Ethno Research

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Ethno Research at NAFCo Conference, Ireland

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National Melodies, Global Harmony? Identity, Agency, and Youth Cultural Production at Ethno World camps

Researchers from Ethno Research’s Arts & Culture team, based at University of Toronto Scarborough, presented a panel at the virtual North Atlantic Fiddle Convention on 23rd June 2021, titled National Melodies, Global Harmony? Identity, Agency, and Youth Cultural Production at Ethno World camps.

The three presentations explored the ways in which Ethno World gatherings use traditional musics to produce a public-facing vision of nation-to-nation global harmony while celebrating a post-nationalist vision of global youth culture. The panelists argued for increased attention to the role of voluntary associations and non-governmental organizations, such as music camps, in shaping present-day transmission of traditional repertoires.

The presentations were followed by a discussion with delegates, some of them past participants of Ethno, touching on themes of dance and movement; a top-down musical approach; and commonalities and diversity in the “Ethno sound”. The abstracts for the panel presentations are in the NAFCo conference programme, and their titles are below.

Laura Risk
Discourses of Personal and National Authenticity at Ethno-World Youth Music Camps

Keegan Manson-Curry
Sound Mapping and the Production of Place-Based Identities at Ethno-World

Roger Mantie and Pedro Tironi
Moral Accountability in Cultural Production

Take part in our newest survey!

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The Ethno Research team is now inviting people to contribute to the research by taking part in a new survey.

A significant part of Ethno Research is concerned with Ethno Pedagogy and Professional Development, with this part of the research being carried out by a team led by Professor Andrea Creech at McGill University, Canada.

If you have ever been involved with an Ethno gathering – as an organizer, artistic mentor or as a participant – you are invited to contribute to the Ethno Pedagogy and Professional Development research, by taking part in an anonymous survey. The survey will take approximately 15 minutes to complete.

By taking part you will help us to understand the learning and teaching process in Ethno music gatherings and the ways in which Ethno contributes to participants’ professional lives.

You can follow this link to access further information and the survey itself.

Deadline to complete the survey: 14 May 2021.

Article published in Music Education Research journal

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We’re delighted that our Postdoctoral Researcher, Sarah-Jane Gibson, has been published in Music Education Research journal. Her article, sharing the findings from her study into the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on Ethno World, can be found on the publisher’s website.

Sarah-Jane’s study investigates how music teaching and learning has been impacted by the shift to online musical practice, through an investigation of ‘The Hope sessions’, online tune learning workshops, and the ‘Exchange sessions’, online folk music collaborations. Her findings provide timely insight into how pedagogical approaches change when they shift from an offline to online context.

The article can be accessed online at the link below:

Shifting from offline to online collaborative music-making, teaching and learning: perceptions of Ethno artistic mentors – Sarah-Jane Gibson

You can hear more about this study in Sarah-Jane’s presentation video about the Sustainability/Covid-19 project.

Latest opportunities to engage with Ethno Research

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Video series: Meet the researchers

The Ethno Research team comprises a number of smaller teams each with a different research focus. In a series of videos on our website, the teams introduce themselves and share insights into their research. Since they’re unable to meet with people face-to-face in current circumstances, this is your chance to meet the researchers and find out what they’ve been working on over the past year.

The videos introduce the Arts and Culture Team; Ethno on the Road; the Ethno Organizers (SenseMaker®) project; the History Team; Sustainability/Covid-19 project; and the Trauma-informed and consent-based practice project.

Sound map

The Arts and Culture team are building an online sound map that showcases as many different Ethno experiences as possible, through sound recordings. If you have a recording of a tune you learned, a performance you were a part of, or a conversation you had at an Ethno about music and life, then we’d love to hear from you!

Recordings can be in the form of an audio track, a video, or even a simple voice memo. You can find out more information, including how to contribute, on the Ethno Research website.

Historical timeline

The History team has been gathering information for a digital timeline with the aim of showcasing each Ethno since 1990. The timeline is now online for anybody to browse, so do take a look! It contains information, photos and videos from many past Ethno gatherings. There are some gaps in the timeline, and if you think you can add any information, photos or other contributions, feel free to contact us.

Pedagogy survey

In another strand of the research, a new survey concerned with pedagogy and professional development will soon be circulated to the Ethno community, and we are hoping to see as many organizers, artistic mentors and participants as possible taking part. The survey will provide the research with vital perspectives on how and why Ethno pedagogy is described as ‘magic’. If you have participated in our research in the past, watch your e-mails for a link to the survey, and please do take part when it arrives!

SenseMaker survey

The call is still open for Ethno organziers to participate in our SenseMaker survey. Dr Dave Camlin, leading this part of the research, has produced a how-to video explaining step-by-step how organizers can download the app; share their story; and then interpret their story using the tools in the app. Organizer or not, if you are interested in the SenseMaker project or the research tool itself, you can find out more, and watch a video about it, on the project page.

Publication: Ethno on the Road

Our most recent publication investigates Ethno on the Road and Världens Band, particularly looking at the influence of Ethno in three areas: practice within the band; performance and outreach; and professional and personal development. The report can be downloaded in full, and as an executive summary, and you can hear Dr Sarah-Jane Gibson presenting about the research findings in this video, too.

Submit your recordings to our Sound Map!

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The Arts and Culture team of the Ethno Research project needs your help!

We’re building an online sound map that showcases as many different Ethno experiences as possible, through sound recordings. If you have a recording of a tune you learned, a performance you were a part of, or a conversation you had at an Ethno about music and life, then we’d love to hear from you! Recordings can be in the form of an audio track, a video, or even a simple voice memo.

What is a sound map? Well for starters, it’s a visual map that will put a pin in the location where you made your recording. But it will also include the recording itself, along with a little story about why this recording matters to you, and any pictures you might have of your Ethno experience.

*Check out the Belfast Sound Map for an interesting example.

Our sound map documents Ethno sounds from a global perspective — where you had this experience, where the music you encountered is from, and the different countries of the people involved, all accompanied by the amazing sounds you heard while you were at an Ethno camp. Have more than one recording from more than one Ethno? Even better. We’ll happily listen to all the recordings you’ve got!

Find full details and contact information on the Ethno Sound Map submission form at the link: https://forms.gle/Np6hjDTSc4ux7UWz6

Ethno World Historical Timeline

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Welcome to the Ethno World Historical Timeline!

This timeline serves as an archive in providing highlights of every Ethno experience, background information on Ethno, and significant events related to Ethno since its inception. The year 2020 marked the 30th anniversary of the very first Ethno which took place during the Falun Folkmusik Festival in Dalarna, Sweden in 1990.

If you have any information, images or videos you’d like to contribute to the timeline, please leave us a message on the Contact page.


Click here to view the full timeline in your browser.

Instructions on how to navigate the timeline:

  1. To move through the timeline, hold down the left mouse button and drag left or right OR scroll with the mouse wheel. You can also click on the bottom timeline banner to jump to a specific point on the timeline.
  2. Each Ethno is organized by their country and year. Click the more arrow button to learn about their story.
  3. For 3D mode, click on the lower bottom left 3D icon. Hold down the left mouse button and drag up or down OR scroll with the mouse wheel. Click on individual story to learn more.
  4. Click on the lower bottom right wrench icon to:
    a) Search and filter different Ethno individually or in groups.
    b) Change the view mode, spacing, and zoom.