The 'Asian success' - why? : a local pilot study

Abstract

Bases the study on the observation that music students of Asian origin appear to excel in performance of Western classical music as compared with students of European origin. Surveys 51 students learning piano from 5 selected teachers practising in Christchurch. Piano teachers and parents also participated. Looks at the age range of students, ethnic origin of those born and those not born in NZ, length of time the migrant students had lived in NZ, age at which music lessons were begun, number of instruments learned for a period of more than a year, practice as a ratio of grade level, reasons for amount of practice, the number of musical activities engaged in, and parents' musical aspirations for their children. Includes a summary of comments by teachers, parents and students