Periodic Reporting for period 1 - LOMUS (LOcal sound for a new MUSicality. Enhancing musical participation through a local sonic practice)
Reporting period: 2023-03-01 to 2025-04-30
Participation in creative and artistic activities has been shown to produce personal and social benefits. Similarly, making music reduces stress, enhances confidence, facilitates social interactions and leads to an overall increase in the individuals’ wellbeing. However, access to music-making is reserved for people who can afford an instrument and the time to learn one. Furthermore, many individuals feel incapable of making music or unmusical, which leads them away from taking part in musical activities. Musical identities play a significant role in defining the individuals’ relationship with music and their self-perception of musicality. Musical identities concern both how we perceive ourselves in relation to music (for instance, if we think we are tone deaf or we think we are good musicians), and how music contributes to defining our identity as a person (for instance, how music facilitates making friends who share our tastes).
LoMus seeks ways to involve everybody in music-making regardless of their musical abilities. The aim is to explore new types of musicality in search of new ways of making music that do not require years of specialised training. LoMus tackled this problem by developing ways to make music with objects rather than only musical instruments. Sounding objects are easy to play and require very little training. Despite their simplicity, these objects and their sound convey strong personal, social and cultural meanings. Contemporary music practitioners have developed ways to include non-trained individuals in music-making. LoMus combined sounding objects with a participatory contemporary music practice. The research objectives were: (1) to study sounding objects, with a study case on traditional Calabrian sounding objects; (2) to study contemporary music resources that can be used with untrained individuals; (3) to develop a music-making method that combines contemporary music and sounding objects to allow everybody to make music regardless of their skills.
The LoMus method facilitates participation in musical activities, bringing the benefits of music-making to individuals who would be otherwise excluded. By broadening participation in creative activities, LoMus contributes to a healthier and more resilient society. This research combined various disciplines in the humanities and social sciences, such as ethnomusicology, music psychology and community music studies. Ethnomusicology guided the research in Calabrian sounding objects. Contemporary music studies provided an overview of possible techniques and resources to be used with non-trained individuals. The method was developed through practice-led research which drew on community music studies and music psychology.
LoMus seeks ways to involve everybody in music-making regardless of their musical abilities. The aim is to explore new types of musicality in search of new ways of making music that do not require years of specialised training. LoMus tackled this problem by developing ways to make music with objects rather than only musical instruments. Sounding objects are easy to play and require very little training. Despite their simplicity, these objects and their sound convey strong personal, social and cultural meanings. Contemporary music practitioners have developed ways to include non-trained individuals in music-making. LoMus combined sounding objects with a participatory contemporary music practice. The research objectives were: (1) to study sounding objects, with a study case on traditional Calabrian sounding objects; (2) to study contemporary music resources that can be used with untrained individuals; (3) to develop a music-making method that combines contemporary music and sounding objects to allow everybody to make music regardless of their skills.
The LoMus method facilitates participation in musical activities, bringing the benefits of music-making to individuals who would be otherwise excluded. By broadening participation in creative activities, LoMus contributes to a healthier and more resilient society. This research combined various disciplines in the humanities and social sciences, such as ethnomusicology, music psychology and community music studies. Ethnomusicology guided the research in Calabrian sounding objects. Contemporary music studies provided an overview of possible techniques and resources to be used with non-trained individuals. The method was developed through practice-led research which drew on community music studies and music psychology.
I investigated traditional sounding objects from Calabria as part of Objective 1 to understand how these instruments work and why their sound is important. I documented celebrations in which sound plays a significant role. I documented the construction of sounding objects and interviewed individuals who build and use sounding objects during religious and secular celebrations and as a pastime. Research into Calabrian demonstrated how the people who use sounding objects display behaviours and skills comparable to those necessary to make music, even though they were making sounds outside of musical contexts. These observations led to a study of musicality - the ability to make, listen to, understand, or use music - and the elaboration of a new definition of musicality that includes sound in its scope.
I studied contemporary music resources that non-trained individuals could use as part of Objective 2. I studied the existing literature on the topic and studied contemporary music compositions that included non-musicians. I interviewed 6 composers who have written music for and with non-trained individuals. I devised improvisation and interaction strategies, graphic, verbal and alternative types of notations, and exercises that can be used with and for non-musicians.
The work performed in Objective 1 and 2 informed a series of community music workshops, as part of Objective 3. A workshop series titled Sounds Like Music took place in Glasgow; two workshop series titled LoMus Lab took place in Italy. In the workshops, the participants experimented with sound and sounding objects using contemporary music strategies for non-trained individuals. I investigated the participants’ musical identities through interviews. The interviews showed how almost all participants had negative experiences with learning music or with music teachers throughout their lives. Often, these experiences led them to abandon any attempt at learning or making music, even temporarily or definitely. The interviews showed how the self-perception of the participants’ musicality had changed throughout the workshops – especially those who never felt capable of making music reported increased confidence.
I studied contemporary music resources that non-trained individuals could use as part of Objective 2. I studied the existing literature on the topic and studied contemporary music compositions that included non-musicians. I interviewed 6 composers who have written music for and with non-trained individuals. I devised improvisation and interaction strategies, graphic, verbal and alternative types of notations, and exercises that can be used with and for non-musicians.
The work performed in Objective 1 and 2 informed a series of community music workshops, as part of Objective 3. A workshop series titled Sounds Like Music took place in Glasgow; two workshop series titled LoMus Lab took place in Italy. In the workshops, the participants experimented with sound and sounding objects using contemporary music strategies for non-trained individuals. I investigated the participants’ musical identities through interviews. The interviews showed how almost all participants had negative experiences with learning music or with music teachers throughout their lives. Often, these experiences led them to abandon any attempt at learning or making music, even temporarily or definitely. The interviews showed how the self-perception of the participants’ musicality had changed throughout the workshops – especially those who never felt capable of making music reported increased confidence.
Work on Calabrian sound showed that users of sounding objects possess traits of a high-developed musicality even if they are not musicians or do not play music, thus providing evidence that there are different types of musicality yet to be discovered. These findings led to re-considering the current definition of musicality by including abilities related to sound reception and production in its scope.
Research into the musical identities of the workshop participants also produced advancements in the state of the art. LoMus provided empirical evidence of musical identities’ dynamic (amenable to change) and situated (context-dependent) character. The research demonstrated that changing individuals’ musical identities is possible by acting on the context. By setting up an inclusive practice that does not impose a predetermined view of what music should be and how it should be done, it is possible to extend participation in music-making to everybody.
The results opened new questions regarding the broader applicability of the LoMus method. Further research might look into its applicability to school programmes for children and its impact on marginalised communities. Research in Calabria demonstrated that sounding objects embed a way of relating with more-than-human entities that might be relevant in a time of environmental crisis. Further research might contribute to elicit a paradigm shift in our relationship with the environment.
Research into the musical identities of the workshop participants also produced advancements in the state of the art. LoMus provided empirical evidence of musical identities’ dynamic (amenable to change) and situated (context-dependent) character. The research demonstrated that changing individuals’ musical identities is possible by acting on the context. By setting up an inclusive practice that does not impose a predetermined view of what music should be and how it should be done, it is possible to extend participation in music-making to everybody.
The results opened new questions regarding the broader applicability of the LoMus method. Further research might look into its applicability to school programmes for children and its impact on marginalised communities. Research in Calabria demonstrated that sounding objects embed a way of relating with more-than-human entities that might be relevant in a time of environmental crisis. Further research might contribute to elicit a paradigm shift in our relationship with the environment.