DATA ANALYSIS

The data collection, data analysis and report writing were all interlinked, in keeping with action research and reflective practice principles. These practices espouse responsiveness and flexibility in all aspects of investigation. This qualitative analysis prioritized a holistic view of the research, as opposed to providing a more statistical analysis (Easterby-Smith, et al 1991: 105). Analysis of qualitative data is an inherently creative process as there are no fixed formulas, as is often the case in statistical research (Patton, 1990: 146). Unlike the features of a scientific report, writing interpretive (qualitative) research texts demands a degree of creativity that stems from the research itself, thus providing a connection between thinking ideas, writing ideas and the development of new ideas. Jones and Borbasi refer to this development of meaning and analysis as emerging through ‘the warp and weft of the weave’. They suggest that understanding is woven into the research narrative, especially in phenomenological research, where the text may speak powerfully but can also allow silence for the reader to fill. ‘This type of research can also pose questions that remain unanswered by the researcher’s writing’ (Jones and Borbasi, 2003: 92-3).

A brief outline of the data collection and analysis during this research indicates the connection between conceiving, analysing and reporting. At the outset the research plan was to investigate some unspecified aspect of composer and performer interaction. These ideas were considered in the pilot study, which upon reflection led to the consolidation of ‘collaboration’ as the research subject. This led to refining the interview process and the research procedures. After the pilot study, five case studies followed, taking place concurrently. Each of these case studies was analysed, through personal reflection and feedback from the composers. Ongoing data analysis informed this practice and the development of the research in subsequent phases. A further phase of data analysis took place after all the data had been collected. All of this information was catalogued into five case folders with the intention of analysing and reporting each of the cases separately.

I decided to analyse and report on the case study involving Gardner first. The analysis involved reviewing the interview transcripts and listening to the recordings of the interviews. This examination led to the coding of a wide range of topics relating to collaboration. Aspects of this case study are discussed in the next chapter (chapter 4). The analysis and writing of the chapter provided important feedback in relation to the analysis and reporting of the other case studies. As a result of writing this chapter, I decided to continue the data analysis and reporting by refining the broad range of themes that emerged in this particular case study with Gardner. I reduced the original master list of 32 codes down to eight core themes based on a cross-case analysis of the themes that emerged most frequently across all the data platforms. These eight themes were then analysed and reported thematically in Chapters 5 and 6, with the intention of providing a more compelling narrative than the linear reporting of individual cases.

3.7.1 Cases, Coding and Themes

In preparing the cases for coding and the development of themes, the generic steps proposed by Creswell for analysing qualitative data were utilized. These steps are indicated as follows:

• Step One: Organize and prepare the data for analysis. This involves transcribing, optically scanning material and sorting and arranging data into categories or cases.

• Step Two: Read all data to obtain a general sense of the information and to reflect on its meaning.

• Step Three: Begin a detailed analysis with a coding process that involves segmenting sections of data and labelling these sections into categories or themes.

• Step Four: Use the coding process to generate a description of the setting as well as themes for analysis.

• Step Five: Decide how the descriptions and themes will be represented in the narrative. The most popular approach is to use a narrative passage to convey the findings.

• Step Six: Make an interpretation of the data. What were the lessons learned?

Creswell, 2003: 193-5

Prior to writing Chapter 4 (Case Study: Collaboration: Paul Roe and Stephen Gardner), I carried out the first three steps (above), resulting in the development of a wide range of codes (32), listed in Table 16.

TABLE 16

Roe-Gardner Case Study Codes

Adaptability and sense of humour Adaptable facilitative style: non-verbal Adaptable facilitative style: verbal Atmosphere affects collaboration Beneficial effect of collaboration Collaboration affects transmission Collaboration and creativity Collaboration and its affect on work Collaboration and practice

Collaboration as creative process Collaboration improves practice

Collaboration and professional opportunities Communication and social context

Concerns relating to collaboration Confusion with meaning of collaboration Effect of collaboration

Effective mode of collaboration Favoured types of collaboration

Flow, energy, desire for spontaneity Improvisation

Informal language assists collaboration Modes of collaboration

Negative experience of collaboration Non-collaborative language

Notation

Positive experience of collaboration Practical demonstration effective Practical instrumental question Previous experience of collaboration Previous positive history-helpful

Reference to other music helps orient style Transmission: composer-performer-audience

These codes were used to generate a description of the scene as well as providing material for analysis. This material is presented in Chapter 4 in a narrative that conveys both the character of the collaboration and also the inherent themes that emerged. After writing this case study, I selected eight key topics to analyse and report in the remaining case studies. I realized that giving an account of these other case studies thematically would provide a more compelling and linear narrative than the repetition involved in single-case reporting. These topics are listed below (Table 17) and are the subject of Chapters 5 and 6.

3.7.2 HyperRESEARCH-Qualitative Data Assessment Software (QDAS)

Traditionally qualitative analysis is laborious and labour intensive; this typically involves making multiple copies of text, which are hand-coded and cut up into sections before being manually sorted. Using HyperRESEARCH (Version 2.7) obviated the need for the repetitive paperwork of traditional research methods. This programme made it possible to:

• Code data any number of times.

• Retrieve and manipulate portions of coded source material. TABLE 17

Subjects for Thematic Reporting (Chapters 5 and 6)

Chapter 5

Communication and social context Modes of collaboration

Collaboration and practice Collaboration and work

Chapter 6

Notation Improvisation

Collaboration and creativity

• Test propositions about data. • Print the retrieved data.

All transcribed interviews were imported into HyperResearch, where it was possible to group the interviews and assess them both individually and collectively. These cases were then coded by highlighting the texts with coding applied accordingly. It was also possible to append the coded sections offering the opportunity for further intuitive analysis. One of the most important features of this software was the ability to group individual codes (themes) together, from all sources (cases), and print these particular sections separately. This allowed me to print individual thematic material from all the cases allowing for simple rereading and further appraisal. Table 18 demonstrates sample coding from the theme of improvisation:

TABLE 18

Example of Thematic Material from HyperRESEARCH (Improvisation) Ed-Meeting 3

Source material:

E: It wouldn't necessarily be too fast the idea is that you have this kind of an ostinato...I guess I could have written it out but I'm just gonna give the guy a headache, so I left it open like that / P: demos different ways..../ E: it could be that you would devise a few patterns and jump between them, is that ok? I'm not sure is that ok or am I putting too much in your head? / P: no it's fine... E: I just thought if I wrote it out it would be silly!

Ed-Meeting 3 Source material:

E: ye play with it, normally I'm quite specific with the notation but if I'm not take it that it's intentional, you can play with it, I mean in general you had it....

Jane-Meeting 1 Source material:

J: I’m envious of improvisers, people who play without music, there is a different kind of a feel to that type of performance.

P: Is there a mid-way point between composition and improvisation? J: That's what I’m kind of heading for myself.

Rob-Meeting 1 Source material:

R: Yeah you have an idea, like when you’re composing a piece and you use notation as your means of transmitting that idea, but when we're doing the improvisation thing it was just talking about the ideas and coming up with strategies for playing.

This software provided a powerful tool for analysis but obviously it did not provide interpretations of the coded information. These meanings and interpretations were elicited in the course of the research narrative. The software did not influence the form and content of the interpretive activity; it did however afford a degree of interactivity that allowed for different interpretive aspects to emerge, ‘spaces that connected the patterns with meanings and experiences’ (Denzin and Lincoln, 2003: 54).