Feeling it is how I understand it: Found poetry as analysis

Abstract

This paper tells the story of a researcher's analysis process that became a journey to an unfamiliar place and, ultimately, to a new way of conceiving analysis and a new way of seeing--at least, new to me as researcher. The study was an analysis of interview data gleaned from a series of conversations about what it is to be a musician. I had interviewed about forty highly accomplished professional musicians inviting them to talk about their musicianship and how they think they learned what they know--from whom, under what circumstances, and at what points in their lives. From transcription and analysis of the transcripts and recordings, a wide range of themes had emerged, reflecting visions of musicianship, the nature of participants' music learning experiences, and insight into their musical lives. In this paper, I explore one of these themes: the physical nature of musical knowing and experience.