The Effect of Evaluation Strategy and Music Performance Presentation Format on Score Variability of Music Students’ Performance Assessment

The present study aims to investigate the score variability of music performance evaluation according to two factors: the music performance presentation format (audio versus audio-visual presentation of students’ music performance) and the evaluation strategy (global versus segmented evaluation of students’ music performance). A growing body of literature has previously suggested that these two factors tend to significantly modify the scores of music performance evaluations. We recorded 50 undergraduate music students in standard conditions and we used a panel of expert evaluators in order to assess them by combining two conditions: audio/audio-visual presentation and global/segmented evaluation strategy. Results have shown that the use of segmented scale determines higher ratings for the technical level and lower ratings for the expression of music performance.