Benjamin Burke, a senior music education and trombone performance double major from Pittsburgh, was one of 10 students selected for Westminster College’s 10th annual Summer Research Fellowship. Ben conducted his research, “Participant Perceptions of Musical Benefits Derived from Exploring Pre-Modern Instruments in Lesson Contexts,” with his faculty partner and mentor, Dr. Aaron Himes, assistant professor of music.

Could a centuries-old instrument be a better fit for a young musician than its modern counterpart? That was one of the questions Burke explored this summer as he studied whether the sackbut, a pre-modern predecessor of the trombone, could be an effective alternative for beginning band students.

“I was most interested in discovering potential alternatives for the trombone in beginning band class. The modern trombone is often cumbersome to hold for a fourth or fifth grader, and I thought the sackbut—a pre-modern instrument—may be better for that age range,” said Burke. “Additionally, I have great interest in studying and practicing Renaissance instruments, and the project was a great way to fund multiple sackbuts for my musical pursuits.” 

For his research, Burke taught weekly private music lessons to students of varying ages and trombone abilities, including beginning, intermediate, high school, professional and college-level students. After six weeks, he interviewed the students about their perceptions of the sackbut. He also asked students to chronicle the details and experiences of each lesson in a personal journal.

After collecting data from the interviews and journals, Burke and Himes coded the data and identified emerging themes.

“The intermediate student struggled to hold the instrument yet produced a brilliant tone and steady sound in our lessons. The collegiate student shared many insightful ideas on their experience with the sackbut and described scenarios in which this instrument would have been used in the modern landscape. These successful lessons made a very enjoyable analysis,” said Burke.

One of Burke’s favorite parts of the research was reading literature about the sackbut, which became instrumental to his project. He found inspiration in books that offered ideas for conducting his own lessons. He also valued the one-on-one time with Himes and his guidance throughout the project. 

“Dr. Himes taught me a lot about music-related research with his strong background in the field. He helped shape my ideas into a clear plan with tangible goals and outcomes,” said Burke.

Burke is involved in Pennsylvania Collegiate Music Educators Association, the international professional music fraternity Mu Phi Epsilon, the Titan Marching Band, the Big Blue Pep Band and Pi Sigma Pi honor society. He also works with the College’s admissions office. 

After graduation, Burke hopes to play trombone in a symphony orchestra and eventually establish a private trombone studio where students of all ages can learn and enjoy the instrument. 

Sponsored by the Drinko Center for Undergraduate Research, Summer Research Fellowships at Westminster College allow students to conduct hands-on research and creative projects under the guidance of our experienced faculty mentors.

To learn more about Westminster's music program, please visit www.westminster.edu/music.

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