Music in Asylum-Seeking Centers: The Complexity and Challenge of Facilitation

• In Event: Cultural and Community Music-Making

Abstract

Accommodation centres for those seeking asylum present particular contexts in which to facilitate music making. Contextual and systemic difficulties abound. An exploration of a music project within six asylum seeking centres in Ireland is presented with a focus on the experiences of the four facilitators involved. Data is presented from facilitator reflective logs, researcher observations and recorded professional development sessions to uncover the complexities and challenges that working in such contexts brings. The importance of place-based and process-centered approaches to working in such difficult contexts is thus highlighted. The findings are particularly important for the design and delivery of projects that seek to engage marginalized communities in meaningful ways.

Author

• Ailbhe Kenny, Mary Immaculate College