A study of the pedagogy of selected non-Western musical traditions in collegiate world music ensembles

Music teachers are often influenced by pedagogical practices in the collegiate ensembles in which they performed. Opportunities to participate in collegiate world music ensembles have increased in recent decades; West African ensembles and steel bands represent the second and third most common of these in the United States. The absence of scholarly research regarding the nature of the teaching and learning processes that occur in these non-Western ensembles represents a significant problem in music education. In this study, two collegiate West African ensemble directors and two collegiate steel band directors were interviewed using an instrument developed by the researcher to investigate the pedagogical practices that occur in their ensembles. Content analysis revealed that considerable consistencies and discrepancies exist between the directors' responses regarding teaching strategies, repertoire selection, and educational goals. Results indicate that the development of broadly applicable world music pedagogy is not appropriate.