STUDENTS' MUSIC ASSOCIATION PROGRAMS IN CHINA:AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF SELECTED SCHOOLS IN YAODU DISTRICT, SHANXI, CHINA

The development of music associations has always been a research hotspot in the field of music education. In the process of music education, it is often the mutual penetration and promotion of music teaching and extracurricular music activities. With the deepening of the curriculum reform in China, students' associations are developing vigorously, and the activities of students' associations in music education tend to be diversified. This paper focus on the students' music associations of three selected schools at primary, secondary and tertiary levels in Yaodu District, Linfeng Shanxi Province, China. the research on the education and teaching of students' associations in music education in Yaodu District School, while achieving certain teaching results, still has some room to further develop. Towards the end, the study puts forward suggestions to promote the continued development of school music associations.

Third Position as a Home Position Alternative: A Survey of Views and Approaches of Violin/Viola Instructors

Although violin/viola pedagogues who use the third position as the home position in beginning-level teaching have reported positive experiences, school curricula and most pedagogues’ repertoires remain limited to method books that use the first position. The reasons for this preference have not been adequately addressed in string pedagogy and music education research. This study therefore aimed to examine the opinions of violin/viola trainers on the use of the third position as home position through a survey. A questionnaire sent to various music associations, schools, and violin/viola educators internationally yielded a sampling of 160. The results showed that 73.1% of the participants hold the opinion that the third position is not widely used in beginning-level training, and 63.5% think that method books that employ the technique are insufficient. However, 53.1% of the participants believe that using the third position as the home position may have benefits; 61.1% think that the left hand takes the ideal shape in the third position; and 68.3% think that a wider availability of method books would increase the number of trainers who use the technique to teach. The study found that further research of the technique is necessary, especially for educators who are interested in using it.

The activity of the singing society «Lutna» (based on the publications of the daily «Dilo» in the 1880s)

The paper seeks to develop new avenues for the study of the singing society «Lutna» (based in Lviv, late 19th century). There were several music associations with differing objectives in musical activities in the 80s of the 19th century in Lviv. Specifically, they were the Galician Musical Society, the Association «Harmony» and the Choir «Lutna». None of them was specifically the Ukrainian institution, but many Ukrainians were the members of the «Lutna». Therefore, the «Lutna» had the repertoire of the Ukrainian musical works and took part in the nationwide musical life of Ukrainians (specifically, in Lviv). The paper aims to study the participation of the «Lutna» in the Ukrainian concerts at the 1880s in Lviv as well as to outline the works of Ukrainian composers and its repertoire. Our research is based on the daily newspaper «Dilo». We used chronological, historiography, comparative and analytical methods to explore the content of publications concerning the «Lutna» and to form the concert chronicle of the choir among the Ukrainian residents of Lviv. Our findings show that the choral society «Lutna» was founded as the «Men Choir of Lviv» to be based on the multinational principles in 1881. The first concert of the renewed society as the mixed choir «Lutna» was held in 1883. The critics of «Dilo» followed the Choir at Ukrainian concerts, analyzed their performing of the Ukrainian music and observed every change of its repertoire. About 20 Ukrainians were indicated in the «Lutna» registry documents spanning 1880s, specifically, A. Vakhnianyn, M. Vitoshynsky, S. Fedak, V. Shukhevych and others. Traditionally, the «Lutna» with S. Cetvinsky’s con ducting participated at the Shevchenko concerts as well as the other national cultural events during the 1880s. The society was the most active in Ukrainian music life at its early years. The musical works by A. Vakhnianyn, M. Verbytskyi, S. Vorobkevych, M. Lysenko, P. Nishchyn skyi and others were in the repertoire of the «Lutna». The «Lutna»’s performing of M. Lysenko’s choral poem «Zapovit» and his cantata «Biut Porohy» and P. Nishchynskyi’s «Zakuvala ta syva zozulia» were the most significant art events of that time. We conclude that the annual concerts of the «Lutna» along with other Ukrainian organizations and the large Ukrainian repertoire of the choir had a significant influence on the revival of the Ukrainian musical life in Galicia at the end of the 19th century. Keywords: Ukrainian concert life, choir society «Lutna», Ukrainian musical critics, the newspaper «Dilo» («Work»), Lviv.

Keeping the score

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study the role of academic music libraries in financially straitened times. The academic music library aims to cover the information needs of the academic community; yet the unique nature of music information also allows academic libraries to develop services for a broad spectrum of different user groups. Design/methodology/approach – The theoretical analysis is supported by empirical evidence from a nationwide survey in Greece. The survey was carried out from July to September 2013 and presents results from interviews with the directors of all academic music libraries in Greece. Findings – The results suggest that the period of economic crisis is also a period of challenges and innovation for music libraries which calls them to redefine policies and priorities, and further consider the needs and expectations of wider audiences, i.e. musicians outside the academic community. The financial downturn can be seen as an opportunity for restructuring the academic music libraries and for the development of a wider framework of operation which calls for an outreach strategy and cooperation with external music associations and organizations. Originality/value – It is one of the very few studies providing theoretical and empirical evidence linking academic music libraries to musicians and the significance of collaborative partnerships.

'The Music Herald' 1922: A esthetical and ideological aspects

The Music Herald was the first music magazine to appear in Belgrade after WWI. It was published monthly, for a year (January - December 1922). Its editor-in-chief was Petar Krstic, a composer. Other members of the editorial staff were Bozidar Joksimovic, Stevan Hristic, Kosta Manojlovic (composers) Vladimir R. Djordjevic (an ethnomusicologist) and Jovan Zorko (a violinist). Over 200 articles were published in the magazine. It dealt with different genres of music writings, such as articles, treatises, documents on the history of Serbian / Yugoslav music, music criticism, polemics, necrologies and bibliographies. Twenty-four compositions by native composers were published in the musical supplement of The Music Herald, among them the works of its editors as well as those of other Yugoslav musicians. The Music Herald dealt with three fields of interest: music historiography, ethnomusicology and the current topics of its epoch. When the magazine started, Serbian musicology was in its initial stage so the editors were trying to foster its development. They published numerous biographies of Serbian 19th century musicians, as well as documents on Serbian music culture during the reign of Prince Milos Obrenovic. Music folklore was also very often the subject of interest in the magazine. The Music Herald was interested in current topics and covered the Yugoslav music school system, opera houses, military music music associations, etc. It was especially interested in choral societies which in the course of the 19th century took up not only an artistic, but also a political and patriotic role in the liberation movement. After WWI choral societies entered a period of crisis. Their political raison d'?tre was lost, so they were faced with the challenge of achieving higher professional standards. This study deals with two aspects of 'The Music Herald': aesthetic and ideological aspects. In terms of ideology, the magazine was strongly in favor of the Yugoslav idea. Its correspondents (more then 40 of them) came from all parts of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, as well as from abroad (Poland). The music culture of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was treated with equal enthusiasm. The articles were published in both Cyrillic and Latin script, and in two languages (Serbo-Croatian and Slovenian). The editors of The Music Herald were also Slavophiles. They wrote about Czechoslovakian and Polish music, and also covered the works of Russian musicians who had emigrated to Yugoslavia after the October Revolution in 1917. The so-called 'national style' was fostered in The Music Herald, because it was believed by the editors to be the future of Serbian and Yugoslav music. Avant-garde music was treated with suspicion although on one occasion a defense of contemporary music by Stanislav Vinaver, a writer and a music critic, was published. On the other hand fostering the 'national style' did not mean that moderate means of expression sufficed for the positive evaluation of a certain music piece. That is why the compositions of Petar Stojanovic were judged as 'drawing-room music'. Although it lasted for just one year, The Music Herald has an important place in the history of Serbian music periodicals. Its orientation towards music historiography is, in this respect, especially important. It blazed the trail for the Serbian musicology in its dealings with unknown music data in the past.