Interval Identification Predicts Success in Melodic Dictation

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate possible predictive relationships between interval identification and melodic dictation performance on tasks where students identify short pitch spans after a brief tonicization. College musicians ( N = 35) completed an interval identification test and a series of melodic dictation tasks. Results indicated that interval identification and melodic dictation tests reflected a battery of items ranging from very easy to very difficult with acceptable Cronbach’s α levels. We conducted a two-stage hierarchical regression analysis to examine the extent to which interval identification served as a predictor of melodic dictation accuracy while controlling for selected music and demographic variables. Results indicated that interval identification served as a significant predictor of melodic dictation scores, contributing 28.9% of the variance in melodic dictation scores while controlling for musical experience variables. The analysis indicated a dictation task by interval ability interaction based on grouping by lower, mid-, and upper performing groups on the interval identification test. Issues in measurement of melodic dictation accuracy and strategies that affect the development of melodic dictation skills are discussed.