Music Notation and Analysis in Music Theory Courses

Music theory courses aim to help students comprehend musical structure so that they can listen more deeply, perform expressively, and compose creatively. Part of the challenge of trying to understand how music is structured, however, is that somehow one must capture the sound-imagery––essentially vibrations of air molecules, which are here one moment and gone the next––in order to measure, divide, and compare components. Because of music’s ephemeral nature, we typically rely on printed scores and other kinds of diagrams of the sound-image, which allow us to consider relationships and patterns outside the pressures of real-time performance.

My presentation will address two outcomes of the reliance on traditional print notation in music theory studies. First, rather than supporting understanding in a neutral way, notation directs attention and biases interpretation. In fact, the distinctions between audible and visible can sometimes blur in our musical theoretical discourse. Additionally, at times score study can reveal relationships that only obtain visually and not necessarily aurally. This paper will discuss several examples of mappings between sound and music notation that are actually quite tenuous and suggest alternative representations. Second, though we have the sense that notation is prosthetic on the sounding music – reducing, clarifying, and thus necessary for understanding – relying on print notation privileges visual comprehension. Dependence on visual representations limits accessibility for some students of music theory (for example those with low vision or dyslexia, or those whose musical experience is based on making music “by ear”). This presentation will address these two unintended consequences and consider complementary ways to understand certain concepts of musical structure through a variety of means.