ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that some of the findings discussed in research on musical behaviour as well as psychology, with the belief, and in doing so it is hoped that the teacher's work may become more effective. The question of how musicians learn to play their instruments has interested scholars for a century. In a memorization experiment, A.C. Lehmann discovered that transposition was the most difficult task for all participants, and a correlation between speed of memorization and transposition performance was found. In performance studies mental representation of music has been discussed as a performance plan which is realized on an instrument through the execution of carefully matched motor programs. The chapter indicates that audiences and performers appear to have a mental representation of musical structure which shapes their listening, performing and rehearsing behaviours. The approach to meaning implies that teachers can help students to understand both compositional and interpretational style in an immediate and personalized manner.
