Predictors of Phoneme and Stress Perception in Undergraduate Students of Singing

The study examined the connection between undergraduate vocal music majors' ability to acquire proper diction skills for singing in a nonnative language and their performance on a phonemic and stress perception test. It involved ten students with varying levels of voice training. The results showed that students with lower scores on the perception test received lower ratings from their voice teachers regarding diction skills. Approximately 20% of the students had underdeveloped phonemic awareness skills. There were significant individual differences in phonemic and stress perception abilities. This study suggests that the perception test could be used to identify students needing extra support in diction training and highlights the importance of addressing phonemic awareness in vocal music education.