In this monograph—perhaps the most important Dr. Edwin E. Gordon has written in his career as the preeminent music education researcher—Gordon states that space audiation is what ties the musical threads of rhythm, melody, harmony, improvisation, creativity, and expression together.

Space audiation in music, writes Edwin E. Gordon, refers to the interior motion of the mind as opposed to the exterior movement of the body. Space audiation is a template for accuracy and sensitivity in music.

Through space audiation, musicians would not perceive rhythm as linear, as one example. Rather, musicians would perceive macrobeats, microbeats, and rhythm patterns internally in the mind without center or boundaries. Space audiation, Gordon states, is what connects and unifies the beats and patterns in music.

Dr. Gordon then describes how awareness of space audiation can increase all aspects of musical expression. Chapters on early childhood music, instruments, and music notation further amplify these groundbreaking ideas. He also includes 32 brief tunes “particularly suited for emphasizing space audiation.”

Dr. Gordon, now 87 years old, continues to move our understanding of music forward unlike anyone else in the world. And even better, he helps us understand how to take these profound ideas and translate them into the best, most effective way to teach music.

Edwin E. Gordon is known throughout the world as a preeminent researcher, teacher, author, editor, and lecturer in the field of music education. He lives in Ft. Dodge, Iowa.

Contents: Space Audiation in Rhythm; Space Audiation in Melody; Space Audiation in Harmony; Space Audiation in Improvisation; Space Audiation in Creativity; Space Audiation in Expression and Interpretation; Music Notation; Early Childhood Music; Instruments