Effect of Laban Movement on Gesture Recognition and Response of Seventh- and Eighth-Grade Band Students

• In Event: AERA Graduate Student Research-in-Progress Session 4
  In Roundtable Session: Teacher Training, Practice, and Retention in Music Education (Table 15)

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to analyze the potential relationship of Laban Movement Analysis with conducting. LMA is a vocabulary developed by modern dancer Rudolf Laban to analyze movement. In this study, I aimed to investigate the effect of Laban instruction on the recognition and performance response to movement gestures among seventh- and eighth-grade band students. Students took three assessments (written and performance based) before and after five movement sessions to measure for changes in the perceptions of their learning. I used a quantitative one-group pre-test post-test design to answer the overarching research question: Can middle school students recognize Laban movements when used by a conductor and respond appropriately musically?

Author

• Ashlen Udell, Rutgers University