Effects of Performer Attractiveness, Stage Behavior, and Dress on Evaluation of Children's Piano Performances

The purpose of this study was to determine whether selected nonmusical attributes of sixth-grade pianists would affect ratings of their performances. Twenty pianists (10 girl and 10 boys) were videotaped. They and their performances were rated by 123 musically trained evaluators. Members of the visual group viewed a videotape with the sound turned off. They rated pianists on appropriateness of dress, stage behavior, and physical attractiveness. These ratings were the basis for grouping students as being high or low on each of these three attributes. Audiovisual and audio group members rated musical performance on five test items. Results revealed support for the existence of a bias: although high pianists were rated higher than low pianists under the audio condition for all three attributes, the differences between them often were significantly greater under the audiovisual condition than under the audio-only condition. In addition, and unlike finding of earlier studies, videotaped performances were not rated higher than audiotaped performances. Also, female judges were more lenient than male judges. Finally, male and female pianists were affected differently by nonmusical attributes for about half of the test items.