Signature pedagogies for creative collaboration: Lessons for and from music. This project aims to develop a model of the signature pedagogies and environmental supports that foster the 21st century skills of creativity, innovation, collaboration and cooperation. The project's significance lies in its unique focus on pedagogies of expert creative collaborative practice in four internationally renowned chamber music training environments. These are characterised by individual risk in performance, ....Signature pedagogies for creative collaboration: Lessons for and from music. This project aims to develop a model of the signature pedagogies and environmental supports that foster the 21st century skills of creativity, innovation, collaboration and cooperation. The project's significance lies in its unique focus on pedagogies of expert creative collaborative practice in four internationally renowned chamber music training environments. These are characterised by individual risk in performance, intensified need for collaborative exchange, and the capacity to juxtapose individual accountability within collaborative practices. Expected outcomes and benefits of the project include a model that has translational application and impact for those professions that rely on generating new knowledge in collaborative settings.Read moreRead less
Understanding motivation and practice quality in elite music performance. This project examines motivation and practice quality in elite music performance. It applies major theoretical explanations from other domains where optimising motivation and practice quality has consistently been found to increase performance, persistence, learning, creativity, and wellbeing. The expected outcomes of the project address the competitiveness of Australian musicians, particularly in light of significantly lo ....Understanding motivation and practice quality in elite music performance. This project examines motivation and practice quality in elite music performance. It applies major theoretical explanations from other domains where optimising motivation and practice quality has consistently been found to increase performance, persistence, learning, creativity, and wellbeing. The expected outcomes of the project address the competitiveness of Australian musicians, particularly in light of significantly lower funding for music institutions compared to international counterparts. The research endeavours to inform understandings about the nature of motivation and practice more generally, by extending conceptions that have until now been formed largely through research in non-artistic domains of human accomplishment.Read moreRead less
Discovering genes for singing ability in Australian families. Music abilities are core to what makes us human, with singing ubiquitous in all cultures. Anecdotal evidence suggests that singing ability runs in families, supporting its genetic basis, however no research has systematically traced it across generations. Using an innovative web-based singing program and the latest molecular genetic techniques, this project aims to discover singing ability genes through the first Australian study of l ....Discovering genes for singing ability in Australian families. Music abilities are core to what makes us human, with singing ubiquitous in all cultures. Anecdotal evidence suggests that singing ability runs in families, supporting its genetic basis, however no research has systematically traced it across generations. Using an innovative web-based singing program and the latest molecular genetic techniques, this project aims to discover singing ability genes through the first Australian study of large families with many talented singers. This will generate new knowledge on the origins of human musicality and help Australia develop a sustainable source of cultural capital. It will build interdisciplinary research capacity and inform bespoke music learning programs that account for individual differences.Read moreRead less
The genetic basis of singing ability. This project aims to explore the heritability of music ability, focusing on singing and the contribution of genetic and environmental influences. Research suggests that deliberate practice (more than 10,000 hours) produces skilled musicianship, with minimal investigation of genetic influences. Mapping the human genome has opened up a new scientific frontier, and this project’s findings are expected to lead to the discovery of genes for singing. This will hel ....The genetic basis of singing ability. This project aims to explore the heritability of music ability, focusing on singing and the contribution of genetic and environmental influences. Research suggests that deliberate practice (more than 10,000 hours) produces skilled musicianship, with minimal investigation of genetic influences. Mapping the human genome has opened up a new scientific frontier, and this project’s findings are expected to lead to the discovery of genes for singing. This will help design and deliver music education programmes that take individual differences into account, differentiating between heritable aspects of musicianship and those more influenced by training.Read moreRead less
Redefining conceptions of child and adolescent emotional responses to music using time-series analysis. The National Review of Music Education recognizes the need to understand more fully how musical experiences impact on children's emotional and general development. Australian researchers are leaders in the field of continuous response to emotion in music. Our international leadership on this critically important issue will result in new ways of understanding music and teaching music to childre ....Redefining conceptions of child and adolescent emotional responses to music using time-series analysis. The National Review of Music Education recognizes the need to understand more fully how musical experiences impact on children's emotional and general development. Australian researchers are leaders in the field of continuous response to emotion in music. Our international leadership on this critically important issue will result in new ways of understanding music and teaching music to children through to adults because our explanations of affective aspects of music will be framed within a scientific perspective which moves beyond learning the purely technical and subjective aspects of music appreciation.Read moreRead less
Pedagogies of expertise in musical thought and practice. This project aims to research the pedagogy and environmental features that underpin the development of early expertise in music. Previous studies of musical expertise have studied instrumental expertise developed in individual contexts. The project will study choral singing, where children (age 6 – 17) attain a standard of expertise unique to that domain and acquired in a collective setting. Through studying expert practice in children’s c ....Pedagogies of expertise in musical thought and practice. This project aims to research the pedagogy and environmental features that underpin the development of early expertise in music. Previous studies of musical expertise have studied instrumental expertise developed in individual contexts. The project will study choral singing, where children (age 6 – 17) attain a standard of expertise unique to that domain and acquired in a collective setting. Through studying expert practice in children’s choirs that reflect diverse socio-cultural settings (sacred, secular, male, female, Indigenous choirs), the project intends to inform pedagogical practices and learning environment design for children and young people in and beyond music.Read moreRead less
SONG LYRICS FOR THE ENGLISH THEATRE 1660-1700: A PERFORMATIVE ANALYSIS. Restoration plays preserve the lyrics of over 1500 songs, ranging from sophisticated pieces set by Purcell to words written to popular ballad tunes. The project will collect the entire corpus of these lyrics and use them as the subject for a performance-oriented analysis, integrating words, music (when it survives) and what can be discovered about stage presentation. Cultural meanings will be established through close contex ....SONG LYRICS FOR THE ENGLISH THEATRE 1660-1700: A PERFORMATIVE ANALYSIS. Restoration plays preserve the lyrics of over 1500 songs, ranging from sophisticated pieces set by Purcell to words written to popular ballad tunes. The project will collect the entire corpus of these lyrics and use them as the subject for a performance-oriented analysis, integrating words, music (when it survives) and what can be discovered about stage presentation. Cultural meanings will be established through close contextualisation. Rhetorical theory and the concept of 'musical wit' will be used to relate verbal meanings to musical procedures and both to theatrical presentations of the body.Read moreRead less
From sound to hearing: the integration of behavioural, neurophysiological, and neuroimaging research with computational models. McLachlan and Wilson have recently published a ground-breaking new model of the auditory system with important implications for treating deafness and understanding neurological disorders. In this research the predictions of the model will be experimentally validated using advanced neuroimaging techniques.
Theatre in the Asia-Pacific: Regional Culture in a Modern Global Context. This project contributes to Australian understandings of other countries in its region and promotes an Asia-literate society. Its focus on theatre and performance cultures of the Asia-Pacific deepens our understanding of the issues, both social and aesthetic, that characterise regional-specific responses to a shared global context. With its focus on innovative theatre and performance, that both conserve the region's rich c ....Theatre in the Asia-Pacific: Regional Culture in a Modern Global Context. This project contributes to Australian understandings of other countries in its region and promotes an Asia-literate society. Its focus on theatre and performance cultures of the Asia-Pacific deepens our understanding of the issues, both social and aesthetic, that characterise regional-specific responses to a shared global context. With its focus on innovative theatre and performance, that both conserve the region's rich cultural heritage and express its creativity, the project analyses recent trends in performing arts in the region. The outcomes will inform the academic community and future cultural policies of national organisations including Asialink and the Australia Council. Read moreRead less
The Two Frank Thrings. A study of two lives in the context of the performing arts in twentieth-century Australia. This dual biography of F.W.Thring (1882-1936), stage and cinema entrepreneur, and his actor son Frank (1926-94), will explore two remarkable lives in relation to their performance culture and society. It will provide the first scholarly biography of both men, and through them will illuminate the history of Australian cinema and musical theatre, investigate issues of distinctively n ....The Two Frank Thrings. A study of two lives in the context of the performing arts in twentieth-century Australia. This dual biography of F.W.Thring (1882-1936), stage and cinema entrepreneur, and his actor son Frank (1926-94), will explore two remarkable lives in relation to their performance culture and society. It will provide the first scholarly biography of both men, and through them will illuminate the history of Australian cinema and musical theatre, investigate issues of distinctively national iconography and voice, and examine the complex interactions between industrial/economic forces and artistic vision. Its principal outcome will be a book that should add significantly to our knowledge of the performing arts in twentieth-century Australia, and to continuing debates in the arts.Read moreRead less