The Internet, Auto -Accompaniment Software, and Spectral Analysis in Undergraduate Voice Lessons

407 p.Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1999.For eight weeks, eight undergraduate students experienced voice lessons with differing levels of technology integration. Data collected through teacher observations, student journals, and quantitative questionnaires aided both a comparison of the influence of each of the technologies on the attitudes of the participants and instructor and judgements regarding the feasibility and effectiveness of the technologies. The use of Internet Web pages proved effective as a visual reinforcement during lessons and as a resource for students outside of lessons. Auto-accompaniment software (SmartMusic by Coda Music Technology) was effective as a substitute for a human accompanist and as an aid to the learning process both in lessons and for individualized student practice. However, students performing with a human accompanist rather than the software rated the overall lesson experience more positively. Beginning students also found learning new pieces with the auto-accompaniment software frustrating. Spectral analysis and electroglottograph (EGG) readings were effective in increasing the motivation of students, serving as a vehicle to present factual information on the voice, and giving objective data on student improvement. However, they served little pedagogical purpose toward improving the students' singing, and the time spent on the spectral analysis process also hindered student preparedness for the final concert. General trends showed that the more technology that was used in the lesson, the more positive the students' reaction toward technology became. Since technology applied to voice lessons had a positive influence on student motivation, knowledge gain, and facilitation of communication within the voice lessons, voice teachers should work to gradually incorporate technology into their lessons. Teachers should take into account the increased time, skill, and special equipment necessary.U of I OnlyRestricted to the U of I community idenfinitely during batch ingest of legacy ETD