Bringing Drumsticks to Funerals. Jamming as Learning

Description

In an ethnographically inspired field study social practice theory is employed on New Orleans jazz and funk musicians' jamming analyzed as learning. Through participant observation and qualitative interviews the study argues that the musicians' participation in collectively improvised musical practices such as jam sessions is characterized by the iterative discovery of new action possibilities in pursuing a collectively negotiated 'common third': the good music.
The study further argues that the musicians’ perpetually changing participation in the jam practice and the development of the improvised music itself are inseparable and interdependant. Learning to jam is argued to be situated in the social practice of jamming, thus prototypically analyzing learning as situated, as improvised development of practice per se.

Period	19 May 2013
Event title	9th International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry
Event type	Conference
Conference number	9
Location	Urbana-Champaign, United StatesShow on map