Belonging to the university or being in the world: From belonging to relational being

In a world characterised by supercomplexity, in which higher education (HE) is in the grip of neoliberal market forces (Barnett, 2000), it is incumbent upon participants in this sector to ask; what does it mean to belong, and to what? ‘Belonging’ has become a buzzword used by institutions to seemingly demonstrate how they seek to include students and help them ‘fit in’ to specific cultures and contexts of learning. A sense of ‘belonging’ may be important for some students at an emotional level; however, in the context of the neoliberal university, we argue that focussing on this concept may have the effect of encouraging students to assimilate to the dominant culture. More subtly, it could be noted that this is part of an ongoing process of inculcating students to the beliefs, values and normative behaviours associated with neoliberalism, arguably reproducing and exacerbating many of the social challenges threatening education, democracy, ecosystems and ultimately our ability to survive on this planet. This theoretical paper challenges the notion of belonging, problematising it as a neoliberal construct of 21st century HE that insidiously invokes a particular notion of ‘community’ which functions to prioritise domestication and conformity to social and economic expectations of a higher education driven by an agenda of employability, entrepreneurialism, and acquisitive individualism. We propose a more meaningful conception of ‘belonging’; based on engaging students in changing their world so as they may belong in the world authentically. We contend that belonging holds greater promise as a means of self-actualisation, liberation, and a way to develop authentic ‘critical being’ (Barnett, 1997) whereby students develop belonging and are not “…subject to the world but able to act autonomously and purposively within it” (ibid. p.4)

Towards the improvement of the musical experiences of cochlear implant users

Most previous research into cochlear implant (CI) mediated music listening deals with the mechanisms and efficacy of music perception and does not often account for the listeners real-world musical experience. Measurements of music perception ability are based on listening tasks such as pitch-discrimination, timbre-recognition and rhythmic-identification, and rarely (if ever) relate to the individual experience of the human subject. The exploration of musical experience, however, is based on a holistic view of the ways in which individual people experience music, which can be informed by the interaction of a multitude of factors. For the purposes of this thesis, three categories of experience are considered to coalesce to inform the general musical experience: sensory experience, cognitive experience and social/environmental experience. This thesis moves towards consideration of the real-world musical experiences of cochlear implant users (CIUs) with a view of developing strategies that can be implemented to improve those elements of the musical experience that may be problematic. The thesis comprises three main sections as follows: The first section investigates the musical experiences of CI users (CIUs) by means of a questionnaire study and the consideration of information gained from music focus groups and conversations with implant users. Results show a great deal of variability in the musical experiences of CIUs but many people report positive experiences of music despite suffering from what may be described as ‘poor’ music perception. The second section outlines the design, development and implementation of a multi-channel mixer application, which is used in a study exploring the way in which CIUs mix multi-channel music, to gain insight into their experience of musical elements. Analysing the user-generated mix data provides considerable insights into various elements of the musical experience of participants. Again, results show a large degree of variability on this issue amongst CIUs, and also that the average mixes of CIUs differ significantly from that of a control group of normal-hearing (NH) participants. The third section describes the composition, development and evaluation of a musical work specifically composed for CIUs but designed to be enjoyable for both CIUs and NH audience members alike. The aim of this composition is to promote a positive musical experience by addressing elements of the sensory, cognitive and social/environmental experience based on findings of this research. This thesis concludes by suggesting that the ideal approach for improving the musical experiences of CIUs should focus on the individual, due to the great deal of variability within this population, and presents some implications of this work and suggestions for future research in this area

Promotion anxieties: Jazz promoters within the UK scene

Definitions and roles of the promoter within the ecology of the music industries have over recent years become the subject of attention by academics working within the eld of popular music studies. It has become accepted that precise de nitions are dif cult to apply, due to both the varied understanding of the term ‘promoter’, and the diverse nature of their activities. Where the promoter is the conduit between artist and audience, the ways and means by which this is manifested vary greatly between individuals, and the professional and personal circumstances in which they operate. Rather than further attempting to provide distinct de nitions as applied to the promoter, this article aims to offer a nuanced examination of the motivations, professional networks and occupational challenges that contribute to the self-perceptions of ve promoters working in the context of a local jazz scene within an undisclosed city in the United Kingdom

Belonging to the university or being in the world: From belonging to relational being

In a world characterised by supercomplexity, in which higher education (HE) is in the grip of neoliberal market forces (Barnett, 2000), it is incumbent upon participants in this sector to ask; what does it mean to belong, and to what? ‘Belonging’ has become a buzzword used by institutions to seemingly demonstrate how they seek to include students and help them ‘fit in’ to specific cultures and contexts of learning. A sense of ‘belonging’ may be important for some students at an emotional level; however, in the context of the neoliberal university, we argue that focussing on this concept may have the effect of encouraging students to assimilate to the dominant culture. More subtly, it could be noted that this is part of an ongoing process of inculcating students to the beliefs, values and normative behaviours associated with neoliberalism, arguably reproducing and exacerbating many of the social challenges threatening education, democracy, ecosystems and ultimately our ability to survive on this planet. This theoretical paper challenges the notion of belonging, problematising it as a neoliberal construct of 21st century HE that insidiously invokes a particular notion of ‘community’ which functions to prioritise domestication and conformity to social and economic expectations of a higher education driven by an agenda of employability, entrepreneurialism, and acquisitive individualism. We propose a more meaningful conception of ‘belonging’; based on engaging students in changing their world so as they may belong in the world authentically. We contend that belonging holds greater promise as a means of self-actualisation, liberation, and a way to develop authentic ‘critical being’ (Barnett, 1997) whereby students develop belonging and are not “…subject to the world but able to act autonomously and purposively within it” (ibid. p.4)

Tempered radicalism: A model for navigating academic practice and identity in the twenty-first-century neoliberal university?

This article explores Meyerson and Scully's concept of ‘tempered radicalism’ (1995) in the context of contemporary academic practice and identity. We report on a collaborative autoethnographic study which addressed the question: ‘What does the concept of tempered radicalism mean to us as academics in contemporary higher education?’. We explore how the concept of tempered radicalism allows us to consider our own actions and abilities to drive change within an increasingly challenging higher education environment moulded by the policies, values and practices of neoliberal economics. In this context, we share differing perspectives on what it means to bring a values-based criticality to our work. It is the breadth of Meyerson and Scully's concept which allows us to approach this exploration in a way which emphasises commonality rather than difference and facilitates collaboration. This article therefore showcases the utility of tempered radicalism to academics with a range of perspectives

IDDM

For solo saxophone and tape

IDDM

For solo saxophone and tape

Learning to Create and Creating to Learn: Considering the Value of Popular Music Education

No abstract available

How Does This Work Then?

Composition for solo cello