Children’s Music-Making in the Institution: Historical Perspectives on Music Education in the Long Nineteenth Century

This RMA-funded study day aims to bring together researchers working across the areas of historical musicology, music education and childhood studies to investigate the relationship between children’s music-making and the Institution in the long nineteenth century. The term ‘Institution’ in this case is broadly defined to include educational, commercial, and charitable organisations as well as large-scale systems of transmission, including examination boards, pedagogical networks and publishers. In addition to highlighting how these various institutions sounded (and thereby defined) the life stage of childhood, this study day will also aim to examine how these hierarchical structures paralleled larger political, social, and cultural systems of power during the long nineteenth century. Furthermore, discussions will also extend to investigating the long-standing influence which these institutions continue to exert upon the landscape of music education today.