repetitive Pattern Marching
 Role of the teacher
 Skill
 Melodic Perception
5.2
Pitch Recognition
An analyses of data from student work of song piece 1 (Frère Jacques) reveals a
difficulty with pitch recognition in Bar 5 and Bar 6. A change in melodic contour and
tonal pattern (figure 5.1) occurs at the beginning of the chorus in Bar 5 and three of
the participants (figure 5.2) had difficulty with finding the third and subsequent notes
at the chorus of the melody.
Figure 5.1 Melodic contour change in Bar 5 of song piece 1
Figure 5.2 Accuracy interface results for constructed song piece 1
5.3
Recognition of pitch and pitch Range
Findings indicate that students had an understanding of the pitch differences
associated with coloured note representations in the fingerboard element of the
graphic user interface. Data analyses further indicates that students limited their pitch
choice to certain and specific coloured note representations. In other words, students
managed to intuit which colour sets (figure 3.4) defined the pitch range of the melody
and this confined their interaction to a particular set of notes. This observation
suggests that using coloured representation of notes leads to an understanding of the
higher and lower pitch attributes of the notes and that this understanding enabled
students to determine a range of pitch choice based on coloured groupings of the
notes. Here we see an example of the students understanding of pitch associated with
colour.
T:
A:
T:
A:
T:
A:
T:
A:
Did you notice the colours … did you use any red?
No.
Why do you think that is?
Cause they’re higher or lower?
Higher ? …. And how many green did you use?
(nods)…One.
Just one green? And what’s green …
The lower.
6.0 Conclusion
The results of findings in this study indicate that engagement with a graphic user
interface in the reconstruction of heard melodies can lead to a melodic and visual
awareness of patterns and an overall understanding of visual and melodic pattern
repetition in the construction of a given heard melody.
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