Fifteen-sixteen years old Fenno–Swedish compulsory school pupils' written descriptions of ‘strong’ experiences were used for comparing (a) the frequency of experiences related to music and to other aesthetic areas (literature, drama etc.) and (b) the frequencies of music experiences related to different basic modes of confronting music: receptively (listening to live or technically reproduced music) or by productive activities (performing etc). In at least moderately urbanised regions, music was the art area most frequently evoking experiences. The ‘non-art’ area of nature was also important especially in some female and rural subgroups. Most music experiences related to listening, but a fifth involved performance activities. Among other things, attention was directed to the role of the school in preparing its pupils for music experiences, to the importance of productive activities, and to some problems regarding the efficiency of audiovisual media to evoke music experiences.

The encounter – and sometimes confrontation – of music with various cultural backgrounds challenges many preconceptions and prejudices on music making and learning. The rise of what is now often called ‘world music’ has not only brought new sound worlds to Western ears, but digs deep into existing systems of belief. In discussing both Western classical and world music, concepts such as tradition, authenticity and context are often used with firm conviction. On closer examination, however, they are applied with ambiguous or even contradictory meaning. A cross-cultural exploration of these concepts reveals that they are not nearly as clear, stable and value-free as they may appear. A more dynamic interpretation of these terms is needed to understand contemporary realities of music making and education at all levels, and to enable teachers to apply these concepts to everyday studio and classroom practices.

There has been little research conducted on Taiwanese Aboriginal music education in comparison to Aboriginal education. C. Hsu's Taiwanese Music History (1996) presents information on Aboriginal music including instruments, dance, ritual music, songs and singing, but information on music education practices is lacking. The examination of historical documentation shows that music education was used by both the Japanese government and Christian missionaries to advance their political and religious agendas. This paper will examine the development of the music education of Aborigines in Taiwan from the mid nineteenth century, when Christian missionaries first came to Taiwan, until the end of the Japanese protectorate (1945). I shall discuss how the missionaries from Britain and Canada successfully introduced Western religious music to Aboriginal communities by promoting various activities such as hymn singing and religious services. The paper will then look at the influence of government policy on Aboriginal music education during the colonial periods. These policies affected both the music taught in elementary schools and the teaching materials.

Research into student experience in Higher Education has largely focused on students' role as learners. However, the student experience encompasses a much wider range of behaviours and beliefs than can be captured through a focus on teaching and learning alone. I report the findings of a research project which explored student experience in the music department of a British red-brick university. Music presents a particularly interesting case study given the presence of extra-curricular musical activities, the opportunity for social interaction between staff and students outside the formal context of the lecture or seminar room, and perceptions of Western art music as a form of ‘middle-class’ culture. Analysis of survey and interview data reveals the centrality of musical performance activities, and in particular the development of a performer identity, to students' experience of belonging and achievement. The influence of students' socio-economic background is also considered: social class was largely invisible to respondents within the departmental context, possibly because it is an invisible norm, within larger contemporary discourses in which social class is equated with financial difference rather than cultural difference. However, the research revealed an association between socio-economic background, term-time employment and academic achievement. The implications of these findings for teaching and learning in music in Higher Education are considered.

Creativity in human endeavours is being discussed and promoted in many fields and venues throughout the Western world. In this paper I discuss reasons for the current emphasis on creativity, especially in music education. I also describe some philosophical, psychological, cultural, and political/social/economic factors that have worked for and against the teaching of creativity in school music programmes, while recognising that technology also plays an important role.

No poet shall compose anything in contravention of the public standards of law and right, honour and good…

–Plato (Laws: VII: 28)

In the past, the music curricula of Hong Kong (HK), Mainland China and Taiwan have focused on Western music, but with the advent of music technology and the new tripartite paradigm of globalisation, localisation and Sinophilia this has begun to change. Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taipei share a common historical culture and their populations are mainly Chinese, but their recent socio-political experiences have been diverse. This paper aims to explore the secondary school cultures of Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taipei by examining the similarities and differences between their musical practices and the ways in which they have delineated this tripartite paradigm. Data are drawn from questionnaires completed by 5,133 students (1,750 from HK, 1,741 from Shanghai, and 1,642 from Taipei) attending grades 7 to 9 and interviews with their 46 music teachers between March and August 2004. The survey data show that students from the three communities much prefer Western classical and popular music to their respective forms of local traditional music and to traditional Chinese styles. Though most music teachers recognise the importance of teaching traditional Chinese music, local traditional music, and other world music in schools, they believe that it is difficult to teach different types of music in the classroom. This article argues that globalisation is leading to a common cosmopolitan culture of Western musical learning in school; the emergence of traditional Chinese music, local music, and socio-political movements challenge globalisation in school music education.

Submissions are invited for the seventh Philosophy of Music Education International Symposium at the University of Western Ontario (UWO), Canada, June 6–9, 2007. The Symposium provides opportunities for scholars, performers, and pedagogues to engage in philosophical debates about research, challenges, and promising possibilities in music education. The 2007 Symposium will be held in London, Ontario, a short connecting flight from the Toronto or Detroit airports. UWO is also only a short drive from Stratford, home of North America's largest classical repertory theatre.