Building the Dreams of Musician:

• Main Authors: Chia-Hui Liu, 劉佳蕙
• Other Authors: 吳武典
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2003
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/u28895

博士 === 國立臺灣師範大學 === 特殊教育研究所 === 91 === The purpose of this study was to explore the development of the characteristics and the cof gifted young string players in Taiwan. Nine musicians, under the age of forty who had been accepted into music program for the gifted, were invited to discuss the development of their careers. In-depth interviews were conducted and analyzed using a grounded theory approach. The findings of this study indicated that the training of the string players depends on five elements: their music abilities, music temperament, learning processes, features of their learning experiences and the influence of the social context of Taiwan on the classical musicians. The main findings were as follows: The string players were musically more talented than their peers especially in sight-reading when singing and auditory skills. They were also found to appeal to audience with distinct music interpretation and solid performing style. These individuals typically began music training at a very early age, came from a music-loving families, and took a great deal of music lessons. The special program was perceived to help them acquire performing skills and music literacy. The learning processes can be divided into four stages from kindergarten to graduated school. The instruction foci at different levels were also identified as basic skills acquired at elementary school, skill perfecting in junior high school, expressiveness in senior high school and interpretation and performing careers in university and graduate school. Furthermore, ten teaching styles were found: (1) focusing on basic skills, (2) performing big musical pieces for final examination, (3) explaining effectively with examples, (4) exhibiting alternative styles, (5) encouraging students to enter contests, (6) stressing music expression, (7) encouraging participation in international music camps, (8)respecting the interests and decisions of students, (9) encouraging students to interpret music on their own, as well as (10) serving as role models and inspiring students to dedicate themselves to music. In order to pass competitive entrance examination so as to be admitted into one of the limited number of music departments, students adopted some special strategies, including (1) taking intensive music courses, (2) learning a musical instrument from two teachers at the same time, (3) practicing an important piece for one year so as to master it. After entering university, music majors commonly accept outside work to accumulate performing experiences and make money. Parents tended to invest a great deal time and money to facilitate learning on the part of their children, while interfering with school administration, seeking well- known instructors and overemphasizing contest results. Behavior of this kind has tended to create “skewed music cultures” in some families. Consequently, the string players accumulated both happy and unhappy experiences throughout their studies. However, the impact of these experiences depends on how much efforts they put in. Because general music education and the music program for the gifted were not well integrated, Taiwan society fails to provide sufficient support to classical music. As a result, the lack of classical music aficionados in Taiwan forces performers to reconsider the popularity of their repertoire as well as the impact of their appearance and personal charisma over the audiences. Suggestions are forwarded concerning the goals of music program for the musically talented based on the findings of this study.