Page 40 - How to Shine on Stage

Musical achievements are dependent on a number of environmental fac-
tors, in which parents and teachers have a key role.

2.1.1.3 Ability to Create Mental Images
Music imagery has been explored quite extensively in experimental psy-
chology and cognitive neuroscience (Schaefer, 2014). Hubbard (2010) has
provided us with a detailed review of experimental findings on mental
38 imagery of music. He finds that auditory imagery preserves many struc-
tural and temporal features of the stimulus, includes semantically inter-
preted information and expectations, and is related to musical abilities
and experiences. Neuroscience studies confirm the presence of mental
imagery of music in distinct and overlapping modalities (visual, auditory,
How to Shine on Stage music depends on the type of music, the instrument played, experience,
kinaesthetic) (Schaefer, 2014). The manner of forming mental imagery of

knowledge, personality, and situational demands (Gabrielsson, 2012).
When studying a new piece of music with which one is unfamiliar,
one forms a new mental image. If studying already played or at least au-
dibly known pieces, it is possible to recall or at least modify a mental im-
age which has already been stored. In this context, the characteristics of
the piece in terms of general and specific structure hold particular im-
portance. Clarke (1989, in Deutsch, 2012) found that a musical image is
most fully formed when playing a piece by heart, and incomplete when
playing by notation and in improvising.
Persson et al. (1992) observed that when tasked with presenting an
unfamiliar piano piece they have previously listened to, most perform-
ers verbally describe the piece as images, things, events, characters, and
moods which the piece represents. The results of this research demon-
strate the importance of the content of the entire mental image we cre-
ate in music.
Sarah Schaffer (1992, in Gabrielsson, 2012) questioned the idea of
recognizing musical significance through musical structure. According to
her, the structure of the music should not in itself elicit a mental image in
the listener. The main force in creating the listener’s mental image should
be the performer as interpreter. It is, after all, the performer who channels
the mood and emotions contained in the music. This research confirmed
the importance of interpretation in the creation of mental imagery.
Baily (1991, in Deutsch, 2012) addressed in his research the assump-
tion that musical performance involves motor processes. He stressed that
motion is also of importance in Western tonal music. Composers consid-
er the instruments’ characteristics and the performer’s motor skills when