Music in the Lives of Refugee and Newly Arrived Immigrant Children in Sydney, Australia

Abstract

This article examines the role of music in the lives of refugees and newly arrived immigrant children in Sydney. Music had different functions for children depending on the length of time since resettlement, individual proclivities and interests, the presence and size of diasporic groups, and institutional endorsement. Music in school activities provides opportunities for social integration and language development. Creative involvement with music and dance both in and out of school settings gave some form of agency to disempowered refugee children. Different technologies, particularly the Internet, also facilitated children’s contact with the music of their home culture as well that of the host culture.

Creating bridges: music, play and well-being in the lives of refugee and immigrant children and young people

“…Some refugee and voluntary migrant children used the Internet as a source of musical and performative materials derived from home and host cultures from which to fashion syncretic performances reflecting aspects of both cultures but also creating a new cultural space that was entirely their own (Marsh 2013). Others used both new and older media to link with communities that exist within a collective imagination.…”

“…Since 2009, I have been exploring the place of music in the lives of refugee and newly arrived voluntary migrant children and have conducted research with culturally diverse populations of children and adolescents in schools and community groups, including playgroups, a primary school, Intensive English Centres (IECs) for secondary school students and a Sierra Leonean youth group, in Sydney, a city in which people from more than 100 birthplace nations have settled (Marsh 2012(Marsh , 2013. In all of these contexts, music plays a significant part in children's lives.…”

“…Over the past two decades, studies have investigated the role of music activity among refugee populations to assist in developing resilience; a sense of belonging and empowerment; forms of communication where verbal communication is limited; and to enhance stress relief, cultural maintenance, identity construction and integration within the host country (Diehl 2002;Jones, Baker, and Day 2004;Ladkani 2001;Marsh 2012Marsh , 2013Osborne 2009;Pesek 2009;Reyes 1999Reyes , 2010Sutton 2002). Studies of children's intercultural transmission of music within a social framework, the role of music in the creation of transitional identities for immigrant and bicultural children, and children's uses of mediated music within these processes also represent an emerging field of interest (Campbell and Wiggins 2013;Green 2011;Karlsen 2013;Lum 2008;Marsh 2008Marsh , 2012Marsh , 2013Minks 2006Minks , 2013Saether 2008).…”

“…Studies of children's intercultural transmission of music within a social framework, the role of music in the creation of transitional identities for immigrant and bicultural children, and children's uses of mediated music within these processes also represent an emerging field of interest (Campbell and Wiggins 2013;Green 2011;Karlsen 2013;Lum 2008;Marsh 2008Marsh , 2012Marsh , 2013Minks 2006Minks , 2013Saether 2008).…”

Visions for Intercultural Music Teacher Education

“…However, while such support is undeniably valuable, more recent research indicates that children and young people who are refugees or voluntary migrants also function as agentive social actors, and may consciously employ strategies that assist with meeting their own emotional and social needs (Hart 2014). Recent studies point to the role of music in providing collaborative avenues for enhancing social inclusion, identity construction, and self-expression for young refugees and immigrants Marsh 2012Marsh , 2013Marsh , 2015Marsh , 2017Marsh and Dieckmann 2016).…”