Music, Creativity and the Cultural Economy

Music, Creativity and the Cultural Economy is an inclusive and interdisciplinary research group focused on examining the cultural and creative industries and creative practice, with a particular focus on music, but encompassing all forms of creative and cultural activity.

Music, creativity and the cultural economy are areas of rich contemporary scholarly concern, casting light on a range of social, cultural, political and business issues. Furthermore, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport reported in 2022 that creative and cultural work accounts for around 1 in 8 UK businesses, and almost 2.3 million jobs. Members of the group have published extensively on music history, culture and business, as well as on cultural heritage, journalism, fan cultures and media.

The group is open to all established and new researchers from across Solent University, as well as to the ‘research curious’, and supports Solent’s Research and Knowledge Exchange Enabling Plan regarding staff development and knowledge exchange/civic engagement.

Postgraduate opportunities

We encourage and support new MPhil/PhD students in our research specialisms (see below), and are currently accepting self-funded research students. If you would like more information about postgraduate research opportunities, please contact Chris Anderton. More information regarding Solent University's research programme can be found here.

If you are interested in joining the group or want to know more, please email Chris Anderton.

Areas of expertise/interest

The key themes of the group will develop over time, and in line with the membership of the group; however, we can initially identify the following:

Aims of the group

The aims of the group are:

• To celebrate and publicise the research, knowledge exchange, and public engagement activities of group members.
• To offer peer support, mentoring and advice to individuals and teams regarding their research ideas.
• To generate and foster collaborative research ideas, questions and opportunities.
• To support the publication of outputs, and the development of impact case studies.
• To give support in attracting external partners and funding opportunities.
• To contribute to postgraduate growth, experience and community.
• To develop a research culture around the culture and media industries.