What's in a song? How songs contribute to the communication of social science research

Abstract

In our research and educational practice we sometimes use songwriting as an alternative way to acquire and communicate insights about the social world. While this approach differs markedly from scientific ways of knowing, it offers valuable and perhaps unique opportunities, in keeping with turns towards narrative/performative methodologies in social science. Here, we focus on the processes by which songs stimulate insights and understanding by analysing audience responses to our performative work. We consider five themes that recurred across 154 written responses: engagement and impact; stimulating emotional responses; supporting embodied knowing; triggering personal reflection and local knowledge; and issues of genre and style. We reflect on these responses in the light of recent research and scholarship concerning performance, music, stories and narrative.

Keywords:

• music
• performance
• representation
• education
• song

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank those students and colleagues who generously offered responses and feedback to our performative work. We also thank the anonymous reviewers for their comments on a previous version of this piece.

Notes

1. One song from this CD – One Step at a Time – can be heard by visiting http://www.myspace.com/davidcarless

2. One song from this CD – These Things – can be heard by visiting http://www.myspace.com/davidcarless

3. Within the code which follows each excerpt, ‘a' signifies a response to Across the Tamar, while ‘b' indicates a response to Under One Roof. The number denotes a particular respondent.