Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Thesis Format

Alternative Format

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy

Program

Music

Supervisor

Wright, Ruth

2nd Supervisor

bell, adam p.

Co-Supervisor

Abstract

Interconnected Pathways on YouTube and Music Education: YouTubers and Their Stories is a dissertation in the form of a collection of short stories and YouTube videos. Each story stands alone, but when read or viewed in its entirety, all the pieces connect to create a full picture of the project. The purpose of this research is to explore forms of “musicking” that are beyond the realms of music performance and composition by engaging with YouTubers who are subtly musical. North American music education has largely only recognized performance as a way of being musical, with composition and songwriting beginning to receive more attention. People who perform or write music are clearly musical, but we can learn from those who are subtly musical or musicking in ways beyond performance and composition. Various forms of engagement could and should be recognized in all kinds of music teaching and learning spaces.

For this study, I worked with three different creators: Bryan creates karaoke videos with details that surpass lining up words with music; Mark is a music critic who reviews songs, albums, and the Billboard Hot 100 and discusses the historical, social, and cultural significance of the music scene; and James makes art in video form about a variety of topics and carefully curates music for every moment. We spent time hanging out as each creator made a video, having conversations about their music background, YouTube, and creation processes, and producing collaborative videos.

Three different pathways—storytelling, participatory culture, and reflective and reflexive practice—guided this narrative inquiry. While each pathway can function alone, they gain significance when they overlap, weave, and converge. Participatory culture creates space for new stories; reflective and reflexive practice can help us think through how we can or should engage with participatory culture; reflective and reflexive practice can also guide us through past stories and challenge us to confront questions such as: “Who and what is missing in our stories? Why did we lose certain stories? Where could we encounter new stories?”

Bryan, Mark, and James show us that we can listen to, analyze, write about, discuss, research, curate, and edit music, that these forms of engagement contribute to our musicianship, and that our musicality need not be determined by music performance or composition. These YouTubers can help music educators think more broadly about music education, musicking, and what might be possible within our music teaching and learning spaces. Collectively, music teachers could create new classes or opportunities that focus on other types of musicking, and/or expand our current structures to be more inclusive of different musicking preferences. In its entirety, this project wants to work towards a world where instead of asking “Are you a musician?” we can ask each other “How do you music?”

Summary for Lay Audience

Interconnected Pathways on YouTube and Music Education: YouTubers and Their Stories is a dissertation in the form of a collection of short stories and YouTube videos. Each story stands alone, but all the pieces connect to create a full picture of the project. The purpose of this research is to explore forms of “musicking” that do not involve playing instruments, singing, or writing music, by working with YouTubers who are subtly musical. North American music education has made it seem like performance and composition are the only ways to “music.” People who perform or write music are clearly musical, but we can learn from those who are subtly musical as well. Different forms of engagement could and should be recognized in all kinds of music teaching and learning spaces.

For this study, I worked with three creators: Bryan creates karaoke videos with details that surpass lining up words with music; Mark is a music critic who reviews songs, albums, and the Billboard Hot 100 and talks about the historical, social, and cultural aspects of the music scene; and James makes art in video form about a variety of topics and carefully selects music for every moment. We spent time hanging out as each creator made a video, having conversations about their music background, YouTube, and creation processes, and collaborating on videos.

Bryan, Mark, and James show us that we can listen to, analyze, write about, discuss, research, curate, and edit music, that these forms of engagement add to our musicianship, and that our musicality does not have to be related to playing instruments, singing, or writing music. These YouTubers can help music educators think more broadly about music education, musicking, and what might be possible within our music teaching and learning spaces. Collectively, music teachers could create new classes or opportunities that focus on other types of musicking, and/or expand what we currently do to be more inclusive of different musicking preferences. Overall, this project wants to work towards a world where instead of asking “Are you a musician?” we can ask each other “How do you music?”

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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