SIMON STRANGE (BATH SPA UNIVERSITY, UK)

ANYONE CAN BE A MUSICIAN: ART SCHOOL PEDAGOGY AND THE RISE OF THE NONMUSICIAN

Abstract

This presentation will be based on an area of my PhD research which, in an update to Frith and Horne (1987) and Walker (1987), investigated specific pedagogical practices within art colleges and the effect they had on punk, post punk, and the new wave through the 1970s. The reimagining of hierarchies which occurred where the changing nature of art and music interlocked through the philosophies of Cage and Duchamp and supported the idea that anyone could be an artist. Garnering information from interviews conducted with art college influenced musicians, including Gavin Bryars, Brian Eno, Gina Birch, Stephen Mallinder and Dexter Dalwood, it was apparent that this education infused with the presence of the avantgarde, helped the rise of the DIY musician, or self named nonmusician

This research, focusing on courses at Newcastle, Leeds, Ipswich, Sheffield, Liverpool, Bath and London based schools, suggests that lessons can be learnt from the position of the nonmusician, both for the pop music industry and its educational partners, changing the emphasis from preparing industry and technique focussed musicians to those who have a culturally and visually inclined, radical, experimental and philosophical outlook, based within a multidimensional environment. The aim is to reassess hierarchies present within the philosophies and practices of Higher Popular Music Education and to introduce a wider field for aspiring musicians, less confined to the structures of traditional music education.

3 thoughts on “SIMON STRANGE (BATH SPA UNIVERSITY, UK)”

  1. Hi Simon,

    I really enjoyed this. What a fascinating piece of research! Do you see art schools as continuing to fulfill a similar role in popular music today, or was this more a product of its particular moment in time? And how do you see the rise of formalized popular music education programmes in higher ed fitting into this? (To play devil’s advocate a bit,) Do you think that PME programmes in colleges and universities might actually curtail this sort of cross-medium avant-garde thinking?

  2. Thanks Kayla. I see the art schools as providing an interesting template that has largely been ignored in much of HPME. One of the aims of my
    research is to explore why creative popular musicians came through this system and it relates to the moment in time but also an ethos that can still have impact today, I hope.
    I think some HPME programmes embrace elements but there is a lack of experimentation and over reliance on musicianship which could be addressed
    within curriculum design. It takes institutes/ departments with vision to address these elements where the goal is less about employability and more about creative exploration.

    1. Thanks, Simon. I’m looking forward to seeing where your research takes you! It has a lot of potential to shape how we think about HPME programming.

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