At Home in the Atelier: Protagonists and Provocations in Music Making with Young Children

Abstract

In this qualitative case study study, we explore the at-home musical play experiences of the Merchant family and their toddler-aged daughter Eleanor. We wondered: What roles can Eleanor’s parents assume in guided musical play with Eleanor?; What roles does Eleanor assume when engaging in guided home musical play?; and What can early childhood music specialists learn from the Merchant family to help other parents and children find these roles? We provided weekly challenges, which we called musical provocations, to the Merchant family. The provocations featured different aspects of musical play, including creating and performing. Through the Merchant family’s submissions we identified many play-enhancing musical provocations enriching their experiences. These provocations helped to form a makeshift musical workshop in their household, which we label as a musical atelier, using the family kitchen as their main workspace.  Our findings suggest that using musical provocations at home can help parents create playful music environments for themselves and their children, and lead to new shared repertoire and deepened cultural and familial identity.