SYSTEMATIC ANALYSIS OF VERBALIZATIONS PRODUCED IN COMPARING MUSICAL TIMBRES

A method of verbal protocol analysis is presented in which verbal unit s used to compare sound events are extracted from the protocols and an alysed from three general points of view: (1) their logical sense, (2) their stimulus-relatedness, and (3) their semantic content. At each l evel, several analysis steps progressively label the verbal units from hierarchically superior to inferior levels (with increasing different iation as one descends the hierarchy). The technique shows great relia bility across analyses by independent experts. It was applied to an in vestigation of timbre comparisons in which Russian nonmusician subject s rated the dissimilarity of timbres presented in pairs and described verbally their similarities and differences. The technique demonstrate s an effectiveness in revealing differences in focus on perceptual att ributes of timbre that contribute to inter- and intra-subject discrepa ncies in dissimilarity ratings. Further, as concerns identification of the sound sources producing the events, there is evidence that basic categories are very general in nature in these nonmusician subjects.