Public Research Seminar: Emma Bryden
Royal Birmingham Conservatoire - Workshop 2
200 Jennens Road, B4 7XR
Free - booking required
If you wish to join us online, please register at https://www.bcu.ac.uk/conservatoire/events-calendar and you shall be sent Zoom codes by email shortly before the seminar.
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Public Research Seminar: Emma Bryden - Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
Shoes, Boos and Bonfires: Complexities of Custodianship and Identity within the Independent School Song Tradition
UK Independent day and boarding schools maintain a repertoire of unique school songs, composed to foster belonging and collective identity through shared musical experience. This presentation explores the role of Directors of Music as custodians of these songs and their performance praxis, highlighting both the practical challenges of establishing and embedding such songs within school communities and the tensions that arise when their content conflicts with contemporary values and institutional identity.
Emma Bryden is Faculty Chair for Arts and Culture and Director of Music at Stowe School, Buckingham, and a doctoral researcher at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. Her PhD thesis explores the role of school songs in creating collective identity and shaping belonging. Emma has presented her research at the SDF Conference (2025), the HMC Directors of Music Conference (2023), the International Conference on Arts and Humanities in Hawaii (2022), and the Progressive Connexions Music and Nationalism Conference (2022).
Running time approx. one hour and 30 minutes
Seminars are in RBC Workshop 2 and can also be accessed online via Zoom. A link to view the seminar via Zoom will be emailed ahead of the session.
Real and virtual doors will open around 3.25pm, the seminar begins at 3.30pm and discussion will conclude around 4.55pm.