An Examination of before and after Rehearsal Pitch Tendencies of String and Wind Musicians

The purpose of this study was to examine the before and after rehearsal pitch tendencies of college string and wind musicians and compare possible: (1) differences in pitch before and after rehearsal, (2) differences in pitch between string and wind musicians and (3) differences between string and wind musicians’ reported tuning practices. Participants consisted of 59 college musicians (30 string musicians and 29 wind musicians). Prior to a large ensemble rehearsal, all musicians were individually recorded playing a concert A without tuning. Musicians participated in a rehearsal and again recorded their concert A immediately following the rehearsal. Mean pitches of string and wind groups were significantly different before the rehearsal compared to after rehearsal. Both groups of musicians’ mean pitch level increased from before to after rehearsal, particularly for the wind group. Responses collected through a tuning questionnaire found that string musicians reported tuning more often and with others, and wind musicians reported using a tuner more often.