A new paradigm in music education: the Music Education Program at The Australian National University

Abstract

This thesis describes a qualitative action research process undertaken ‘in the field’ over approximately eight years of the development of an alternative paradigm for music education. This new paradigm evolved from a simple, practical approach that was not, in the first instance, designed to be transformational, but which quickly showed itself to have potential for providing a different model for conceptualising musical engagement. ¶ It is argued that the standard and widely accepted approach to music education has aspects that does not encourage on-going music making. This study conceptualises that ‘traditional’ Western approach in terms of a ‘virtuosic mountain’ that prioritises and rewards technical achievement. The concept of the virtuosic mountain is developed in terms of three ‘P’s’: Perfection, Practice and Performance. The concept was developed by not just reviewing current literature but also by analysing that literature in light of the developing new paradigm as a means of comparing and contrasting the approaches. ¶ Called ‘The Music Education Program’, this new paradigm is based on a practical approach to the sharing of music making beyond institutional boundaries like the school gate. ...