How can music educators explore the intersections of spirituality, relationships, and music education? The purpose of this paper is to examine how the Pixar film, "Soul," models the transformation that can occur when a music teacher embraces spirituality and the preciousness of everyday life both in and out of the classroom through…

This article explores the ways in which popular musicians in Malaysia learn the craft of Western popular music-making in comparison to those in the United Kingdom. Literature that studied popular musicians and their practices had largely focused on communities within Anglosphere regions, and there are insufficient understandings of the journeys of…

The purpose of this study was to investigate ensemble members' perceptions of their studio orchestra experiences. Survey data were collected from participants (N = 50) enrolled in a studio orchestra at a major collegiate institution in the Southeastern United States. A studio orchestra is a group of musicians who collaborate, compose, arrange,…

In this article, I examine the potential of social media to meaningfully connect students and educators with First Nations popular musicians. Utilising yarning-as-method under the theoretical frame of storying, I present accounts of attempts to embed the practice in high school classes before exploring how the process was refined for an initial…

Playing video games is one of the most popular leisure activities across the world. Video game music (VGM) is a musical art form prevalent in popular culture, and there is potential to use it for the music education of students. Using informal music learning (Green, 2002) and online participatory culture (Jenkins, 1992/2013) theories as grounds…

One of the most distinctive musical genres that originated in Cuba over the past century is "cha-cha-chá," which is attributed to Enrique Jorrín during the 1950s. The popularity of this music has grown considerably since its genesis, as evidenced by the vast array of repertoire, the multitude of bands performing it, and its prevalence in…

In 1963--a racially-charged time in the United States--James Baldwin delivered "A Talk to Teachers," urging educators to engage youth in difficult conversations about current events. We concur with Giroux (2011, 2019) that political forces influence our educational spaces and that classrooms should not be viewed as apolitical, but…

The popular music performance undergraduate degree is a growing area within UK higher education. These courses carry a vocational emphasis and are popular with students looking to establish professional performing careers. As such, they are often marketed as an intermediary step towards this aspiration but, despite their popularity, there has been…

With the aim of diversifying popular music education scholarship, this article explores the phenomenon of hip-hop musical learning as experienced by eight American hip-hop musicians who describe how as well as with whom they learned to create and perform. The study explores issues related to learning processes, social relationships, and the role…

This article examines curriculum and practice in Australian secondary classroom music education, in order to trace the inclusion of, and provision for, students with learning orientations based on popular music forms. A 60-year period of curriculum reform, matriculation statistics and literature is surveyed with a focus on the state of New South…

This article focuses on a hip-hop perspective of school, schooling, and school music. The study involves applications of ethnographic (including autoethnographic) techniques within the framework of a holistic multiple case study. One case is an adult amateur hip-hop musician named Terrence (pseudonym), and the other is myself (a traditionally…

Many music educators address aural skills and analysis by drawing on strategies designed for the realm of Western classical music. Focusing solely on aural skills and analysis within paradigms of Western music can limit students' musical learning and engagement to particular ways of knowing music. To diversify and broaden the types of aural skills…

Excluding Hip Hop culture and rap music from music education misses opportunities for addressing key aspects of popular culture, society, and students' lives. This article addresses intersections of Hip Hop, gender, and music education to forward potential Hip Hop praxis. After tracing related scholarship, I discuss and problematize…

In Geoff Edgers's biography of the Beatles, "Who Were the Beatles?", young readers learn of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison's youth and growth as musicians, the band's formation, and their contributions to music in popular culture. "General Music Today" columnist, Cardany provides music teachers with related music…

To provide a comprehensive and balanced curriculum, the accomplishments of women composers and performers must be included in general music classes. This article addresses obstacles that have challenged women musicians and provides an outline for a unit that highlights seven American women who have achieved significant "firsts" in the world of…