Lori Custodero is Professor of Music Education at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she created and supervises a specialty in early childhood. Her research focuses on relationships between musical experience, flow, creativity, and human development in classrooms, public spaces, and family settings. She has published over 40 articles and chapters and is co-editor of Critical Issues in Music Education (Oxford University Press). Applications of her scholarship are ongoing in the WeBop! program for Jazz at Lincoln Center, The New York Philharmonic ‘s Very Young People’s Concerts, and a newly developed program for Teaching Artists connecting pedagogy to responsive artistry.
In this article, jazz music is used as a lens through which early childhood music pedagogy is vie... more In this article, jazz music is used as a lens through which early childhood music pedagogy is viewed, specifically thinking about swing and improvisation—the listening and responding to what is heard and seen, and the openness to possibility. These two concepts are defined by prominent jazz musicians and are traced in the child development literature as inherent ways of relating both to both music and others. Practice that involves finding innovative and mutually supportive ways to share musical space creates opportunities for collective growth; attending to the spaces between thematic, predetermined structures creates opportunities to observe and engage with spontaneous moments of musical innovation. Such an approach to teaching and learning suggests a theoretical framework attuned to the connections between jazz and childhood development that translates to artistically authentic classroom strategies relevant to students. Direct and indirect implications are offered.
Journal of Research in Music Education, Dec 1, 2006
This investigation is an examination of musical practices, musical preparation of teachers, and m... more This investigation is an examination of musical practices, musical preparation of teachers, and music education needs as reported by early childhood professionals in the United States. Quantitative and qualitative data were gathered via a survey mailed to a random sample drawn from the database of preschool centers accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The survey was based on criteria in the MENC national standards for pre-K music (1994b) and Opportunity-to-Learn Standards-PreK Music (1994a). Returned surveys (n = 293) reflect diversity of teacher preparation in music, how and why music is used in the early childhood curriculum, and what the music education needs are in these centers. Recommendations are offered to those concerned with the music education needs of young children and their teachers.
This study explores the musical content and human processes of improvisations of children and adu... more This study explores the musical content and human processes of improvisations of children and adults using the phenomenological lenses of time, space and responsivity. Paired improvisational performances of two late-career adult composers and two 7-year-old children were analysed considering a lifespan-related perspective involving the origins of spontaneous musical creativity associated with childhood dispositions and the musical expertise gained from practice, training and experience. Findings suggest that origins and expertise are operating in improvisational experiences of children and adults. Implications are drawn for musically meaningful research and evaluation of children's improvisations.
... Challenge: The Significance of Others Mature musicians' descriptions of perf... more ... Challenge: The Significance of Others Mature musicians' descriptions of performing and composing often allude to the importance of ~hallenge.~ Like-wise, observations of young children's spontaneous music making reflect their ability to create challenges for them-selves ...
Journal of Research in Music Education, Apr 1, 2006
This article addresses types and functions of singing practices in 10 families with 3-year-old ch... more This article addresses types and functions of singing practices in 10 families with 3-year-old children living in New York City, with illustrative cases of three families. Initial interviews were held with the parents in the families' homes. Between the initial visit and a follow-up visit 2-3 weeks later, parents observed their children and kept journals describing their engagement in music activity. Transcripts of interviews from each visit, field notes, and parent journals were reviewed for evidence of singing practices. Analyses revealed families used singing to “make special” routine activities and to create and maintain traditions. Parent and researcher observations of children's musical play were characterized by singing. Possible trends were suggested around learned song and spontaneous song. Implications for teaching and learning are considered in terms of what educators might learn from observations of both children's spontaneous play and from musical parenting. June 14, 2005 March 7, 2006
Il Symposium \ue8 stato organizzanto all'interno della 9th International Conference on Music ... more Il Symposium \ue8 stato organizzanto all'interno della 9th International Conference on Music Perception and Cognition, che ha avuto luogo a Bologna dal 22 a l 26 agosto 2006 (Universit\ue0 di Bologna). Il Symposio \ue8 stato dedicato alla Flow Theory e alle sue applicazioni nell'ambito della psicologia e pedagogia musicale. Vi hanno preso parte : L. Custodero (Columbia University), C. Trevarthen (Edinburgh University), M.Gratier (Universit\ue9 Paris X Nanterre), St. John P. (Columbia University), S. Sinnamon (University College Dublin), A. Addessi (Universit\ue0 di Bologna
ABSTRACT Explores a study that quantifies preschool children's music learning prefere... more ABSTRACT Explores a study that quantifies preschool children's music learning preferences in teacher-intitiated environments by observing the children on video to determine their flow experiences where the challenge level and skill level are both high. Stresses that using flow to measure music experiences provides a means for teachers to evaluate student responses to activities. (CMK)
Flow experience is an optimal state determined by an individual's perception of high ski... more Flow experience is an optimal state determined by an individual's perception of high skill and high challenge for a given task. In this study, young children's flow experience is examined in four naturally occurring music learning environments: infants and two-year-...
PREFACE CONTRIBUTORS 1. HISTORICAL CONTEXTS OF MUSIC EDUCATION, HAROLD F. ABELES Introduction Mus... more PREFACE CONTRIBUTORS 1. HISTORICAL CONTEXTS OF MUSIC EDUCATION, HAROLD F. ABELES Introduction Music Education in the First Half of the 20th Century Federal Education Policy and Music Education: 1950-Present Equity Issues in Music Education: 1950-Present Summary 2. MUSIC AS SOCIO-CULTURAL PHENOMENON, ROBERTA LAMB Introduction: "A Framework of Explanations" Sociology in Education, Music, and Music Education Formalism: Functionalist (Durkheim) and Rationalized (Weber) Critical Theory, The Frankfurt School, and Critical Pedagogy Interaction Theories in Education and Music Social Justice: Interactions with Webs of Difference Web of Postmodernism in Education Technology Transforming Music Education Summary 3. PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF MUSIC EDUCATION, RANDALL ALLSUP Introduction Philosophy and Education Aesthetic Philosophy Philosophical Rationales for Music in the Schools Conclusion 4. MEANING AND EXPERIENCE: THE MUSIC LEARNER, LORI CUSTODERO Introduction Musical Meaning an...
Using a regionally focused national survey of parents with 4–6-month-olds (N = 2, 250), we addres... more Using a regionally focused national survey of parents with 4–6-month-olds (N = 2, 250), we addressed associations between musical experience and the frequency and content of playing music and singing for infants. The possible mediation of a classical CD distribution to new parents in hospitals was also investigated. Five variables of experience were considered: (1) respondents' recollections of their mother or (2) father singing to them, (3) playing an instrument, (4) singing in a choir, and (5) taking music lessons. Chi-square analyses indicated that musical experience was highly associated with increased frequency of playing and singing. The content of what was played and sung was less uniformly linked, and revealed individual profiles for each mode of formal experience. Differences were found between those who did and those who did not receive the CD. Results support a systems view of the child in the context of families and society, and have implications about indirect effec...
In this symposium, three scholars present the genesis, meaning, and artfulness of creative work a... more In this symposium, three scholars present the genesis, meaning, and artfulness of creative work and its realization as aesthetic experience within three educational fields. Lori A. Custodero, working out of music education, provides a perspective emanating from an aesthetic of childhood wonder and playfulness; David T. Hansen, writing out of philosophy of education, discusses how being fully present in the teaching moment leads to meaningful experience; and Anna Neumann, who writes out of the field of higher education studies, represents scholars as engaged in intellectual pursuits, often framed aesthetically, and as struggling to hold on to precious time for creation. Aware of the inherent tensions in learning environments from child care centers to graduate schools, we address ways in which our research has revealed people’s sustained pursuit of imagined possibilities, oftentimes amidst perceived impediments. Creative work involves imagining possibilities whereby individuals, alon...
In this article, jazz music is used as a lens through which early childhood music pedagogy is vie... more In this article, jazz music is used as a lens through which early childhood music pedagogy is viewed, specifically thinking about swing and improvisation—the listening and responding to what is heard and seen, and the openness to possibility. These two concepts are defined by prominent jazz musicians and are traced in the child development literature as inherent ways of relating both to both music and others. Practice that involves finding innovative and mutually supportive ways to share musical space creates opportunities for collective growth; attending to the spaces between thematic, predetermined structures creates opportunities to observe and engage with spontaneous moments of musical innovation. Such an approach to teaching and learning suggests a theoretical framework attuned to the connections between jazz and childhood development that translates to artistically authentic classroom strategies relevant to students. Direct and indirect implications are offered.
Journal of Research in Music Education, Dec 1, 2006
This investigation is an examination of musical practices, musical preparation of teachers, and m... more This investigation is an examination of musical practices, musical preparation of teachers, and music education needs as reported by early childhood professionals in the United States. Quantitative and qualitative data were gathered via a survey mailed to a random sample drawn from the database of preschool centers accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The survey was based on criteria in the MENC national standards for pre-K music (1994b) and Opportunity-to-Learn Standards-PreK Music (1994a). Returned surveys (n = 293) reflect diversity of teacher preparation in music, how and why music is used in the early childhood curriculum, and what the music education needs are in these centers. Recommendations are offered to those concerned with the music education needs of young children and their teachers.
This study explores the musical content and human processes of improvisations of children and adu... more This study explores the musical content and human processes of improvisations of children and adults using the phenomenological lenses of time, space and responsivity. Paired improvisational performances of two late-career adult composers and two 7-year-old children were analysed considering a lifespan-related perspective involving the origins of spontaneous musical creativity associated with childhood dispositions and the musical expertise gained from practice, training and experience. Findings suggest that origins and expertise are operating in improvisational experiences of children and adults. Implications are drawn for musically meaningful research and evaluation of children's improvisations.
... Challenge: The Significance of Others Mature musicians' descriptions of perf... more ... Challenge: The Significance of Others Mature musicians' descriptions of performing and composing often allude to the importance of ~hallenge.~ Like-wise, observations of young children's spontaneous music making reflect their ability to create challenges for them-selves ...
Journal of Research in Music Education, Apr 1, 2006
This article addresses types and functions of singing practices in 10 families with 3-year-old ch... more This article addresses types and functions of singing practices in 10 families with 3-year-old children living in New York City, with illustrative cases of three families. Initial interviews were held with the parents in the families' homes. Between the initial visit and a follow-up visit 2-3 weeks later, parents observed their children and kept journals describing their engagement in music activity. Transcripts of interviews from each visit, field notes, and parent journals were reviewed for evidence of singing practices. Analyses revealed families used singing to “make special” routine activities and to create and maintain traditions. Parent and researcher observations of children's musical play were characterized by singing. Possible trends were suggested around learned song and spontaneous song. Implications for teaching and learning are considered in terms of what educators might learn from observations of both children's spontaneous play and from musical parenting. June 14, 2005 March 7, 2006
Il Symposium \ue8 stato organizzanto all'interno della 9th International Conference on Music ... more Il Symposium \ue8 stato organizzanto all'interno della 9th International Conference on Music Perception and Cognition, che ha avuto luogo a Bologna dal 22 a l 26 agosto 2006 (Universit\ue0 di Bologna). Il Symposio \ue8 stato dedicato alla Flow Theory e alle sue applicazioni nell'ambito della psicologia e pedagogia musicale. Vi hanno preso parte : L. Custodero (Columbia University), C. Trevarthen (Edinburgh University), M.Gratier (Universit\ue9 Paris X Nanterre), St. John P. (Columbia University), S. Sinnamon (University College Dublin), A. Addessi (Universit\ue0 di Bologna
ABSTRACT Explores a study that quantifies preschool children's music learning prefere... more ABSTRACT Explores a study that quantifies preschool children's music learning preferences in teacher-intitiated environments by observing the children on video to determine their flow experiences where the challenge level and skill level are both high. Stresses that using flow to measure music experiences provides a means for teachers to evaluate student responses to activities. (CMK)
Flow experience is an optimal state determined by an individual's perception of high ski... more Flow experience is an optimal state determined by an individual's perception of high skill and high challenge for a given task. In this study, young children's flow experience is examined in four naturally occurring music learning environments: infants and two-year-...
PREFACE CONTRIBUTORS 1. HISTORICAL CONTEXTS OF MUSIC EDUCATION, HAROLD F. ABELES Introduction Mus... more PREFACE CONTRIBUTORS 1. HISTORICAL CONTEXTS OF MUSIC EDUCATION, HAROLD F. ABELES Introduction Music Education in the First Half of the 20th Century Federal Education Policy and Music Education: 1950-Present Equity Issues in Music Education: 1950-Present Summary 2. MUSIC AS SOCIO-CULTURAL PHENOMENON, ROBERTA LAMB Introduction: "A Framework of Explanations" Sociology in Education, Music, and Music Education Formalism: Functionalist (Durkheim) and Rationalized (Weber) Critical Theory, The Frankfurt School, and Critical Pedagogy Interaction Theories in Education and Music Social Justice: Interactions with Webs of Difference Web of Postmodernism in Education Technology Transforming Music Education Summary 3. PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF MUSIC EDUCATION, RANDALL ALLSUP Introduction Philosophy and Education Aesthetic Philosophy Philosophical Rationales for Music in the Schools Conclusion 4. MEANING AND EXPERIENCE: THE MUSIC LEARNER, LORI CUSTODERO Introduction Musical Meaning an...
Using a regionally focused national survey of parents with 4–6-month-olds (N = 2, 250), we addres... more Using a regionally focused national survey of parents with 4–6-month-olds (N = 2, 250), we addressed associations between musical experience and the frequency and content of playing music and singing for infants. The possible mediation of a classical CD distribution to new parents in hospitals was also investigated. Five variables of experience were considered: (1) respondents' recollections of their mother or (2) father singing to them, (3) playing an instrument, (4) singing in a choir, and (5) taking music lessons. Chi-square analyses indicated that musical experience was highly associated with increased frequency of playing and singing. The content of what was played and sung was less uniformly linked, and revealed individual profiles for each mode of formal experience. Differences were found between those who did and those who did not receive the CD. Results support a systems view of the child in the context of families and society, and have implications about indirect effec...
In this symposium, three scholars present the genesis, meaning, and artfulness of creative work a... more In this symposium, three scholars present the genesis, meaning, and artfulness of creative work and its realization as aesthetic experience within three educational fields. Lori A. Custodero, working out of music education, provides a perspective emanating from an aesthetic of childhood wonder and playfulness; David T. Hansen, writing out of philosophy of education, discusses how being fully present in the teaching moment leads to meaningful experience; and Anna Neumann, who writes out of the field of higher education studies, represents scholars as engaged in intellectual pursuits, often framed aesthetically, and as struggling to hold on to precious time for creation. Aware of the inherent tensions in learning environments from child care centers to graduate schools, we address ways in which our research has revealed people’s sustained pursuit of imagined possibilities, oftentimes amidst perceived impediments. Creative work involves imagining possibilities whereby individuals, alon...
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