Publication Date

5-1-2020

Abstract

In many ways, singing is an aural event. Since much of the instrument cannot be seen in a normal setting, voice teachers and voice admirers must rely on their ears to evaluate what they hear. However, singing is also a visual event. In the context of voice studios, teachers need to train students to not only achieve a healthy singing technique but also to convey a message to the audience. Each performer must ask herself, “what do I need to do as a performer to show the music?” In the article Sight Over Sound in the Judgment of Music Performance, Chia-Jung Tsay, a Professor of Organizational Behavior at University College London, studied the influence of visual versus aural in several experiments. “The results highlight our natural, automatic, and nonconscious dependence on visual cues. The dominance of visual information emerges to the degree that it is overweighted [sic] relative to auditory information, even when sound is consciously valued as the core domain content” (Tsay 2013). The visual aspect of performance dominates the aural aspect of performance. Therefore, visual performance methodology must be habitually taught in the singing studio.

Major Mentor

Jennifer M. Coleman

Second Mentor

Mark Whatley

Third Mentor

Jeffery Ames

Department

Music, School of

College

Music and Performing Arts, College of

Document Type

Thesis

Degree

Master of Music (MM)

Degree Level

Master's

Degree Grantor

Belmont University

Share

COinS