The Music Lecture as Gestalt
Psychologists have long recognized that student learning is facilitated when the details and subdivisions of any topic are understood in relation to larger contexts, connections are made within the “parts and the “whole,”, and patterns are recognized within a domain of study. Students, however, in the beginning stages of learning, lack the prerequisite knowledge to construct larger frames of reference important for learning. Even more advanced students benefit greatly from a professor who is able to draw connections in inspiring ways. These points have tremendous implications for the value of the music lecture in the hands of a professor who expertly “placards” a larger picture or “gestalt” for the students and makes connections between seemingly isolated events. I hope to persuade the reader that in all levels of learning, the lecture can provide context and a motivational example of organized thought, thereby enhancing learning, critical thinking, and memory performance.
Learning can be defined as a change in long-term memory1 and a relatively permanent change in behavior that can be objectively observed.2 This observable behavior could be anything from the avoidance of a hot surface, taking an exam, or playing a violin. Any discussion regarding the effectiveness of the lecture needs to address the question of whether it is an effective tool to effect long-term change in the learner. If not, then other tools must be sought.
Since learning is defined as a change in long-term-memory (LTM), it is worthwhile to examine studies regarding the nature of LTM. Through an array of creative experiments, scientists have generally concluded that the brain stores information in the form of schemas: knowledge structures that organize information in a hierarchical and interconnected way.3 Piaget referred to schema as a “construction of reality” that is used to interpret new events.4 The inherent organization and interconnectedness of knowledge in LTM has strong implications for learning. For instance, by the end of the 1970s, it was already observed that people are more likely to remember information if it is connected to a central theme than information that is not.5
Going back to the 1930s, Frederick Bartlett (1886-1969) who coined the term “schema,” concluded that attaching meaning to information plays a fundamental role in memory. He referred to this process as an effort after meaning.6 In other words, memory is selective – people tend to remember that which seems most important to them – and interpretive – people attach meaning to what they remember.7 Interpretation and meaning can be as simple as assuming a bad motive for being cut off in traffic to a more sophisticated perspective of viewing music from the late 16th century to the late 20th century through the lens of modernity.8
Gestalt psychology, which began in the early 20th century, observed that people tend to perceptually organize their environment into patterns or by grouping “parts” into “wholes.” Perhaps you have noticed this tendency in yourself when you saw that rabbit or dog in the clouds. Experiments continued and in 1941 it was observed that young students, when presented with new material, organized and simplified it into meaningful patterns.9 Similarly, Cronbach noted in the 1950s that people look for the simplest patterns to summarize main facts.10
Gestalt psychologist Max Wertheimer wrote, “In human terms there is at the bottom the desire, the craving to face the true issue, the structural core, the radix of the situation . . . ”11 Some will immediately discern the humanistic thrust of Wertheimer’s statement. In fact, Gestalt psychology was the first humanistic psychology, unpacking perception from a distinctly human perspective. Part of being human, in virtual all developmental levels, is to make order from chaos, construct patterns, affix meaning, make associations, and establish connections between events and concepts.
Max Wertheimer (1880-1943), Kurt Koffka (1886-1941), and Wolfgang Köhler (1887-1967) were credited with this new approach to psychology that contrasted with the dominant behaviorist model at the time. Gestalt is roughly translated from the German as “form,” “configuration,” or “pattern” and may be better known by Kurt Koffka’s famous summary, “The whole is different from the sum of its parts.” The more popular rendition of “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts” is an incorrect translation of Koffka’s phraseand has resulted in confusion.12 “Greater than” may imply a value judgement, which is not the intention at all. “Different from” simply means that the attributes of the whole are distinct from the attributes of the individual parts.
To get at what Koffka meant, music of the common practice period (ca. 1650-1900) can provide an illustration. One way to understand music of this era is as a complex set of interactions between rhythm, harmony, timbre, texture, form, melody – to name a few – that result in a new set of attributes that comprise the whole. From this perspective, all the individual parts contribute to and can be said to derive “meaning” from the whole. These parts can be further subdivided into “smaller wholes” with their own inherent interactions. For instance, the resulting sound of combining instruments together or “orchestration” is distinct from the sounds of the individual instruments in isolation. Similarly, a melody has its own characteristics that differentiate it from the isolated notes and rhythms that comprise it: shape, intervals, and pacing. One can further subdivide these melodic parts into smaller wholes. Pitches, for example, are comprised of fundamentals and overtones that together formulate the tone color we hear in conjunction with the pitch. Moreover, rhythms unfold and must be understood by their relationship to time.
To take this idea further, individual compositions, while wholes unto themselves, are part of still larger contexts. Works of individual composers can be grouped into compositional periods, such as Mahler’s folk, neo-classical, and eclectic periods. To widen the lens even further, composers’ outputs are part of larger stylistic eras, such as the romantic, classical, and baroque periods. Stylistic periods also find their context in economic trends, such as the growth of the middle class during the 18th century, intellectual movements such as 16th century humanism, and catastrophic events such as World War II, all of which were deeply felt within the arts. Replete throughout history are complex interactions between extra musical events and compositional styles. These interactions are part of sophisticated knowledge structures expressed in differing musicological theories and interpretations. This is human nature on display: the craving and searching for more accurate and complete organizations of complex phenomena. The expert eventually weaves an astonishingly complex web of hierarchies, wholes, parts, relations, associations, and interactions that comprise an impressive gestalt stored in the schema of LTM.
The highly organized schema in experts has several benefits relating to memory, one being superior recall of information related to their field. For instance, experts often have better recall of episodic information (i.e. personal experiences) related to their domain of study:
Routine experts differ from novices both in the structure of domain-related knowledge and in the ability to retrieve episodic domain-related information . . . With certain exceptions, experts exhibit superior episodic memory for domain-typical information largely because they can directly access LTM to rapidly and reliably encode and retrieve the information, rather than maintaining it in short term memory (STM).13
Episodic memory is not the only area where recall is improved in experts. In a study done by Chase and Simon (1973), chess masters were better able to remember chess pieces in middle and end game positions after a five second exposure time than novices: 90% accuracy verses 40%.14 The advantage disappeared if the chess pieces were not organized according to patterns seen in chess games (i.e. “domain-typical” patterns). The improved memory specific to domain-related patterns is not only regulated to chess but can be found in many other fields as well.15 One researcher summarized the findings of the study:
Examined in more detail, the findings suggested that the advantage enjoyed by the chess masters stemmed from their ability to perceive the chessboard as an organized whole, rather than as a collection of individual pieces.16
So complex schemas aid the expert in recall and learning. This is all wonderful for the expert but most of our students are not yet at this level. The good news is that when new information is organized at the time of learning – in a sense providing an external schema – novice learners display better recall. In a study done by Bransford and Johnson, participants were given this passage without any pre-organizing information17:
The procedure is actually quite simple. First you arrange items into different groups. Of course one pile may be sufficient depending on how much there is to do. If you have to go somewhere else due to the lack of facilities that is the next step; otherwise you are pretty well set. It is important not to overdo things. That is, it is better to do too few things at once than too many.18
Not surprisingly, this passage was difficult for the participants to comprehend and recall even when the title, Washing Clothes, was offered after the fact. Only when the title was given in advance was comprehension and recall improved.19
To summarize, existing evidence shows that the human brain stores information in LTM, not as isolated and random bits of information, but in hierarchically organized schemas that are interconnected. We tend to remember new information if we can relate it to an existing schema or are provided with an organizational framework at the time of learning. Memory and therefore learning is intimately tied to hierarchical organization, organized wholes, relating facts to a central theme, context, patterns, interpretation, interconnectedness, meaning, and associations.
Having provided a brief background on memory and learning, the question remaining is how the instructor of music history or theory can make applications to teaching. Considering what has been presented thus far, one way to view education is the assisting of students in organizing their thoughts. This applies to novice students or those pursuing advanced degrees. The strategies for this endeavor can be subdivided into two main parts:
1. Providing students with existing structures of thought in a domain of study;
2. Challenging students to analyze and question these structures to improve upon them or to come up with theories of their own.
The first of the two proposals, providing students with existing structures of knowledge, can be done through readings, videos, and lectures by the professor or guest speakers. As mentioned previously, the professor can provide for novice students what they are unable to give themselves: a context for new information. Moreover, advanced students, even professors, can be inspired and motivated by an expert presentation that offers a fresh perspective on a domain of study. I imagine many reading this book have experienced exactly what I am referring to. Many of us admire scholars in our field that have made tremendous impacts on our intellectual life. We are drawn to their clarity of thought, perceptiveness, and architecture of their argument. They are great examples to motivate our own intellectual pursuits.
A well-organized system of thought has its own innate beauty that sparks the imagination much like a great work of art or music. The association between speech and music is well documented, not just because music of differing cultures seems to reflect the characteristics of speech from those respective countries, but because many composers and orators throughout history have seen a close connection between music and the spoken arts. This connection has origins in the ancients and is evident during the baroque period when even instrumental music was understood as an expression of rhetorical techniques and aims. Rhetoric and music are close cousins with overlapping purposes. Music and rhetoric alike make a case, seek to persuade, and “move the affections.” Could not the lecture at minimum be a source of motivation and inspiration for students? Perhaps the growing lack of interest in the lecture has its roots in the lost art of oratory that was once standard for all education. An outgoing and flamboyant personality is not necessary for a well-delivered presentation; the power of ideas is itself compelling, evidenced by many popular TED Talk lectures.
The second proposal, that education involves encouraging students to analyze and question existing intellectual structures or theories, could be the domain of what is today called “active learning.” Max Wertheimer, in his book Productive Thinking, recounts hours spent with Einstein to determine the steps in his thinking that led to the theory of relativity. Below is a basic summary of Wertheimer’s analysis of productive thinking, which at its core has the goal of “structural improvements”;
1. Structural analysis that identifies the “trouble regions,” “gaps,” “disturbances,” and “superficialities” that stand in the way of achieving the structure;
2. Addressing the gaps in the structure;
3. Since the parts interact, changing a part of the structure will necessitate a restructuring of the whole.20
Major restructurings are far more advanced and might win you a Nobel Prize, but smaller restructurings are proposed all the time. As Max Wertheimer wrote in Productive Thinking, the goal is “looking for structural rather than piecemeal truth.”21
So, to clarify, while proposing that the lecture still has a place in higher education, I do not mean to imply that “active learning” is invalid.22 Active learning continues to be a part in even the most traditional classroom in the form of papers and homework assignments. A student “constructing their own learning” is certainly valuable and is the flip side of memory being a “reconstruction” rather than a “reproduction,” in the words of Frederick Bartlett.23 Students need to develop an independence in their thinking and research, construct their own schema, and look for improvements and weaknesses in current theories and ideas. They need to formulate an argument, present their findings, face challenges, and defend them. They can only become skilled at this by doing. As students become more advanced, professors can reasonable expect more from them in this regard. And certainly, there can be advantages and a convenience to students engaging in active learning during class time with the professor present. However, students are not only in need of developing critical thinking skills but are equally in need of examples and organization provided by the professor. To refuse students of this is akin to learning to play the cello without ever listening to a professional cellist. Afterall, what better role model for students then their own professors?
Lee Cronbach (1916-2001), a significant figure in the field of psychological testing and educational psychology, provided valuable recommendations for the introduction of new material in the classroom:
The person hearing or reading a complex communication about unfamiliar material cannot store the incoming pieces of the message efficiently unless he perceives the general direction the argument is taking. Without that overall conception, he has to store sentences one at a time, with consequent distortion and rapid loss. If properly oriented to the communication at the onset, he calls upon his background of relevant images and uses them to interpret the new communication. It is well, then, to begin an instructional communication with some kind of initial orientation . . . When the nature of any detail is determined by the whole – and this is true of machines, scientific theories, literature, and history – then understanding of the part must wait on comprehension of the whole. Before presenting details, it is wise to give a general overview so that each part will be more meaningful . . . The organization that seems to be the most useful generally is the whole-then-part approach.24
While Cronbach does not specifically mention it, implied is a dynamic interplay between the parts and the whole in which the instructor points the attention of the students sometimes to the whole, at other times to the mastery of the parts, and still at other times to the meaningful relations between the parts. As a result, I prefer to think of the rhythm of teaching as a pendulating whole-part-whole design. This approach reflects the way our own LTM stores information and sets the student on the path to a deeper comprehension of the subject matter.
This approach can be applied to the music history lecture in any number of ways. In music history classes, I typically present a broad overview of the topic at the beginning of the semester. One possibility is to paint in broad brush strokes the musical periods to be covered, drawing comparisons and contrasts between them. In this case the “whole” is musical time periods and would be appropriate for a class focusing on a history of musical styles. Another option is to begin with broad musical characteristics that apply to all cultures, time periods, and styles, emphasizing the similarities of musical expression.
Here the “whole” is music itself and might be appropriate in a world music class or in a class that will emphasize the similarities between time periods. Still another example is to provide an overview of extra musical events that took place during the time period in question, making references to the influences these historical events had on music. This would be an even larger “whole” than the previous two and would emphasize how music reflects and interacts with socio-political events, intellectual movements, religious beliefs, and broader culture. Another possibility is an overview of the lineage of compositional influence, emphasizing the family tree in music history, showing as in a domino effect the organic emergence and connectedness of composers through musical time periods. In this fourth example, the whole is an unfolding chronology of influence, not unlike a slowly developing minimalist work by Phillip Glass, yet with sudden changes interjected. This would be well suited to a chronological approach to music history and its advantage would be to show the connectedness between seemingly disperate styles. An incredible array of options is available to the professor in deciding the big picture to which the subdivisions will relate throughout the semester.
In music appreciation classes, I also attempt to relate new information to other topics the students are likely familiar with or may connect to, allowing them to attach meaning to an unfamiliar musical tradition. For example, I have compared Aaron Copland to John Mellencamp as examples of “heartland” composers. I have also compared 12-tone music to No wave avant-garde rock music in their use of dissonance and atonality. These comparisons are not perfect but allow students to make meaningful associations and may provide shortcuts to LTM.
Music theory courses, which traditionally tend to be lighter on lecture and more focused on in-class learning, can benefit greatly from an pendulating whole-part-whole approach. Much music theory curriculum has tended towards a part-then-whole approach, starting with the basic elements of theory such as the staff, clefs, pitch, scales, circle of fifths, and key signatures followed by examples from the literature to illustrate the points. Another approach is to start with compositional scores from which the same components mentioned above are extracted but are now seen in a musical context. Pieces can be chosen to illustrate differing scales, clefs, key signatures and so on.
This is especially helpful for vocal or music theatre students who do not always have the same background in reading music as instrumental majors. It is recommended to listen to the piece first or perhaps sing it, if appropriate. After moving from the composition to focusing on mastering the parts, returning to the score can then illustrate how the parts interact, providing opportunities for analysis. This basic instructional rhythm has also been suggested by Swanson and Law.25 A pendulating whole-part-whole approach can be utilized for any level of music theory. The focus on musical context also prevents music theory from becoming a sterile exercise in the minds of the students and demonstrates that all analysis, in the end, is a musical, interpretive exercise.
In this chapter I have sought to persuade the reader, without negating the role of independent learning, that expert instruction in the form of the lecture has a vital place in higher education. If done correctly, students can be presented with context, organization for new material, and a model for thinking, hopefully being inspired in the process. Emphasizing a pendulating whole-part-whole approach reflects the way our LTM stores information and provides opportunities for the professor to aid students in the development of schema. A whole array of possibilities is available that invite creativity on the part of the professor.
Notes
1 P. A. Kirschner, J. S. Sweller, R. E. Clark, “Why Minimal Guidance During Instruction Does Not Work: An Analysis of the Failure of Constructivist, Discovery, Problem-Based, Experiential, and Inquiry-Based Teaching.” Educational Psychologist, 41/2 (2006): 77.
2 M. Haselgrove, Learning: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016), 22.
3 E. Tulving, F. I. M. Craik, eds., The Oxford Handbook of Memory (Oxford: Oxford university Press, 2000), 114.
4 L. J. Cronbach, Educational Psychology, 3rd edition (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc., 1977), 328.
5 C. H. Stilwell, A. B. Markman, “Schema-driven Memory and Structural Alignment.” Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society, 25/25 (2003): 1122.
6 J. K. Foster, Memory: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009), 65.
7 Foster, Memory: A Very Short Introduction, 8.
8 J. Johnson, Out of Time: Music and the Making of Modernity (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015).
9 H. Gertrude, “The Difficulty Reduction Tendency in Perception and Problem Solving.” Journal of Educational Psychology, 32 (1941): 305-13.
10 L. J. Cronbach, Educational Psychology (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, Inc., 1954), 279.
11 M. Wertheimer, Productive Thinking (New York: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1945), 191.
12 G. M. Heider, “More about Hull and Koffka.” American Psychologist 32 (1977), 383.
13 E. Tulving, F. I. M. Craik, eds., The Oxford Handbook of Memory, 114.
14 W. G. Chase, H. A. Simon, “Perception in chess.” Cognitive Psychology, 4/1 (1977): 55-81.
15 E. Tulving, F. I. M. Craik, eds., The Oxford Handbook of Memory, 115.
16 J. K. Foster, Memory: A Very Short Introduction, 64.
17 J. D. Bransford, M. K. Johnson, “Contextual Prerequisites for Understand: Some Investigations of Comprehension and Recall.” Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior 11 (1972): 717-26.
18 Ibid., 722.
19 Ibid., 724
20 M. Wertheimer, Productive Thinking, 190-1.
21 Ibid., 191.
22 I only object to what is implied by the phrase “active learning”; namely, that listening to comprehend is properly described as “passive.”
23 Foster, Memory: A Very Short Introduction, 9.
24 Cronbach, Educational Psychology, 3rd edition, 522-3.
25 R. A. Swanson, B. D. Law, “Whole-Part-Whole Learning Model.” Performance Improvement Quarterly 6/1 (1993): 43-53.
This excerpt is from The College Lecture Today: An Interdisciplinary Defense of the Contemporary University (Lexington Books, 2019).
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