Pannoniana (Jan 2016)
Intercultural content in grammar school music instruction in Central European countries
Abstract
Music instruction is an area which requires the development of intercultural competences of learners, because music is essentially a multicultural art. Numerous nations have taken part in the historical development of music, and music has developed by interweaving creativity of different communities and different cultures. In music lessons students listen to the music of their own country, and to the music of other nations. By getting to know their own culture they develop awareness of their own cultural identity, whereas by listening to the music of other nations they learn about other cultures, which contributes to the development of interculturalism. The curricula of music lessons in grammar schools in Central European countries are analysed in this paper. The aim of the research is to show to which extent music instruction is based on interculturalism. The results show that intercultural content is inadequately represented in music instruction, and in some cases not represented at all. This means that the development of intercultural competence of students during music instruction remains mostly at a declarative level. We believe that the progress in the creation of educational content with respect to intercultural education during music instruction is possible through exposure to non-European music traditions and cultures, as well as to those of less known European cultures.
