Ensemble Music for Social and Emotional Development: A Case Study of Primary School Children in a Suburban Malaysian Chinese Community

Abstract

Music forms part of the Malaysian national curriculum for primary education, but music education is often compromised by low community interest, resulting in children’s underexposure to musical training. This qualitative study examines the inclusivity, creativity, and sustainability of a community-initiated children’s choral-instrument ensemble established as an after-school, weekly activity in suburban Malaysia, where members were recruited from lower- to middle-income families, and had little means to pursue music otherwise. Data were collected from class observations, children’s “before-after” drawings, and semi-structured interviews with the stakeholders. The trustworthiness and validity were ensured through inter-rating, member checks, and data triangulation. The findings revealed that the program transformed children with little knowledge of music into confident musicians capable of performing both local and classical genres, including rearranged renditions of Palladio and Dikir Barat within a year. It suggests that well-facilitated ensemble-based musical instruction sustains the positive development of social and emotional skills in children.