Psychological Factors of Preference for Academic Music

Abstract

The willingness to listen to a new musical work is an important element for the artistic culture development, especially during school years. This topic has been at the center of concerns of specialists both in the field of education and in that of psychology. Thus, in the 90s, Albert LeBlanc scientifically demonstrated the theory of musical openness, using a group of 2262 subjects, measuring exactly how receptivity to an unfamiliar work depends on age and musical style. Thus, he highlighted that the highest level of openness is found before the age of 8 and in young adults, while the lowest level is found in adolescence and old age. The rise and fall of musical openness has been shown for fragments of academic music, jazz and rock. His discoveries were the starting point for a multitude of experiments that have extended to the present day, confirming and customizing LeBlanc’s theory, taking into account the socio-cultural environment, musical experience, educational strategies and other elements of musical discourse. The present analysis represents a review of the most important studies carried out in this research direction. The interpretation of the results sheds light on a series of educational implications, as well as ways to promote academic musical performances among young people.