This book explores the way in which singing can foster experiences of belonging through ritual performance. Based on more than two decades of ethnographic, pedagogical and musical research, it is set against the backdrop of "the new Ireland" of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Charting Ireland's growing multiculturalism, changing patterns of migration, the diminished influence of Catholicism, and synergies between indigenous and global forms of cultural expression, it explores rights and rites of belonging in contemporary Ireland. Helen Phelan examines a range of religious, educational, civic and community-based rituals including religious rituals of new migrant communities in "borrowed" rituals spaces; baptismal rituals in the context of the Irish citizenship referendum; rituals that mythologize the core values of an educational institution; a ritual laboratory for students of singing; and community-based festivals and performances. Her investigation peels back the physiological, emotional and cultural layers of singing to illuminate how it functions as a potential agent of belonging. Each chapter engages theoretically with one of five core characteristic of singing (resonance, somatics, performance, temporality, and tacitness) in the context of particular performed rituals. Phelan offers a persuasive proposal for ritually-framed singing as a valuable and potent tool in the creation of inclusive, creative and integrated communities of belonging.

About the Author
Helen Phelan is Professor of Arts Practice at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick. A singer and ritual studies scholar, she is an Irish Research Council recipient for her work on singing and sustained social integration with new migrant communities in Ireland over the last two decades. Her singing interests span medieval chant to contemporary ritual vocal song while her publications are primarily in the areas of ritual studies, music education philosophy and arts practice research.

Reviews
the breath of this work ensures its significance to ritual studies, ethnography, philosophy, religion, vocal pedagogy and cultural studies. I commend this work for its originality in focus and opening a dialogue for the need for greater inclusion in modern Ireland. * Susan Motherway, Ethnomusicology Ireland *
Phelan integrates a depth and breadth of knowledge in ritual studies, ethnography, philosophy, religion, music education, acoustics, and the singing voice to create a compelling argument about the profound effect that performed singing rituals have in the development of communities of belonging...Phelan's writing is of value to scholars of religion, ritual, music, and ethnic studies as well as anyone interested in the exploration of multicultural community building. * Matthew Schloneger, Reading Religion *



Book Information
ISBN 9780190672232
Author Helen Phelan
Format Paperback
Page Count 336
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 481g
Dimensions(mm) 155mm * 231mm * 23mm