3. The Red through a Social Lens

Abstract

I gratefully acknowledge support from the Arts and Humanities Research Council, whose Leadership Fellowship (grant reference AH/P011683/1) enabled the fieldwork; Royal Holloway University of London, which assisted throughout the process and provided research leave to allow the drafting of the book manuscript; and Agrigento, whose trustees were patient and understanding during the final stages of writing and publication, permitting me to finish the project calmly. The Music & Letters Trust and Royal Holloway generously contributed towards the publication costs, and the Red kindly provided some of the photos.My thanks to all at Open Book Publishers, particularly Alessandra Tosi, Lucy Barnes, Anna Gatti, and Luca Baffa. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to publish this book in open access so that it can be freely available to readers in Latin America and around the world. Fig. 1. Archive of Red de Escuelas de Música. CC BY. 1All translations by the author. 2The Spanish term convivencia has more positive connotations than the English "coexistence." It suggests more than just tolerating others. There are hints of the English "conviviality."Music education has historically had a tense relationship with social justice. On the one hand, educators concerned with music practices have long preoccupied themselves with ideas of open participation and the potentially transformative capacity that musical interaction fosters. On the other hand, they have often done so while promoting and privileging a particular set of musical practices, traditions, and forms of musical knowledge, which has in turn alienated and even excluded many children from music education opportunities. Self-Critique, Change, and ConflictAfter I made a short reconnaissance trip to Medellín in 2016, the Red went through a change of leadership. When I arrived in 2017 to begin my fieldwork, the program had a new general director, and it was in a slightly tense state of transition and anticipation. At our first meeting, program leaders articulated a self-critique of the Red's history and a vision of change. It immediately became clear that there were interesting This continual dialogue led the Red to offer me a consultancy position in 2018 (one that I was unfortunately unable to take up for contractual reasons). I also dusted off my clarinet and joined in workshops for teachers and students, and I took part in professional development seminars for staff. In short, I became a participant observer. I interviewed the Red's first four general directors, in some cases more than once, and interacted extensively with the fifth, who was in charge during my fieldwork. I also had a conversation with the sixth, appointed in 2020, shortly before I finished this book. I carried out a large number of interviews with managers, staff, and students, but I also witnessed and took part in many discussions as I hung out with staff over lunch and in coffee breaks between meetings, and I had many informal, private conversations. Most interviews were undertaken under conditions o...