Becoming musicians: situating young people’s experiences of musical learning between formal, informal and non-formal spheres

Abstract

This article considers the processes of musical learning that take place across formal, non-formal and informal contexts and spaces. Building on notions of embodied knowledge, identity and culture within education studies, specifically the concept of ‘musical habitus’, this article explores processes of access, inclusion and appropriation of music learning environments. Based on focus group discussions with a diverse group of young Londoners (aged 16–25 years) taking part in Wired4Music, a publicly funded youth leadership programme, the article considers definitions and the significance of music and learning places to these emerging musicians. This includes the processes through which musical learning takes place and the relevant factors that contribute to productive learning. Often operating within a context of subsidised arts provision, these perspectives are also considered within the current cultural policy landscape in England. Participants described implicit and explicit processes of exclusion to some formal music education settings and approaches, whereby a less formal though still intentional approach to learning was enacted in response. This included re-appropriating spaces and creating music in communities of practice, embracing multi-modal approaches to learning across art forms and genres and self-directing learning opportunities. These findings strongly resonate with studies which have critically appraised the specific sites and spaces where education takes place, as well as those suggesting that theories of identity, taste and cultural consumption should also be considered in education praxis, whether formal, non-formal or informal.