Struggling for integration: universalist and separatist discourses within El Sistema Sweden

Bergman, Åsa; Lindgren, Monica; Sæther, Eva

doi:10.1080/14613808.2016.1240765

Cited by 13 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Throughout the practice, the teachers’ affective attitudes towards the children seem to mirror the values communicated by Sistema Sweden’s rhetoric, proclaiming the possibility for development for all children and the individual and social benefits of music education. 2 These affective and empowering constructions run parallel with the educational instructions and constitute a welcoming, soft and warm climate, expressed by the teachers through talking dynamics, bodily contact, positive feedback and affirming lyrics about El Sistema (see also Bergman et al, 2016).…”

Section: Results: the Discursive Practicementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Baker (2014) and Dobson (2016) are exceptions and draw on close participation, where Dobson reports problematic discourses of authority that marginalise children’s potential for creativity and agency. Some Swedish studies take their lead from empirical ethnographic studies as well, critically discussing possibilities for inclusion, the stigmatisation of ethnicity and other disadvantages (Bergman & Lindgren, 2014a, 2014b, 2016; Bergman et al, 2016; Lindgren, Bergman, & Sæther, 2016; Sæther, Bergman, & Lindgren, 2017).…”

Section: Research On El Sistemamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Much seems taken for granted. In times of political debate concerning school segregation, socio-economic inequalities and increasing immigration, the attention given to music education to enhance social transformation may be understood as being part of the solution to such societal challenges (Bergman, Lindgren, & Saether, 2016). The fact that new actors such as El Sistema are given a societal commission may even reveal what several scholars express as society’s abdication from communal liabilities (Logan, 2016) within a growth of neo-liberal rationales (Bull, 2016; Takayama, 2013; Wahlström, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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“We will fight Goliath”: Negotiation of space for musical agency in children’s music education

Kuuse

2018

Research Studies in Music Education

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Following a music philosophy debate deriving from the 1990s, this article puts the extra-musical and social outcomes of situated music educational practices at the fore. The Swedish replica of the choir and orchestra school El Sistema, a programme globally asserting social change and social impact, appeared useful for elaborating such outcomes in practice. Following this, the present study aims to empirically elaborate musical agency as an analytical concept to understand children’s experiences, while at the same time discussing musical agency in relation to a social discursive view on practice. A Swedish El Sistema children’s string orchestra was followed for three months and the material for analysis consists of audio recordings and observation notes from lessons, performances and family events, as well as documents surrounding the activities. Constructions of discipline, empowerment and space are revealed as affecting opportunities for musical agency. The study thus elaborates on discursive constraints and opportunities for agency negotiation while discussing social outcomes with and within music education.

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Section: Results: the Discursive Practicementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Research On El Sistemamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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“We will fight Goliath”: Negotiation of space for musical agency in children’s music education

Kuuse

2018

Research Studies in Music Education

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“…However, by emphasizing similarity, such universalist discourses render power orders invisible, and may thereby contribute to reproducing them (cf. Bergman et al 2016).…”

Section: Professional Identificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Making Women in Jazz Visible: Negotiating Discourses of Unity and Diversity in Sweden and the US

Björck

Bergman

2018

Self Cite

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The aim of this article is to examine responses to a project that aspires to further genderequal jazz scenes in Sweden and the US. The project brought together actors at various levels of the industry: cultural agencies, commercial organizers, activists, and artists. Our analysis -with special focus on resistance voiced -is based on observations, interviews with organizers, and a documentary about the project. The project's central ambition was to make women in jazz visible in order to change a structural imbalance where men still take up most of the space on stage. This ambition was, however, complicated as different actors resisted a female-male binary, and thus the very idea of "women in jazz". The resistance was played out through gender equality discourses of either unity or diversity, varying in relation to national context and generation. The article also discusses visibility as a central but also problematic aspect for gender equality efforts in music.

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“…Proponents of the programmes frequently cite research that shows increases in social and emotional growth (Alemán et al, 2017), community building (Merati et al, 2019), and academic and cognitive growth (Habibi et al, 2016). Critics of the El Sistema philosophy cite it as top-down, undemocratic and competitive (Bergman et al, 2016;Dobson, 2016) and argue that El Sistema's focus on musical excellence over musical satisfaction is counter to contemporary attitudes towards music education (Baker, 2014;Kuuse, 2018). In contrast, the progressive pedagogies of many music education programmes promote a student-centred approach where the teacher concedes control to foster independence, promote collaboration and engage students in decision making (Burnard & Dragovic, 2015;Hickey & Webster, 2001;Younker & Hickey, 2007).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Teaching creative music in El Sistema and after-school music contexts

Corcoran

2021

International Journal of Music Education

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El Sistema music programmes have blossomed over the past decade, with the aim of fostering social development through intensive orchestral music instruction. Many scholars agree that creative music making can facilitate student agency development, increase a sense of belonging and promote creative expression by allowing students to bring their perspectives to the learning context. With these benefits apparent, it seems rational that El Sistema should incorporate creative music making into its curriculum. To build understanding of how creative music approaches function in some programmes, I used a multiple qualitative case study to examine eight teachers’ perspectives of creative music making within El Sistema and after-school music programmes in Canada and the United Kingdom. Findings revealed that teachers conceptualized creative music making as activities that develop agency through collaborative music creation, that have the benefit of creating a sense of belonging and that give students the opportunity to contribute to their community. Successful nurturing of creative music making seems to rely on connecting students to their wider community, which is achieved in part through incorporating students’ own musical tastes. Teachers’ experiences with creative music making in their own music education played a crucial role in preparing them to teach creative music.

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Struggling for integration: universalist and separatist discourses within El Sistema Sweden

Cited by 13 publications

References 17 publications

“We will fight Goliath”: Negotiation of space for musical agency in children’s music education

“We will fight Goliath”: Negotiation of space for musical agency in children’s music education

Making Women in Jazz Visible: Negotiating Discourses of Unity and Diversity in Sweden and the US

Teaching creative music in El Sistema and after-school music contexts

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