Abstract
The purpose of this project was to consolidate information through a literature review of sound-before-sight approaches, including the Kodály Concept, Orff-Schulwerk Approach, Dalcroze Eurhythmics, and Gordon’s Music Learning Theory, as used in the beginning band classroom in order to find realistic and practical ways to bridge the gap between elementary general music and beginning instrumental instruction. This review included the history of the rote-note controversy and prominent sound-before-sight approaches and a discussion of musical understanding, the role of notation in learning, and the call for the use of sound-before-sight approaches in the beginning band context. Practical issues of instrumental instruction and collaboration between K-12 colleagues and disciplines were noted and current incorporation of sound-before-sight strategies were overviewed from the literature, including method books and supplements available at the time of writing. Sound-before-sight strategies have become more widely used in the beginning band classroom, but they are still underutilized. As the benefits of the use of sound-before-sight are discovered by more instructors, more ways of incorporating sound-before-sight will be employed and the musical understanding of students will continue to increase.