New Perspectives in Popular Music Research: Changes and Turmoil
Conference: University of Agder, Kristiansand, Norway, 1–2 June 2022
Recent years have resulted in extensive changes in popular music production, dissemination, reception, and perception. New technological developments within music production and performance have created new creative possibilities for artists and bands as they make music and engage with the global music market. Many of these changes have been greatly accelerated by, if not the direct result of, the Covid 19 pandemic that has fundamentally disturbed the relationships between artists, fans, modes of performance, and music distribution. More than ever before, it has become critical to examine digitization, virtuality, creativity, and the music business as a whole in the context of such tumultuous changes.
Thus, a two-day conference on new perspectives in popular music research will be held by the Department of Popular Music, Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Agder (UiA) in cooperation with the Popular Music Research Unit at UiA. The overarching goal of this conference is to address new perspectives on popular music through the lens of these recent changes and the perceived turmoil (and benefits) that has resulted from them. This marks the fourteenth anniversary of our PhD programme in popular music performance and provides an opportunity to showcase work by former graduates, current PhD candidates, and scholars associated with music research within the broad field of popular music studies. Two international keynote speakers will frame and contextualize the event. Keynote speakers will be announced early January 2022. It is also envisaged that contributors will have the opportunity to have their papers published through an international peer review channel.
Proposals for 20-minute presentations consisting of 200 words and a brief biographical note (stating your qualifications and institutional affiliations) should be received by 3 February 2022 and addressed to: tor.dybo@uia.no
We welcome proposals that deal in particular with the following themes: