Developing a Sight-Reading Pedagogy for the Brass Studio: The Use of Supplemental Material to Improve Sight-Reading Ability

The purpose of this dissertation is to outline an effective pedagogical approach to advancing the sight-reading skills of brass musicians. Guided by the underlining cognitive mechanism of schema and the findings of Jennifer Mishra’s meta-analysis, training of fundamental skills correlated to sight-reading ability is the most efficient method for improving sight-reading ability. Included within this study are practice techniques and supplemental materials that are conducive to the advancement of sight-reading ability.  Rather than practicing sight-reading to advance that particular skill, the benefits of sight-reading training could include an accelerated learning process, a broadened knowledge of musical patterns, and a greater cognitive efficiency in music making.  In this way, the musician is not just training one auxiliary skill, but improving themselves as a whole.  In this sense, sight-reading training is the key for musicians to be successful in the competitive musical circuit.