Community-dwelling older adults, music education, and performance self-efficacy: Comparing two improvisational methods

Community-dwelling older adults and research on various ways to manage their human condition is growing. There is evidence that music, particularly music learning and developing music performance self-efficacy, is enriching for older adults. Within this discourse, music improvisation for older adults is an emerging research domain. Jaques-Dalcroze improvisation method in learning music is evidenced to have therapeutic effectiveness for older adults. Free improvisation method involves participants’ agencies and subjectivities as the focal point of music-making. This article reports a study on the impact of music lessons using the free improvisation method compared to the Jaques-Dalcroze improvisation method, both delivered online, on music performance self-efficacy of community-dwelling older adults. Participants of the free improvisation music lessons reported higher posttest scores on the music performance self-efficacy measure compared to participants of the Jaques-Dalcroze improvisation cohort, with moderately strong effect sizes. Music lessons using the free improvisation method were more effective for older adult women, older adults with higher formal education, and participants who attended 21–40 ( > 50%) lessons and completed corresponding independent home learning lessons (IHLL). Research and praxis could further focus on varied nuances of the free improvisation method in music instruction for older adults to promote their music performance self-efficacy.