AN AGE-BASED COMPARISON OF HUMOR IN SELECTED MUSICAL COMPOSITIONS

This investigation focused on similarities and differences in the assi gnment of preference and humor ratings for musical compositions by sub jects of various ages. Perceived humor and preference ratings (five-po int Likert) for 10 short musical excerpts were collected from 65 subje cts who were active musical participants (music skills class-40 subjec ts, church music program-25 subjects). Excerpts represented a variety of styles, including 1950s beach, country western, rag-time, symphonic , and cartoon music, in instrumental and instrumental/vocal settings. The highest preference ratings by all subjects were: ''The Entertainer '' by Scott Joplin, ''The 1712 Overture'' by PDQ Bach, and ''The Torto ise'' from Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saens. The highest humor ratings by all subjects were: ''The Streak'' by Ray Stevens, '' Pal-Yat-Chee'' by Spike Jones, and ''William Tell Overture'' also by S pike Jones. No statistical differences were evident among group rankin gs, in either preference or humor.