What you will receive:

• 4 Live Webinar Sessions with Q & A
• 4 Links to the Recordings
• 4 CECs

This course will explore dynamic matters at the intersection of music, research methodology, inclusivity, and depth psychology. The book Music in Arts-based Research and Depth Psychology: Listening for Shadow as Inclusive Inquiry (Brun, 2024) attends to the place of sonic imagination in inquiry. Because judgments involved in a listening experience are largely unconscious (Becker, 2004), the field of depth psychology is uniquely positioned to offer an important perspective regarding what people choose to listen to, or perhaps more importantly, what they choose not to listen to.

In this course, sonic dissonance will be held as a symbol for cognitive dissonance and, as such, used as a symbolic proxy for Other, or Shadow in Jungian terms. In an effort to practice holding the tension of the opposites toward Jung’s transcendent function, the practice of Sonic Stretching will be explored as a way to somatically stretch windows of tolerance for being with and accommodating the dissonance of the unknown. This practice, in turn, may facilitate a broader use of sonic imagination as a translative tool in both academic and therapeutic inquiry.

The course will employ audio and video presentations, experiential exercises and interactive discussion.

This Course is Ideal if:

You are seeking to deepen your understanding of the relationship between music, depth psychology, and inclusive inquiry. Individuals who would benefit from the class include:

• Those interested in the relationship between music and depth psychology.
• Those interested in fostering a broader inclusion of music and sound in arts-based research and/or therapeutic inquiry, as well as those seeking an understanding of what may be blocking this.
• Those knowledgeable about Jung who wish to learn more about ways to somatically engage unconscious material (both collective and personal).
• Those with a background in music wishing to gain understanding of a depth psychological perspective of the importance of inclusivity and leaving room for the unknown in creative work and inquiry (i.e. practices of decolonization).
• Student and/or professional researchers wishing to know more about how to integrate heuristic, hermeneutic, and/or arts-based methodology into their work
• Those seeking to learn more about core Jungian concepts such as the Shadow, and functional applications of Jung’s transcendent function in inquiry.
• Those interested in the concepts of subversive sounds, sonic imagination and how these relate to countering imaginal atrophy.
• Those seeking a basic understanding of how sound works, especially as related to matters of tension including dissonance and (at)tuning.
• Those interested in surveying examples of using music in therapeutic inquiry, arts-based research, ethnomusicology/medical ethnomusicology, and trance practices.
• Those interested in exploring an example of music arts-based research (MABR) in action, covering the research approach and integrative methodology involved
• Students and/or professionals interested in exploring compositional process as a form of MABR methodology that uses Jung’s “tension of the opposites” as a central method
• Those interested in learning about a transdisciplinary practice using dream images to facilitate sonic composition.
• Researchers and/or practitioners wishing to discuss ethical considerations in using music and sound in inquiry
• Student and/or professional researchers interested in surveying varying frameworks for evaluation of rigor in MABR

Course Overview: (Weekly Titles/Themes)

Week 1: Making Room for Music and Sound in Inquiry

• We will be Introducing central arguments on the need/possibility for broader inclusion of music and sound in research and therapeutic inquiry, as well as unpacking hypotheses regarding what may be blocking this from happening.
• We will be naming relevant personal and professional contexts/locations that impact this kind of inquiry, as well as exploring why this is important in research that is inclusive of sound (and Psyche-Soma/Soul more generally).
• We will be defining and unpacking key terms and contexts in music, sound, and inquiry. This will include a brief unpacking of: the basics of sound, sonic imagination, matters of tension in sound (including dissonance, tuning and the transcendent function). Focus will then turn to how listening for Shadow can be a practice of translation and inclusive inquiry. Listening experiential will be used to illustrate.

Week 2: Music and Sound in Inquiry, Current Uses and Obstacles

• We will survey examples of using music in therapeutic inquiry
• We will survey examples of using music in arts-based research
• We will discuss ethnomusicology/medical ethnomusicology and specifically the role of music in trance practices (including a discussion of the power of imagination in relation to placebo/nocebo)
• We will explore and unpack the idea of subversive sound, and how dissonance may relate to trauma, conditioning, and/or imaginal atrophy

Week 3: Sonic Stretching

• We will discuss Sonic Stretching as a concept and as an example of music arts-based research (MABR), covering the research approach and integrative methodology involved.
• We will use the sonic stretching research to describe compositional process as a form of MABR methodology. This will include discussion on starting points for composition and codification, on using Jung’s “tension of the opposites” as compositional method, and on using dream image with sound as a transdisciplinary practice.
• We will discuss findings from the Sonic Stretching research listener feedback. This will focus on the emergent themes that center within the sonic waters of transformation. Experientials of the Sonic Stretching practice will be included.

Week 4: Ethical Considerations, Evaluations of Rigor in MABR, and Conclusions

• We will consolidate a summary of the Sonic Stretching theory, inquiry process, findings, and conclusions
• We will discuss ethical considerations in using music and sound in inquiry
• We will survey some frameworks for evaluation of rigor in MABR
• We will conclude with a Sonic Stretching process experiential and reflect upon the take-away themes from the course

By the End of This Course You Will Be Able To:

• Name 2-3 reasons music and sound may not be more integrated in depth psychology and arts-based research as a tool of inquiry
• Name 3-4 examples of how music has previously been used in therapeutic inquiry, arts-based research, ethnomusicology/medical ethnomusicology, and trance practices
• Explain how music and sound provide a way to somatically engage unconscious material (both collective and personal)
• Explain how sonic dissonance can be seen to function as a proxy for Shadow and/or Other
• Describe 2-3 ways that music and sound can function to translate image and archetype
• Describe 2-3 examples of compositional process that use Jung’s “tension of the opposites” as a central method for working with subjective dissonance
• Explain how core Jungian concepts such as the Shadow operate in relation to sonic imagination
• Differentiate between and critique existing definitions of music, sound and noise
• Explain the connection between dissonance, listening practices and imaginal atrophy
• Discuss how harmonic consonance and dissonance are essentially matters of tension and (at)tuning, how this relates to somatic experiences of tension
• Articulate central aspects of music arts-based research (MABR) in action, including ethical considerations and evaluations of rigor
• Describe both personal and collective examples of how music and sound can facilitate engagement with Shadow and Other more fully by way of discovering and listening to instances of subjective dissonance.

CEC Learning Objectives:

Week One Course Goals and Educational Objectives

Attendees will be able to:

• Identify three hypotheses for why there is currently a disconnect between music and arts-based research or depth psychological inquiry (outside of music studies)
• Define four key terms in the context of music, sound and Shadow
• Describe what “listening for Shadow” means and how it can be a practice of translation and inclusive inquiry.

Week Two Course Goals and Educational Objectives

Attendees will be able to:

• Name four examples of current uses of music in therapeutic inquiry and arts-based research
• Describe two roles that music plays in medical ethnography (specifically trance) practices
• Explain the concepts of subversive sound, sonic imagination and imaginal atrophy and how they relate

Week Three Course Goals and Educational Objectives

Attendees will be able to:

• Describe three aspects of the integrative methodology and approach of the Sonic Stretching research as an example of depth oriented and inclusive arts-based study
• Identify three ways that compositional process can function as a form of music arts-based research (MABR) methodology
• Name two themes that emerged within the Sonic Stretching findings that illustrate how music and sound function as archetypal image

Week Four Course Goals and Educational Objectives

Attendees will be able to:

• Name three central protocols from the Sonic Stretching process (as an example of an inquiry process using sound)
• Discuss two ethical considerations specific to using music and sound in inquiry
• Compare two frameworks for evaluating rigor in MABR

Course Addendums:

Reference List:

Adorno, T.W. (2002) [1938]. Essays on Music. Berkely, CA: University of California Press.

Almèn, B. (2008). Jung’s function-attitudes in music composition and discourse. In: S. Rowland (ed.), Psyche and the Arts: Jungian Approaches to Music, Architecture, Literature, Painting and Film. Routledge.

Attali, Jaques (1985). Noise: The political economy of music. Minneapolis: The University of Minnesota Press.

Beaulieu, J. (1987). Music and sound in the healing arts: An energy approach. Station Hill Press

Becker, J. (2004). Deep listeners: Music, emotion & trancing. Indiana University Press.

Cage, J. (1961). Silence: Lectures and Writings by Jon Cage. Wesleyan University Press.

Cushman, P. (1995). Constructing the self, constructing America. Perseus Publications.

Damasio, A. (2010). The body in mind. In: Self comes to mind: Constructing the conscious brain. Pantheon Books.

Edwards, J. (Ed.) (2016). The Oxford handbook of music therapy. Oxford University Press.

Gadamer, H.G. (1976). Philosophical Hermeneutics. University of California Press.

Hillman, J. (1975). Revisioning psychology. Harper and Row.

Jung, C.G. (1953). The Spirit in Man, Art, and Literature. Collected Works of C.G. Jung, Volume 13. Princeton University Press.

Jung, C. G. (1966). Two Essays in Analytic Psychology. Collected Works, Volume 7. Princeton University Press.

Kalsched, D. (2015). Trauma and the soul: A psycho-spiritual approach to human development and its interruption. Routledge.

Koen, B.D. (ed.) (2008). The Oxford handbook of medical ethnomusicology. The Oxford University Press.

Kossak, M. (2015). Attunement in expressive arts therapy: Toward an understanding of embodied empathy. Charles C. Thomas, Publisher.

Kroeker, Joel (2019). Jungian Music Psychotherapy: When Psyche Sings. Routledge.

Leavy, Patricia (2015). Method Meets Art: Arts-Based Research Practice. The Guilford Press.

Lozenski, Brian D. (2016). “Jazz Researchers: Riding the Dissonance of Pedagogy and Inquiry”. Journal of Critical Questions in Education (Special Issue) 7:3.

McNiff, S. (2017). Philosophical and practical foundations of artistic inquiry: Creating paradigms, methods, and presentations based in art. In P. Leavy (Ed.), Handbook of arts-based research (pp. 22-36). Guilford.

Miller, M. & Lande, A. (2020). Being Music: The Art of Open Improvisation. University Professors Press.

Moustakas, C. (1990). Heuristic Research: Design, Methodology and Applications. Sage.

O’Shea, H. (2017). Listening to dissonance: Invoking a reflexive listening practice in researching musical experience. Ethnomusicology Ireland 5.

Payne, P., Levine, P. A., & Crane-Godreau, M. A. (2015). Somatic experiencing: using interoception and proprioception as core elements of trauma therapy. Frontiers in   psychology, 6, 93. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00093

Romanyshyn, R. (2013). The Wounded Researcher. Routledge.

Rowland, S. (2008). Psyche and the Arts: Jungian Approaches to Music, Architecture, Literature, Painting and Film. Routledge.

Stein, M. (1998). Jung’s map of the soul. Open Court.

Vetter, Smith & Muckli (2014). Decoding sound and imagery content in early visual cortex. Current Biology 24(11):1256. DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2014.04.020

Watkins, M., & Shulman, H. (2008). Symptoms and psychologies in cultural context. In Toward psychologies of liberation: Critical theory and practice in psychology and the    human sciences (pp. 53-63). Palgrave MacMillan.

Weiss, S. (2014). Listening to the world but hearing ourselves: Hybridity and perceptions of authenticity in world music. Ethnomusicology 58(3): 506-525.

Course Reading List:

Brun, S. (2024). Music in Arts-based Research and Depth Psychology: Listening for Shadow as Inclusive Inquiry. Routledge.