Exploring the Lives of Songs in the Context of Young Children’s Musical Cultures

Abstract

This paper provides an overview of a study of the processes through which new songs become part of young children’s existing musical cultures. The study combines creative work and field research, employing a mixed methods design to follow the “lives” of original songs created by the researcher, and shared with three- to five-year-old children in a childcare center in Sydney, Australia. The methodology was derived from practice-led research in the arts, ethnography and portraiture. Three key concepts underpin this research, linking the creative and fieldwork phases: relationships, reflection, and reciprocity—and all three are facilitated by music. These concepts are the tools employed to explore the development of a set of six songs, metaphorically represented as a human life cycle. Findings show that communication and interaction are at the heart of young children’s relationships with songs.