Abstract / Description of output
Music's powers to effect change have been accepted and exploited by practitioners in education, in therapy, and in community settings. At the same time, developmental, social, cognitive and neurobiological research programmes have produced mixed and sometimes debatable results in exploring whether, and if so, how, music can effect change in educational, clinical and social contexts. This Special Collection brings together researchers and practitioners to debate what we think we know about music's roles in effecting change and how we know it, and to develop an agenda for formulating and promoting evidence-based policies to exploit music's powers to change individuals and societal structures.
In the field of therapy—particularly in the UK—evidence from research has a strong influence on practice, driven by music therapy's need for validation within the terms set by prevailing, usually, state-funded, clinical systems. In the field of education, while research can influence practice, the agenda often appears to be set by the need to adhere to political prescriptions and objectives rather than to comply with evidence. In the areas of community music and social action, pragmatic approaches appear to prevail; evidence from research has lagged well behind practice, perhaps because of the complexities in motivation, practice, demography, socioeconomic setting and political context that shape musical interventions and assessment of their social effects.
Which leaves social policy, and a number of questions. What should we be advocating for? Do we know whether music has consistent effects on individuals and on social structures that are unique to music? If it has, should we be valuing music for those effects, or as part of our multicultural heritage, or because we enjoy it—or all three? If we agree how and why we should value music, how can we translate this agreement into effective political action? How can we engage with political systems that have their own agendas and value-systems so as to integrate music into the development of effective policies in the domains of education, therapy and social action?
The papers in this Special Collection come from a workshop held at the University of Cambridge in 2018, funded by the John Templeton Foundation which aimed to address all these questions—not with the intent of providing definitive or prescriptive answers, but to help clarify the terms of the debate, and to move towards a more coherent vision of music's effects and how these might be valued.
In the field of therapy—particularly in the UK—evidence from research has a strong influence on practice, driven by music therapy's need for validation within the terms set by prevailing, usually, state-funded, clinical systems. In the field of education, while research can influence practice, the agenda often appears to be set by the need to adhere to political prescriptions and objectives rather than to comply with evidence. In the areas of community music and social action, pragmatic approaches appear to prevail; evidence from research has lagged well behind practice, perhaps because of the complexities in motivation, practice, demography, socioeconomic setting and political context that shape musical interventions and assessment of their social effects.
Which leaves social policy, and a number of questions. What should we be advocating for? Do we know whether music has consistent effects on individuals and on social structures that are unique to music? If it has, should we be valuing music for those effects, or as part of our multicultural heritage, or because we enjoy it—or all three? If we agree how and why we should value music, how can we translate this agreement into effective political action? How can we engage with political systems that have their own agendas and value-systems so as to integrate music into the development of effective policies in the domains of education, therapy and social action?
The papers in this Special Collection come from a workshop held at the University of Cambridge in 2018, funded by the John Templeton Foundation which aimed to address all these questions—not with the intent of providing definitive or prescriptive answers, but to help clarify the terms of the debate, and to move towards a more coherent vision of music's effects and how these might be valued.
Original language | English |
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Journal | Music & Science |
Volume | 3 |
Publication status | Published - 25 Jun 2020 |