A Study of the Learning and Teaching Processes of Non-Naive Music Students Engaged in Composition

The inclusion of composition as an important aspect of the music curriculum can be supported on the grounds that it is a unique way of knowing music, and that through participation in the process of composing, students are required to use their musical knowledge in a creative way. It is argued that current theory on the teaching and learning of composition is insufficient in that it does not clarify the conditions most appropriate for student initiative or control in learning, nor the possible importance of prior knowledge.