IASPM@Journal: Practice-Led and Practice-Based Popular Music Studies

Popular music studies is routinely presented in the form of visual media, as writing and notation, despite music being fundamentally aural and oral. Art music, by contrast, presents new musical creations as research, using sound to explore new research ideas. However, few opportunities arise for popular music scholars similarly to present recordings as research. This special issue invites researchers, composers, performers and producers to present research in the form of audio recordings. It may be that the research output in this case is the sound artifact submitted (practice-based research), or that the research is focused in the main on the recording (practice-led research). Submissions are therefore expected to be in the form of oral/aural culture as well as related to oral/aural cultures.

Themes may be focused upon, but are not restricted to:

• New developments in musical or sonic expression
• The use of a creative sound recording in an answer to specific research questions
• Music focused on an exploration of ritual
• Explorations of modes of listening, including deep listening or trance
• Research that examines phenomenology or embodiment
• Studies focused on elements of the art of record production
• Creative approaches to sound studies, ecomusicology or acoustic ecologies
• Ethnographic material
• Gender, sexuality or identity politics
• Popular music and its relationship to public policy or politics
• Spiritualities, philosophy or aesthetics
• Electronic Dance Music and its Cultures

This call is not intended for work that is led by spoken word, nor it is it intended that the research is merely presented in an audio format. Rather, the aim is that that music/sound itself answers relevant research questions. It is expected that the work will be written and produced specifically for this call for papers. Practice alone is not eligible, there must be a convincing rationale that explains what makes this work research, including a discussion of research aims, context and methodology. To this end, an audio recording will be accompanied by a short (around 2000 words) written piece or a video (up to ten minutes long).

Submissions may be individual or collaborations between for example a researcher and an artist, musician or producer. Submissions must be between 2 and 10 minutes long, and the musical content should be of a professional, publishable standard. All submissions will be published online in IASPM Journal, following the usual practice of double blind review.

Authors are encouraged to submit a 300-word abstract including an indicative title and references, showing engagement with relevant literature and other outputs, by 15 September 2016 to the Lead Editor for this issue, Dr Rupert Till: [email protected]

The deadline for submission is 9 November 2016

The full Call for Papers can be downloaded from this link:
http://www.iaspmjournal.net/index.php/IASPM_Journal/article/view/795/856