Data retrieval

As Stock and Chou note, „a writer‟s reliance on a base of experience accumulated prior to a training in the full niceties of ethnomusicological fieldwork can raise questions as to how far the account represents wider realities in the society in question‟ (2008:118). In order to provide a variety of perspectives on the phenomenon under investigation I have built from my previously held ideas about folk singing through a multi-method approach to data collection. This includes the traditional ethnographic method of

participant observation alongside tools gleaned from sociological approaches to researching music. This has provided sufficient data to employ a system of triangulation in a further attempt to avoid the (unconscious) manipulation of results by the researcher (Davidson 2004).

I utilised three main data retrieval systems: participant observation, diary and focus group. Interviews, personal communication, audio recording and documentary sources supplemented these. There follows a description of the models used for each method including details of their development and application.

Participant observation can be conducted in a number of forms, producing differing data depending upon the starting point of the researcher, commonly termed insider and outsider perspectives. Although I have a deep personal understanding of folk singing, my involvement with the Sheffield scene is relatively recent and I therefore have limited knowledge of localised

practices. This places me in the interesting position of being an „outsider‟ within a context whose general structures I am familiar with and, as such, I am well placed to notice idiosyncrasies within this environment, highlighting what are localised or more widely spread practices. Further, as my

relationships developed within the Sheffield scene over the past three years, I have been able to make observations from a number of stages between being an outsider to becoming an insider in particular contexts.

Whereas researchers usually undergo a process of transition to become a participant, I have undergone the transition to become an observer. I anticipated that this would involve periods of participating naturally, and periods of acting as a researcher, an approach followed by Garnett (2005). However, in practice I felt I was always myself and found, both in the field and when considering it away from the music-making context, that I could not separate my opinions or behaviours so clearly. Some of the participants in my study, however, seemed to prefer the division of my roles and people‟s behaviours towards me changed when I displayed any outward display of data collection.

From previous experience of folk singing events I felt that taking photographs or making audio recordings during events would be disruptive and decided to limit this type of activity; I expected that note taking would be acceptable. In practice, however, I found that this also created a barrier between myself and other participants, serving as a constant reminder that I was researching and raising suspicions about what I was writing. I ceased this as a general practice preferring to make notes away from the event.

In order to collect data directly from events I asked permission to conduct „intrusive‟ fieldwork at one meeting of each of the three events described above. This approach worked well, as participants understood the limitations of my activity and did not feel their meetings were being

excessively disrupted. I also found that note taking in conjunction with recording seemed to raise less suspicion than note taking alone.

For the purposes of my analysis, it would have been useful to have used more complex recording techniques utilised elsewhere such as multi- tracked recordings (Arom 1991) or video recordings (Qureshi 1995). However, I felt these methods would have caused considerable disruption,

both physically and psychologically to the normal functioning of events. I recorded events in audio form using an Edirol R-09 with internal stereo mics, and stored as 16 bit 44.1 kHz .wav files. Still images were taken using a Canon Powershot A510 3.2 mega pixel camera and stored as .jpg files. These technologies were selected for their high technical specification whilst remaining small enough to minimize intrusion.

To increase my collection of visual material I supplied some

participants with disposable cameras and asked them to take pictures of the events they attended. The intended benefit of this approach was to dissipate the power base from me as the researcher to limit intrusiveness. A surprise benefit, however, was found in the generation of a body of images portraying what participants felt was of interest rather than those based on my own assumptions. The quality of these images was low due to the technological specifications of the cameras and therefore of little use in publicly presenting results. However, the material was nevertheless valuable for analysis.

In order to gather knowledge of the extent of individuals‟ involvement with folk singing beyond the limits of individual events I chose to conduct a time-based study. John Sloboda et al (2001) conducted research utilising an „experience sampling method‟ which involved participants being bleeped at intervals to instigate note-making of any music they were, or had recently been, listening to. While this approach would provide real time data, it

seems less useful when studying timetabled events and I instead opted for a diary based method.

In ethnomusicology, diaries have long been used by researchers to record their observations in fieldnote form. Their use as a tool to generate data directly from participants however, is relatively new. The form has received praise and criticism from the fields of sociology and psychology.

Jane Davidson (2004) claims that an investigation which asked children to keep diaries provided more accurate detail about their level of activity in instrumental practice than was provided when they were

questioned retrospectively. In contrast, Robson (1993) suggests there is the risk that entries may be biased as participants either report their behaviour more extremely, or moderate their behaviour in an effort to satisfy the research. The diary method could therefore be seen as a dubious form of

data retrieval used alone, but as some of these issues can be addressed through interview or participant observation, I incorporated the tool into my varied methodology.

Pitts (2005) has used diaries to monitor the activity and views of members of a week-long residential course through asking participants to make a note of their activities and respond to set questions. I ran a two week trial during April-May 2007 with 8 participants involving two diary designs based on this model provided by Pitts. The design was modified and the main diary project involved 27 participants maintaining a diary for two months from 1st October – 31st November 2007.7

Participants contributed varying amounts of data, both in terms of the number of events they attended and the amount of detail in which they described each event. Along with providing a record of activity illuminating the scope and nature of their involvement with folk singing, I found that this method provided useful data concerning the „critical incident' (Robson 1993). This enabled me to uncover specific happenings that participants considered important, providing a foundation from which to develop in the Grounded Theory style. In this way, diary data was used for quantitative and qualitative analysis as well as identifying areas for future questioning.

These follow-up questions were designed as extensions from information previously supplied and therefore specifically tailored to each participant. Further questioning usually took the form of email

correspondence, though occasionally face-to-face informal questioning occurred. I felt uncomfortable approaching people during events to discuss their involvement with the research, or to gather further data, as I feared I would be intruding on their leisure experience. I also felt they would have more time to consider responses away from the event rather than giving „sound bite‟ responses that may have been less insightful.

To investigate complex or sensitive subjects I felt interviews would be more conducive and employed this technique to gather data around issues of professionalism. Discouraged from using either of Jackson‟s (1987:96) „directive‟ and „non-directive‟ methods as they would produce data extreme in

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either rigidity or lack of focus, I opted for a semi-structured model. I devised a subject scheme and adapted the questions to allow interviewees the freedom to express themselves and their particular situations (Davidson 2004).8 This was particularly necessary as I included participants from a range of perspectives: two professional musicians, four semi-professional musicians, and one non-professional (2 female; 5 male); all were Sheffield residents.

As the data sought was not specifically influenced by time-based issues such as preparation for performance I felt little benefit would be gained from a contextual approach. I gathered this data in participants‟ homes rather than other leisure singing contexts as I did not want to intrude upon interview participants‟ (or other singers‟) social experiences and felt this would provide a non-threatening atmosphere. To further avoid a situation where participants may feel interviews are test-like and struggle to find the „right‟ answer (Stock 2004), I conducted these in a style as close to natural discourse as possible.

A further form of data collection was designed in order to maximise the opportunity to gain a variety of perspectives from within the folk scene and not mould participants‟ responses to my own frame of thinking. This involved a focus group approach in which I contributed little and the participants discussed themes amongst themselves.

The model was based upon a design by Krueger (1988) and involved fifteen participants (7 male and 8 female) and conducted at Whitby Folk Week 2007.9 At the start of the 1 hour 45 minute session, individuals were asked to reflect on their experiences of folk singing communities and write down key words or phrases. Each then fed these back to the group along with some introductory biographical detail. This was useful both as a tool to generate thinking and as a warm up exercise to encourage free speaking. Participants then wrote key words and phrases on a form containing four headings (prepared in advance by myself) and group discussion was held for each particular heading. A general discussion and any other reflections were

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See Appendix 3 for the interview frame.

9

This is a week long, annual festival of folk song, music and dance held in various locations around the town of Whitby, North Yorkshire. For more details see

invited in the last 10 minutes of the session.10 The session was recorded and transcribed and the key-word sheets were collected.

This approach has the benefit of allowing debate between participants and identified individual and consensus opinions, enabling people with

differing opinions about a subject to highlight areas of agreement and

disagreement. Individual opinion could be seen on the initial written sheets, and how the following discussion altered perceptions could be monitored. It also enabled a more detailed exploration of points which would be left

undisclosed through comparing two contradictory responses in the diary form as the participants had the opportunity to question each other‟s perspectives and explain their own positions. Although the method was undemanding in terms of preparation, recruitment or time commitment (for either researcher or participant), it was particularly illuminating for this study.

Along with the above-mentioned forms of humanistic data collection I also consulted documentary and archival resources. Regional and national folk music publications in the form of paper based magazines provide an insight into current internal discourses (through editorials and letters pages) and the ways in which participants within the scene communicate with one another (through event advertisements and reviews). How folk is presented in the wider press was also monitored.

The internet provides another resource through which folk singers communicate and I monitored the activities within various chat-rooms and online discussion groups. There is, however, a tendency for these formats to present extremist ideas, and as such, I have made little use of opinions gained from this exploration within the thesis.

Throughout this research I have found great warmth of feeling and a general enthusiasm to contribute to the project. A similar phenomenon was described by Garnett in her study of barbershop singers and she felt this was attributable to their desire to explain themselves and make excuses for what they do (2005:9). I have the impression that folk singers similarly want other people to understand their activities and to be represented alongside other musical genres as a form of legitimisation for their art; a factor that helpfully

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facilitated my data gathering and has made conducting this research particularly enjoyable.