Work Type
Article
Publication Date
2024
Department
Professional Music
Keywords
Timing; professional musicians; music performance; business management; interpretative phenomenological analysis; interdisciplinary research
Abstract
Timing, a critical aspect in social contexts and human cognition, has been extensively studied across diverse fields, such as biology, neuroscience, and business. However, there is a lack of interdisciplinary approaches that offer fresh perspectives on how timing works. Music performance, being inherently temporal in nature, presents a unique opportunity to bridge this gap and explore timing mechanisms in a multifaceted context. This research explores how professional musicians understand and utilize timing in their training and artistic development, and how these insights can be applied to business contexts, bridging the two fields to understand timing more comprehensively. Through a qualitative approach based on interpretative phenomenological analysis methodology, eight professional contemporary musicians from around the world shared how they make sense of timing. The findings indicate that musicians perceive timing as a vital, complex concept that requires very specific listening skills and metacognition. The process of mastering timing is extremely challenging, yet rewarding. Moreover, timing is seen as an elastic concept that transcends chronological characteristics and one can create conditions to recognize good timing. The study also discusses how these findings can be translated into business settings, supported by current theories and literature, to inform leaders and managers about what it means to apply them to their business circumstances. In conclusion, this research opens new conversations and formulates new questions to draw insights on timing, which can be expanded further through new interdisciplinary approaches.
Recommended Citation
Seol, Ray Haeng Soo EdD and van Zyl, Barry MBA, "Timing Matters: Applying Musicians’ Insights to Business" (2024). Faculty Works.
https://remix.berklee.edu/faculty-works/85
Comments
This article was published by the Henley Centre for Leadership Africa.