The University of Eastern Finland, the Finnish Society for Ethnomusicology and the project Ageing, Communication, Technologies (ACT, Concordia University) bring together researchers from music studies and various other disciplines in order to discuss music in relation to ageing and technology. The symposium “Music, ageing, technology symposium” will be held in the Joensuu campus of the University of Eastern Finland, 11-13 May 2016.
The participants of the symposium will look at all genres of music and ageing, often in the context of modern communication technology. The symposium hopes to offer multilayered and critical perspectives on the crosscuttings of digital technologies and ageing in relation to music studies, and how these approaches relate to other research traditions. The theme is closely linked to one of the hosting university’s (UEF’s) current research orientations on human sciences and technology research.
Summary of events (Eric Powell):
The Music, Ageing, and Technology conference hosted by the University of Eastern Finland and ACT brought together scholars from around the world to discuss a wide range of topics ranging from acoustic ecology to traditional performance practices, passing through hip hop and Nickleback. Each panel created a fascinating trajectory, often bringing together seemingly disparate topics to generate open conversation around much larger themes. This openness to broader discourse was also found in the keynote addresses which highlighted the ways in which music structures our daily experience of space, what it means to age as a popular musician, the social nature of shared music, and the non-linear temporality of understanding music, age, and memory.
