Early field experiences are a common element of music teacher education programs. While researchers have examined early fieldwork in preservice music teacher education with regard to field teaching experiences (Conway, 2002 & 2012; McDowell, 2007; Powell, 2011 & 2014), research exploring music classroom observations in the field is limited. Researchers also have identified field experiences as important in the socialization and identity development of preservice music teachers (Albert, 2016; Conkling, 2004; Haston & Russell, 2012; Hourigan & Scheib, 2009). However, the influence of field-observation experiences on identity development has been neglected in these inquiries.The purpose of this instrumental case study (Stake, 1995) was to examine how preservice music teachers enrolled in an introductory music education course made meaning of their first curricular observations of a music classroom in K-12 schools. Using Olsen’s (2008) model of teacher identity development as a theoretical framework, I explored following questions:1. What do preservice music teachers notice during their first field observation?2. In what ways, if any, do preservice music teachers draw connections between their teacher identities and what they notice during an observation?3. How do preservice music teachers negotiate the aspects of their observations that conflict with their teacher identities?Participants were first-year preservice music teachers (n = 7) enrolled in a music teacher education program at a large university in the midwestern United States. The participants observed either a fifth- and sixth-grade general music class at an urban school or a kindergarten general music class at a school serving the surrounding suburban and rural area. As a participant observer, I employed ethnographic methods of data collection, including in-transit audio recordings to and from observation sites, individual retrospective think-aloud interviews (Ericsson & Simon, 1973) and participants’ written observation reflections. Using a multi-cycle coding process (Saldaña, 2021), I analyzed the data to identify themes.The participants noticed the teachers’ pedagogical strategies, decision-making, conflict resolution, and language during their field observations as well as several aspects of student engagement. They drew connections between what they noticed and many components of Olsen’s (2008) teacher identity model, with prior personal experiences being the most salient.In reflecting upon their initial field-observation experience, participants considered the contexts in which they might teach and how becoming a music educator might impact their personal lives. The findings of this study may inform music teacher educators’ design of curricular field observations to be more meaningful and impactful.