Abstract
In the context of Chinese music education, pitch identification is regarded as an important ability in music learning. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of three factors on pitch identification achievement for university instrumental students. Quantitative and experimental research focused on the following key questions: (i) Does learning Chinese traditional instruments or western instruments have a significant effect on achievement in pitch identification? (ii) Does using absolute or relative pitch learning strategies in pitch identification affect achievement? (iii) Does sight-singing and ear-training practice time affect pitch identification achievement?
Two hundred and eight instrumental students were recruited randomly from three universities in Nanchang City, China. Their pitch identification achievement was evaluated from four perspectives, corresponding to four experiments: (i) isolated pitch identification, (ii) interval identification, (iii) chord identification, and (iv) melodic dictation. ANOVA and regression analyses were adopted to investigate the data collected during the experimental study.
The main findings show that learning Chinese traditional instruments or western instruments has little effect on pitch identification achievement. Also, using an absolute pitch or relative pitch strategy has no significant influence on pitch identification achievement. However, there is a positive and strong relationship between sight-singing and ear-training practice time and pitch identification achievement, indicating that accumulative practice time could improve pitch identification for university instrumental students. The implications of this study’s findings reveal some challenges for tertiary music education in China, and some recommendations are suggested in this thesis that could help improve pitch identification achievement.