Formation of students’ intercultural competence through ensemble performance on wind instruments

Abstract

In the context of the intensification of globalization processes and the growth of multiculturalism in the educational space, the aim of the study was to theoretically substantiate and empirically verify the effectiveness of ensemble playing on wind instruments as a means of forming students' intercultural competence. A three year longitudinal study was conducted on the basis of institutions of secondary vocational education and additional training systems with the participation of 248 brass musicians aged 14-19 years, stratified by instrument type and divided into control and experimental groups with a comparable baseline level of intercultural sensitivity. The methodological apparatus included a modified scale of intercultural sensitivity by M. Bennett, a questionnaire of empathic tendencies by A. Mehrabian and N. Epstein, expert maps for assessing ensemble cohesion, analysis of repertoire policy, content analysis of video recordings of rehearsals and concerts, as well as mathematical and statistical data processing in the SPSS Statistics 26.0 package (Student's t-test, correlation, factor and variance analysis). The experimental group implemented a multicultural program focused on the performance of folklore and composer music of various ethnic groups with a mandatory analysis of the cultural and historical context. The results showed statistically significant outstripping growth of cognitive (knowledge of the stylistics and cultural context of world music), emotive (empathy, tolerance to otherness) and conative (ensemble cohesion, adaptability to a different musical language) components of intercultural competence compared with the control, as well as a decrease in intra-group variability of indicators in the experiment. Dynamic flexibility and intonational accuracy are closely related to the level of intercultural sensitivity, which is interpreted as a manifestation of empathic listening to a partner in the context of collective music making. It is shown that the integration of a multicultural repertoire and specially organized ensemble communication generates a steady increase in cognitive activity in relation to other peoples' cultures and contributes to the prevention of ethnocentrism and xenophobia among young people, which makes it possible to recommend the developed model for implementation in the programs of music colleges and art schools.