Music Colloquium Series 4/25: Mark Belfast

Please join us on Friday, April 25, at 4:00 PM EST for the next installment in the CWRU Department of Music Colloquium Series. Dr. Mark Belfast (Florida State University) will be presenting a talk entitled “Endless Opportunities: Providing Accessible Community Music Opportunities in a Post-Pandemic Era.” This talk will take place on campus, in the Harkness classroom. For more about the series, please visit: https://case.edu/artsci/music/news-events/music-colloquium-series
RSVPs encouraged but not required.

ABOUT THE TALK:

Creating authentic and meaningful music making opportunities for people in our communities may seem quite daunting. That challenge might even be magnified if those community members have little or no formal music education, disabilities that necessitate alternative instructional or performance methods, or if the music making opportunities exist outside the structured and supportive framework of a government funded and monitored educational institution. To better understand how organizations around the world address these challenges, we examined current community-based programs that provide musicking opportunities for people with disabilities to determine how they are managed and funded, as well as the types of music making activities included and how those activities are provided to participating members. Specifically, we sought to address the following questions: (1) What types of music programs are available for people with disabilities within their communities? (2) Are the programs performance driven or experiential in nature? (3) How do community members access information about these programs? (4) How are these programs represented on the internet or social media platforms? (5) How is the program funded? (6) Did the programs exist prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and if so, how did they respond to it? (7) In what ways has the program changed since the COVID-19 pandemic?

Participants (N = 20) were officials in organizations that provide community music programs for individuals with disabilities located in seven countries or territories in North America, Europe, and Australia. Our results suggest organizations that provided diverse music offerings though a variety of delivery methods were most sustainable. The implications of this research reach far beyond programs designed for people with disabilities. Effective community member recruit strategies, as well as successful methods of program promotion and funding will be discussed and may benefit those interested in music education, performance, entrepreneurship and advocacy.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:

Dr. Mark A. Belfast, Jr. is an assistant professor of music education at Florida State University, where he also serves as associate director of the FSU Summer Music Camps. Previously, he served as chair of the School of Music and coordinator of music education at Southeastern University. Dr. Belfast earned a PhD in music education from Florida State University, and he holds MEd in music education and BME degrees from Auburn University.

Dr. Belfast’s teaching experience includes undergraduate and graduate music education courses, as well as directing public school instrumental music programs in Alabama and Georgia. His research interests include teacher effectiveness, music teacher education, jazz pedagogy and performance, and music for special populations. Dr. Belfast has presented research and educational clinics in regional, national, and international venues, and the results of his research have appeared in a variety of professional publications. In addition to his research and teaching, Dr. Belfast serves on the advisory board for the Desert Skies Symposium on Research in Music Education, as co-chair of the ISME Special Music Education and Music Therapy commission, he is the NAfME Collegiate advisor for the state of Florida, and he maintains an active agenda as a speaker, clinician and adjudicator.

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