Adult amateur musicians' perceptions of the relationship between secondary instrumental music education and current music participation

Secondary music ensembles and community ensembles share many similarities, but participation in secondary music ensembles does not necessarily encourage amateur musicians to join community ensembles after graduation. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine: (1) adult amateur musicians' reasons and motivations for participating in an ensemble in adult life, and (2) adult amateur musicians' perceptions about the relationship between his/her participation in secondary instrumental ensembles and participation in an instrumental ensemble in adult life. Participants (n=9), ages 24-64, were current members of three separate community wind bands from the Midwestern United States and were previously enrolled in a secondary instrumental music ensemble. Each participant completed a semi-structured interview that was audio recorded by the researcher. Interviews were transcribed and coded for themes and categories.;The themes that emerged included: (1) break in music making; (2) word of mouth; (3) early musical development; (4) enjoy music making; (5) skills gained from secondary ensembles; (6) different ages and backgrounds; (7) similarities and differences between secondary and community ensembles; (8) social environment; and (9) changes to secondary music education. These themes were used to inform the research questions. Implications for secondary music education and community ensembles are included.