Abstract
Two different methods of learning were compared in an experiment: group A, composed of 12 guitar students, learnt a piece by heart in a purely cognitive way, using a verbal analysis aid, and group B, likewise composed of 12 guitar students, learnt the piece cognitively with the help of a coloured graphic analysis. The findings show that the B group, using the non-verbal coloured graphic analysis reached a higher standard in the second of two consecutive learning phases. We therefore conclude that the traditional kind of verbal analysis does not effectively support the efficient learning of a piece of music by heart. This could open the way for musical theory to develop other kinds of analysis that promote better learning by musicians.