The effects of various physical characteristics of high-level performers on adjudicators’ performance ratings

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between physical attractiveness and performance ratings of high-level pianists. Eighteen of the 30 competitors who participated in the Eleventh Van Cliburn International Piano Competition were rated by undergraduate and graduate music students and faculty. Participants were divided into three groups who rated the performances under either audio, audiovisual, or visual-only conditions. Visual-only participants rated performers on physical attractiveness, dress, and stage behaviour. Results suggest that high-level pianists are not affected in the same way by the apparent attractiveness bias that has been found in studies of novice and college-level musicians. Performers rated low on behaviour received consistently higher performance scores than high behaviour performers regardless of treatment condition (audio or audiovisual). Performers who rated high on each of the visual components benefited from the audiovisual condition, as compared with the audio-only condition, on note accuracy, but not on five other measures of performance. Interactions between each visual component (attractiveness, dress, and behaviour) and gender of the rater raise questions about gender differences in the perception of attractiveness.