Variation as a musical form and a didactic principle in arts education

Abstract

The purpose of the study: to examine variation as a musical universal and as a didactic principle in teaching art disciplines in general secondary education.

Methods: functional, analytical, axiological, comparative, and logical-systemic methods were used, together with the comparative-studies method to generalize practical experience of using different art forms in work with pupils.

Scientific novelty: the category of “variation” in art studies is examined comprehensively and its role as a didactic principle of learning is substantiated. The concept of variation form in music and its features are considered, and the notions of “variation” and “variance” are distinguished. Variation is shown to underlie the development of flexible and creative thinking of learners in arts education; the systemic and logical basis of the variation principle, which evolves together with the transformation of single-subject lessons into the multi-art learning of the New Ukrainian School, is substantiated.

Results: practical cases of using variation in art-pedagogical methods (the “listening pause” method) are proposed, which is an important factor in supporting pupils’ emotional state in wartime. Examples of using national and world heritage (“A Cossack Rode beyond the Danube”, W. A. Mozart’s variations, M. Leontovych’s “Shchedryk”) for developing soft skills in art perception are given. The application of the variation principle in creating art projects in basic school is shown through the transformation of the theme “Fashion as a social and cultural phenomenon”.

Conclusions: the concept of variation is significant far beyond art studies, where it characterizes the form of a musical work: it extends to the learning process aimed at developing learners’ flexible thinking in perceiving and analysing works of art and their desire to engage in creative activity.