Determining what expert piano sight-readers have in common

Authors

P F. Arthur
Eleanor A. McPhee, University of WollongongFollow
D Blom

RIS ID

144111

Publication Details

Arthur, P., McPhee, E. & Blom, D. "Determining what expert piano sight-readers have in common." Music Education Research (2020):

Abstract

© 2020, © 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Music sight-reading is a valuable skill that eludes and frustrates many musicians. Techniques for teaching sight-reading are varied, with teachers mostly falling back on personal experience or simply hoping that, somehow, the penny will drop for the student. This study reports on a survey of the music learning and playing habits of expert and non-expert piano sight-readers. Pianists were categorised as ‘experts’ according to their ability to perfectly perform a 6th Grade AMEB (Australian Music Examinations Board) sight-reading assessment piece. This grouping was determined by the analysis of eye movement patterns as pianists performed various sight-reading tasks (Arthur 2017). The data show significant differences in musical training and performance experiences between the two groups.