My travels with the GuQin: a personal narrative in a cross-cultural setting

Abstract

This project explored the significance of learning a global instrument in a cross-cultural setting. The question posed for this project was: “Can a music teacher change roles from teacher to student, move outside of the formalised classroom, and learn a music dissimilar to one’s own in a cross-cultural setting?” The cross-cultural setting was in Shanghai, China, and diverse cultural viewpoints, biases, and observations were recorded by means of journals, blogs, and informal music lessons. Every week, for one year, a one-hour informal lesson was taken on the GuQin. The informal music lessons combined both of aesthetic and praxial musicianship, which added to the complexities and rewards of learning the GuQin. These observations were later examined through a framework of narrative inquiry, focusing on temporal, spatial, and social issues. The metaphor of “travel” is used throughout the project in order to connect these observations to both the narrative and the reader. Various ways of musicing were experienced through the course of learning the GuQin, which included reading and writing traditional notation, and performing traditional music written for the GuQin. By examining the barriers of a Western-biased view on composing, performing, and listening, a new framework of music education philosophy was established. Implications for the music educator include fresh ways of exploring global musics, integrating an Eastern view into a music education philosophy, and expanding writing skills to enhance the narrative experience.