Queering informal pedagogy: sexuality and popular music in school

Abstract

This qualitative case study explores how students' perceptions of sexual identity affect how they participate in popular music processes used in school. Seventeen high school students were invited to form five single-gendered and mixedgendered rock bands. The data collected included fieldnotes and audio recordings of observed rehearsals and individual interviews. The data were coded and analyzed from a queer theory standpoint to provide interpretations of how participants constructed their sexual identity through musical production and reception. The findings suggest that the boys used popular music making to project a sexual identity, and that they refused to participate in musical acts Á like singing in a high tessitura and writing lyrics Á that they willingly performed in traditional music ensembles and genres. This questions whether the recent use of popular music pedagogies in formal settings effectively furthers traditional music education aims of educating about the elements of music.

Critical Digital Pedagogy in Higher Education

“…I teach popular music, and in my discipline critical pedagogy has become prized in recent years, with many citing music's transformative potential when addressing social issues owing to its embeddedness within everyday cultural practice (Abrahams, 2005;Karvelis, 2018). Notably, there has been an attentiveness to the enabling power of hip-hop (Abramo, 2011;Keyes, 2002).…”

Towards Gender Equality in the Music Industry

“…mixing, producing, songwriting, etc. ), or through the inclusion of popular music repertoire in large ensemble programs, often still taught with traditional pedagogical techniques (Abramo 2011a(Abramo , 2011bMantie 2013;Tobias 2013Tobias , 2015Tobias , 2016. In this context, progress has however been made in North America in the inclusion and introduction of music technology, recording, and producing programs as well as rock, pop, and jazz music in the curriculum (Wright 2016).…”

“…The majority of research in North American popular music education has focused on popular music elective courses offered to high school students (i.e. Abramo 2011aAbramo , 2011bTobias 2013Tobias , 2015. Research has suggested that while such course offerings are an important first step in introducing popular music to North American curricula, they raise questions concerning replication of issues of gender disparity (as noted by Abramo 2011aAbramo , 2011bTobias 2013Tobias , 2015Cobb 2016).…”

“…Abramo 2011aAbramo , 2011bTobias 2013Tobias , 2015. Research has suggested that while such course offerings are an important first step in introducing popular music to North American curricula, they raise questions concerning replication of issues of gender disparity (as noted by Abramo 2011aAbramo , 2011bTobias 2013Tobias , 2015Cobb 2016). While Campbell, Connell and Beegle (2007: 222) suggest 'that the informal processes of making popular music, such as improvisation and group composition, could make the educational experience more stimulating and more enjoyable for adolescents ' , Abramo (2011b) posits that in our efforts to integrate a new pedagogical approach, we may have used hetero-normative, masculine popular music practices as the foundation of this new pedagogy.…”

Discourses of diversity in music education: The curriculum framework of the Norwegian Schools of Music and Performing Arts as a case

“…Although multiculturalism and musical plurality have been the main entrances to an understanding of diversity within music education research, they have not been the only ones. Other conceptions have been related to diversity expressed as differences, for example in geographic or ethnic origin (Karlsen, 2013; Marsh, 2012; Sæther, 2008, 2010), race (Bradley, 2007; Hess, 2015), social class (Bates, 2012; Dyndahl, Karlsen, Nielsen, & Skårberg, 2014), religion (Hoffman, 2011; Jorgensen, 2011), (dis)ability (Laes & Westerlund, 2018), gender (Björck, 2011; Lamb, 2014), age (Laes, 2015) and sexuality (Abramo, 2011; Gould, 2012). As such, many of the above perspectives have been discussed by employing the perspective of social justice in music education (see, e.g.…”