Aaron Williamon

Aaron Williamon

Aaron Williamon is Professor of Performance Science at the Royal College of Music (RCM). His research focuses on skilled performance and applied scientific and health-related initiatives that inform music learning and teaching. His book, Musical Excellence, is published by Oxford University Press and draws together the findings of initiatives from across the arts and sciences with the aim of offering musicians new perspectives and practical guidance for enhancing their performance. Aaron is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA) and the UK's Higher Education Academy (FHEA), and in 2008, he was elected an Honorary Member of the RCM (HonRCM). In addition, he has performed as a trumpeter in chamber and symphony orchestras, brass bands, and brass quintets in both
Europe and North America.

Email: awilliamon@rcm.ac.uk

Teaching

  • BMus 1 (Level 4) professional skills
  • BMus 2 (Level 5) psychology of music
  • MMus lectures in advanced performance
  • MSc in performance science
  • BMus, MMus, MSc, and DMus research supervision

Publications

Books

  • WILLIAMON A, Edwards D, & Bartel L (eds.) (2011), Proceedings of the International Symposium on Performance Science 2011, European Association of Conservatoires, ISBN 9789490306021. (See www.performancescience.org.)
  • WILLIAMON A, Pretty S, & Buck R (eds.) (2009), Proceedings of the International Symposium on Performance Science 2009, European Association of Conservatoires, ISBN 9789490306014. (See www.performancescience.org.)
  • WILLIAMON A & Coimbra D (eds.) (2007), Proceedings of the International Symposium on Performance Science 2007, European Association of Conservatoires, ISBN 9789090224848. (See www.performancescience.org.)
  • WILLIAMON A (ed.) (2004), Musical Excellence, Oxford University Press, ISBN 9780198525356. (See Oxford University Press.)

Book chapters (selection)

  • Wöllner C, Ginsborg J, & WILLIAMON A (in press), Familiarity and reflexivity in the research process, in E King & H Daynes (eds.), Music and Familiarity: Listening, Musicology, and Performance, Ashgate.
  • Clark T, WILLIAMON A, & Aksentijevic A (2012), Musical imagery and imagination: The function, measurement, and application of imagery skills for performance, in DJ Hargreaves, DE Miell, & RAR MacDonald (eds.), Musical Imaginations: Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Creativity, Performance, and Perception (pp. 351-365), Oxford University Press.
  • Ginsborg J, Spahn C, & WILLIAMON A (2012), Health promotion in higher music education, in RAR MacDonald, G Kreutz, & L Mitchell (eds.), Music, Health, and Wellbeing (pp. 356-366), Oxford University Press.
  • McPherson GE & WILLIAMON A (2006), Giftedness and talent, in GE McPherson (ed.), The Child as Musician: A Handbook of Musicial Development (pp. 239-256), Oxford University Press.
  • WILLIAMON A, Thompson S, Lisboa T, & Wiffen C (2006), Creativity, originality, and value in music performance, in I Deliège & G Wiggins (eds.), Musical Creativity: Multidisciplinary Research in Theory and Practice (pp. 161-180), Psychology Press.
  • WILLIAMON A & Thompson S (2004), Psychology and the music practitioner, in JW Davidson (ed.), The Music Practitioner: Research for the Music Performer, Teacher, and Listener (pp. 9-26), Ashgate.
  • Aiello R & WILLIAMON A (2002), Memory, in R Parncutt & GE McPherson (eds.), The Science and Psychology of Music Performance: Creative Strategies for Teaching and Learning (pp. 167-181), Oxford University Press.
  • WILLIAMON A (2002), Memorising music, in J Rink (ed.), Musical Performance: A Guide to Understanding (pp. 113-126), Cambridge University Press.

Journal articles (selection)

  • Clark T & WILLIAMON A (in press), Imagining the music: Methods for assessing musical imagery ability, Psychology of Music. [DOI]
  • Wasley D, Taylor A, Backx K, & WILLIAMON A (2012), Influence of fitness and physical activity on cardiovascular reactivity to musical performance, Work: A Journal of Prevention, Assessment, and Rehabilitation, 41, 27-32. [DOI]
  • Clark T & WILLIAMON A (2011), Evaluation of a mental skills training program for musicians, Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 23, 342-359. [DOI]  
  • Ritchie L & WILLIAMON A (2011), Measuring distinct types of musical self-efficacy, Psychology of Music, 39, 328-344. [DOI] 
  • Ritchie L & WILLIAMON A (2011), Primary school children’s self-efficacy for music learning, Journal of Research in Music Education, 59, 146-161. [DOI] 
  • Wöllner C, Ginsborg J, & WILLIAMON A (2011), Music researchers’ musical engagement, Psychology of Music, 39, 364-382. [DOI] 
  • Ginsborg J, Kreutz G, Thomas M, & WILLIAMON A (2009), Healthy behaviours in music and non-music performance students, Health Education, 109, 242-258. [DOI] 
  • Kreutz G, Ginsborg J, & WILLIAMON A (2009), Health-promoting behaviours in conservatoire students, Psychology of Music, 37, 47-60. [DOI] 
  • Rosenkranz K, Butler K, WILLIAMON A, & Rothwell JC (2009), Regaining motor control in musician's dystonia by restoring sensorimotor organization, Journal of Neuroscience, 29, 14627-14636. [DOI] 
  • Kreutz G, Ginsborg J, & WILLIAMON A (2008), Music students’ health problems and health-promoting behaviors, Medical Problems of Performing Artists, 23, 3-11.
  • Rosenkranz K, Butler K, WILLIAMON A, Cordivari C, Lees AJ, & Rothwell JC (2008), Sensorimotor reorganization by proprioceptive training in musician's dystonia and writer's cramp, Neurology, 70, 304-315. [DOI] 
  • Stewart L & WILLIAMON A (2008), What are the implications of neuroscience for musical education?, Educational Research, 50, 177-186. [DOI] 
  • Thompson S, WILLIAMON A, & Valentine E (2007), Time-dependent characteristics of performance evaluation, Music Perception, 25, 13-29. [DOI] 
  • Rosenkranz K, WILLIAMON A, & Rothwell JC (2007), Motorcortical excitability and synaptic plasticity is enhanced in professional musicians, Journal of Neuroscience, 27, 5200-5206. [DOI] 
  • WILLIAMON A (2007), The art of musical memory, Studien zur Wertungsforschung, 47, 30-41.
  • Wöllner C & WILLIAMON A (2007), An exploratory study of the role of performance feedback and musical imagery in piano playing, Research Studies in Music Education, 29, 39-54. [DOI] 
  • WILLIAMON A & Thompson S (2006), Awareness and incidence of health problems among conservatoire students, Psychology of Music, 34, 411-430. [DOI] 
  • Lisboa T, WILLIAMON A, Zicari M, & Eiholzer H (2005), Mastery through imitation: A preliminary study, Musicae Scientiae, 9, 75-110. [DOI] 
  • Rosenkranz K, WILLIAMON A, Butler K, Cordivari C, Lees AJ, & Rothwell JC (2005), Pathophysiological differences between musician's dystonia and writer's cramp, Brain, 128, 918-931. [DOI] 
  • WILLIAMON A & Egner T (2004), Memory structures for encoding and retrieving a piece of music: An ERP investigation, Cognitive Brain Research, 22, 36-44. [DOI] 
  • Lindström E, Juslin PN, Bresin R, & WILLIAMON A (2003), ‘Expressivity comes from within your soul’: A questionnaire study of music students' perspectives on expressivity, Research Studies in Music Education, 20, 23-47. [DOI] 
  • Thompson S & WILLIAMON A (2003), Evaluating evaluation: Musical performance assessment as a research tool, Music Perception, 21, 21-41. [DOI] 
  • WILLIAMON A & Valentine E (2002), The role of retrieval structures in memorizing music, Cognitive Psychology, 44, 1-32. [DOI] 
  • WILLIAMON A, Valentine E, & Valentine J (2002), Shifting the focus of attention between levels of musical structure, European Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 14, 493-520. [DOI] 
  • WILLIAMON A & Davidson JW (2002), Exploring co-performer communication, Musicae Scientiae, 6, 53-72.
  • WILLIAMON A & Valentine E (2000), Quantity and quality of musical practice as predictors of performance quality, British Journal of Psychology, 91, 353-376. [DOI] 
  • WILLIAMON A (1999), The value of performing from memory, Psychology of Music, 27, 84-95. [DOI] 

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