Orchestral musicians have a tendency to stereotype one another based on
their instruments. While research shows that musicians frequently hold
these views of other players (Lipton, 1987), there is less research that
links personality traits to instrument played. In large ensembles
instruments often play ‘roles:’ “basses determine rhythmic pulse,” or
“oboes’ solos necessitate high artistic interpretation.” Much of this is
determined by training, reception history and instrumental sound. Our
research sought to explore the feasibility of examining both personality
traits and interpretation among a small sample of musicians focusing on a
comparison of instrumental groups (strings, brass, woodwinds) as the
independent variable. Our pilot study explored two primary questions:
first, do musicians who play strings, woodwinds or brass exhibit different
personality traits? Second, do musicians who play these instruments
interpret music differently? Our study looked at differences in the ways
instrumentalists interpreted three musical examples without markings other
than time and key signatures. The 40+ students also took the “Big-Five”
personality test. Preliminary data revealed that the Big-Five scores
aligned with stereotypes (e.g., brass scoring lowest on neuroticism and
woodwinds low on extraversion but high on neuroticism). Groups also
displayed consistent differences in their interpretive approach to the
musical examples.