Julie Ballantyne
The School of Music's Associate Professor Julie Ballantyne has been awarded a HASS Faculty Fellowship to work with the Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities (IASH) to establish a new line of research into the social and psychological benefits of musical engagement.
The fellowship will allow Dr Ballantyne to specifically investigate the impact that concert venues have on audience members.
"Prominent concert venues often publish lofty visions regarding the impact of their engagement on the audience – claims that they create 'life-enriching', 'unforgettable' or even 'transformative' experiences for everyone," Dr Ballantyne discusses.
"Despite this, little is known about the multifaceted nature of these engagements, across particular sites and types of engagement. This research aims to expose and address discrepancies between the published visions of prominent concert venues."
Understanding what occurs both at specific sites and across sites will allow Dr Ballantyne to develop a comparative and comprehensive picture of how to cater to visitor expectations and to encourage repeated ‘free-choice’ engagement and learning.
The fellowship will help to produce valuable research outputs for the School of Music and is expected to lead to futher grant funding opportunities.
