Amalia Deekman

Contribute to our theoretical knowledge of contemporary cultural participation by studying a hitherto underexposed form of cultural participation – participation in black gospel choirs – from a constructionist perspective on cultural participation. I will use a theoretical framework in which black gospel choirs are viewed as distinctive local/temporary manifestations of a broader scene, connected to specific social imaginaries, with the aim of scientifically broadening research into cultural participation. The focus of this research will lie on “places, localities where gospel music is 'lived, performed, listened to and known as social situations'” (Reckwitz, 2017). I also make use of the theoretical perspective of 'Musicking', coined by C. Small (1998) and applied by Bisschop Boele (2013).