T he present study has investigated the minimal-distance hypothesis in music ( Langlois & Roggman, 1990 ; Repp, 1997 ) by replicating Repp's original study (1997) on the aesthetic quality of an averaged performance—compared to individual interpretations—of Robert Schumann's Träumerei (Op. 15, No. 7). Participants ( N = 205) came from Germany and Taiwan and made up a convenience sample representing different degrees of musical sophistication. We used a 2 × 4 mixed methods design that compared the country of data collection (between factor) and the four selected interpretations (within factor). The dependent variable was a unidimensional construct describing the musical quality, which was developed with an exploratory factor analysis followed by a probabilistic item analysis. It was found that the evaluation of Taiwanese and German participants did not differ, but the ratings for the various interpretations successfully replicated Repp's results: The average performance was rated better than the individual performances, and the lowest rated performance from the original study was rated lowest in this replication as well (large effect size). The confirmation of this central effect in music perception research might be an incentive for further replication studies in music psychology.

the visual component of music performance as experienced in a live concert is of central importance for the appreciation of music performance. However, up until now the influence of the visual component on the evaluation of music performance has remained unquantified in terms of effect size estimations. Based on a meta-analysis of 15 aggregated studies on audio-visual music perception (total N = 1,298), we calculated the average effect size of the visual component in music performance appreciation by subtracting ratings for the audio-only condition from those for the audio-visual condition. The outcome focus was on evaluation ratings such as liking, expressiveness, or overall quality of musical performances. For the first time, this study reveals an average medium effect size of 0.51 standard deviations — Cohen's d ; 95% CI (0.42, 0.59) — for the visual component. Consequences for models of intermodal music perception and experimental planning are addressed.

THIS EXPLORATIVE STUDY INVESTIGATES THE PERCEPTION of clash of keys in music. It is a replication and extension of an earlier study by Wolpert (2000) on the perception of a harmonic (bitonal) manipulation of a melody and accompaniment. We investigated (a) how reliable results were, (b) how results would change if listeners' attention changed from nondirected (NDL) to directed listening (DL), and (c) whether the perception of clash of keys is influenced by the musical style of the particular composition. Participants included 101 expert listeners and 147 nonexpert listeners who evaluated music of four different styles in two versions each (original and with a pitch difference of 200 cents between melody and accompaniment). On the whole, expert listeners noticed the clash of keys significantly more often than did nonexperts (NDL: 49.30% vs. 9.30%; DL: 78.00% vs. 46.90%). For NDL, the perception of clash of keys differed between musical styles and decreased from classical to rock 'n' roll and from pop to jazz. Differences in responses are mainly explained by acculturation effects (listening expertise, attention, musical style, and familiarity with the particular piece).