Melodic dictations are usually practiced in Ear Training classes and, associated with them, some strategies are employed by students and instructors in order to favor these types of activities. This study investigates two strategies that can be used in this context: composition and performance. The aims of this work are to investigate the influence of composition and musical performance, accomplished prior to a set of dictations, on the results of the latter; and to discuss the use of these strategies in Ear Training teaching. Two quasi-experimental studies were carried out, during the Covid-19 pandemic, involving a pre and a post-test applied online and formed by melodic dictations. Between them, the participants of the first experiment (N = 25) performed a compositional activity and, in the second (N = 44), they performed music. The results of these studies showed that composition and musical performance did not play a significant role on performance in melodic dictation. Explanations for this can be found in limitations of the online research instruments employed. However, we believe that the strategies investigated here can be used not as simple “formulas for success”, but as pedagogical tools to be used in the long term for the development of perception. It is possible that future studies, carried out under better conditions, could observe the positive effects of musical composition and performance.
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