The culture of Australian country music will be under the spotlight in one of four new courses to be offered at UQ Ipswich. The courses will focus on ‘music cultures,’ including popular and contemporary music.
John Williamson and other leading country music artists helped to celebrate the launch of the courses at a function hosted by the Country Music Association of Australia (CMAA) at UQ Ipswich on Monday 4 August.
Dr Shirley Tucker, who has been working in close consultation with the CMAA, said the organisation had been extremely supportive during the course development process. She was delighted that the Board had agreed to hold a function to celebrate the University initiative.
“Clearly the industry is motivated by the prospect of gaining graduates who can specialise in the industry and enhance research in contemporary music culture,” she said.
“Country music in particular, as the longest sustaining popular music genre in Australia, has made an important contribution to our understanding of what being Australian means.”
CMAA President John Williamson sang a duet with Golden Guitar winning artist Sara Storer at the launch and country music artists Dobe Newton, Pat Drummond, Jim Haynes and Brendon Walmsley also performed.
“An academic approach to our music is not something a lot of people would have contemplated before now,” John said expressing the CMAA’s delight at UQ’s move into country music. “It’s an exciting move, one we are very pleased to see. The extension of country music into formal study will provide more substance to our industry, more pathways for people to examine and understand country music and opportunities for people already in the industry to extend their involvement to this level if they wish.”
The courses will be offered through the Contemporary Studies Program at the Ipswich campus, where they will be part of studies in media and culture.
Two introductory first year courses, examining aspects of music and popular culture, will be available from 2004, and two advanced courses from 2005. Dr Shirley Tucker and Dr Keith Beattie will be developing the courses.
Media: For further information contact UQ Ipswich Contemporary Studies Program Director Dr Leigh Dale (telephone 07 3381 1290, email l.dale@uq.edu.au) or Lynda Flower at UQ Communications (telephone (w) 07 3365 2339, email l.flower@uq.edu.au).
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