Traditional, Folk and Global Music Working Group
Context
In recent years, interest in traditional, folk, and global music has grown significantly—across the music industry, among audiences, and within higher music education. This reflects a broader recognition of the vital role these traditions play in shaping a diverse and dynamic cultural landscape.
In response, the Traditional, Folk and Global Music Working Group seizes the strategic opportunity to build strong alliances through collaborations with other AEC Working Groups and Platforms, as well as with independent bodies and networks such as NordTrad, the European Folk Network, and the higher education sector for traditional music in the UK and Ireland. Through these partnerships, it reinforces the value of traditional and folk music in Europe as a powerful contributor to democratic principles, including artistic plurality, indigeneity in harmony with diversity, and the amplification of underrepresented voices.
AEC’s push toward diversity and inclusivity in the European HME music sector has grown increasingly impactful via previous projects like Strengthening Music in Society and ARTEMIS, concurrent with external developments like the European Folk Network and the Pedagogies & Practices international conference series. The WG capitalises on the momentum and advocates for a harmonisation of these developments through collaboration, networking, and dissemination: presenting a voice for folk and traditional music in a diverse Europe.
Work plan
The main outcomes of the WG will be:
- Integration of Folk and Traditional Music thematically into Pop&Jazz Platform annual meetings.
- AEC-linked webinars and a dedicated web forum infrastructure generating new content, peer-reviewed publications and cross-fertilisation of projects through a folk/traditional lens
- The sharing of survey findings with Working Groups and AEC to inform strategic priorities and support thematic planning for relevant annual meetings and future project development
Collaborations within the AEC ecosystem
The group collaborates closely with the PJP WG to co-design and integrate meetings and to facilitate greater synergy with Pop&Jazz in HME, and with the EPARM WG to increase the visibility of folk “academic practitioners” in artistic research.
Members of the Working Group:
Joshua Dickson
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow, Scotland (WG Chair)
Althea SullyCole
Music – McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Atlas Ahmadyian
Conservatorio di Musica “Giuseppe Verdi”, Milan, Italy
Anothai Nitibhon
Princess Galyani Vadhana Institute of Music, Bangkok, Thailand
Kelly Veinberg
University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy, Viljandi, Estonia
Laura Poggio
Centro Superior Música Creativa, Madrid, Spain
Mátyás Bolya
Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music, Budapest, Hungary
Unni Løvlid
The Norwegian Academy of Music, Oslo, Norway
Beatriz Laborda
AEC Office (WG Coordinator)
