In this unit on how music expresses culture you'll notice that there is a strong representation from Australian indigenous culture. And there are a good many reasons for that focus. Practically speaking it's because that's where we are. We're making this MOOC on this land which has been called Australia for the past 250 years or so. But perhaps more importantly, is that these very large island was invaded and colonised. And is owned by the oldest living Aboriginal cultures in the world, some say going back 65,000 years. So living on the land, which has long been home to a vast array of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures means that we are in a position to offer a perspective that may have relevance to understandings of how music expresses culture. And importantly the emphasis we have put on the purpose of music in this unit has been to honour diverse societies. Because, we can't really talk about culture in the contemporary landscape and certainly not in Australia without adopting some sort of critical position on that discussion. So what do we mean, when we talk about culture? Some people describe culture as a web or as a grid. Brynjulf Stige from Norway, who has contributed a bonus podcast on his work on culture centered music therapy, urges us to go further than simplifying culture to being a discussion of ethnicity. Although, ethnicity is an important and powerful part of culture. He describes culture as a way of relating to the world, consciously and unconsciously, with and through others. For the purposes of this unit, we'll focus on how music is one part of that. And Sally Treloyn in her review article for this unit, available on Voices, describes how ethnomusicologists have explored this topic. Particularly highlighting how one of the old men of ethnomusicology, Bruno Nettl, described his discipline as the study of music in and as culture. Sally highlights how this was part of an anthropological turn in the study of music. Away from the notes on the page and cultural assumptions that many people have brought to the study of music in the west prior to this term. Rather towards a more participatory emphasis on music as action. As many contributors to this MOOC have described with particular reference to Christopher Small's notion of musicking. But when we begin to talk about music in and as culture, we're no longer referring to music objectively. In fact, we probably shouldn't say that music expresses culture because that suggests it's singular. Technically, we might be better off saying that many forms of musicking are appropriated by diverse persons in ways that express different cultures. But I did choose to simplify that for the title of this unit. And more importantly, you'll see that all the contributors of this unit have carefully located themselves in relation to their perspectives on the relationships between music in and as culture. Carolyn Kenny, in her article for this unit, draws in rich narrative tales of her own experiences of participating in rituals involving music as a person of Native American heritage. She purposefully uses storytelling and pictures and YouTube clips as expressive and creative ways of conveying her knowledge. Rather than relying on the language of scientific discourse to describe what has influenced her understandings. Although she does also draw up on well known theorists from a round of disciplines. Richard Frankland is a renowned Australian playwright, songwriter, performer, advocate for cultural safety, and the head of the Wilin Center for Indigenous Arts and Cultural Development at the University of Melbourne. And Richard was interviewed for this unit, demonstrating immediately his capacity to communicate straight through the camera. He wave stories, songs and history together as he shares his perspective on the relationship between music, culture and well-being in a powerful demonstration of artistry. Performance, emotional awareness and personal appeal, don't miss it. My own contribution of the introductory rap for this MOOC serves the same purpose as I locate myself as a music therapist, a pop music lover, an explorer of youth cultures and an advocate for greater access to music and inclusion of diversity in the world. Not only are these more personalised approaches to presenting ideas engaging, but the contributors to this unit do that because it is absolutely necessary to talk about and sing about music and culture in this personal way since culture is personal and interpersonal.