Emotional response and preference on three recordings of a prelude by Chopin

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate listeners' emotional responses and preferences on three differ- ent recordings of Chopin’s Prelude op. 28, no. 8. For this purpose, 68 people answered a ques- tionnaire survey, where multiple-choice questions, including questions on a Likert scale, pre- dominated. The results of the research were analyzed using resources from descriptive statistics and presented graphically. Equality tests and Bayesian inference were also carried out. The results indicate a probable influence of factors such as tempo, attack, and dynamics of the performances in listeners’ perception. The responses were analyzed both in the whole sample and in segmented subgroups. We used studies by Alf Gabrielsson, Patrik Juslin, John Sloboda, and Brazilian authors of the field of experimental research in Music and Emotion as main theoretical references.