Exploring the relationship between internal timekeeping and rhythmic sight-reading ability DATASET

Sight-reading music notation is a complex process involving multiple systems of processing. This skill is often an evaluative proxy for performing ability with previous research revealing that musicians’ rhythm reading ability is the best predictor of sight-reading performance. This body of research has not examined the relationship between ability to maintain steady pulse – a foundational element of rhythmic performance, and rhythmic sight-reading. The purpose of this study was to assess the relationship between an individual’s timekeeping ability and performance on rhythmic sight-reading tasks. Fifty-three, university-level instrumentalists participated in one rhythmic sight-reading and three timekeeping evaluations in two separate sessions. Total deviations from a target performance were analyzed and compared to sight-reading performance. No significant correlation was found between the sight-reading evaluation and tests of internal timekeeping. A series of post hoc, exploratory analyses were conducted to investigate the possibility of misreading/mis-tapping during performance trials or if tempo maintenance was the likely influence. These analyses suggested that participants had difficulty maintaining tempo and it was likely that participants treated timekeeping and rhythm reading as two separate tasks.