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Prof Simone Krueger Bridge

Humanities and Social Science

Faculty of Arts Professional and Social Studies

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Social Value of Music Participation (British Academy project)

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Simone Krüger Bridge is a Professor of Cultural Musicology at Liverpool John Moores University, UK, working at the intersection of ethnomusicology, popular music studies, and music sociology. Her work explores the intricate interplay between music and humanity, and the profound significance of music as a fundamental aspect of human existence and cultural expression. Drawing on musicological, sociological and anthropological thought, her work regards music as a dynamic cultural artefact intimately intertwined with social structures, practices and identities, which both reflects and shapes social norms, values and power dynamics.

Simone is the author of Experiencing Ethnomusicology (2009) and Trajectories and Themes in World Popular Music: Globalization, Capitalism, Identity (2018), and editor of The Oxford Handbook of Global Popular Music (in press), The Globalization of Musics in Transit: Music Migration and Tourism (2014) and Ethnomusicology in the Academy: International Perspectives (2019). Her second monograph (2018), provides a social critique of capitalism’s impact on popular music in historical and world perspective, and is accompanied by cutting-edge educational resources (see: https://www.equinoxpub.com/home/instructor-resources-trajectories-themes-world-popular-music/). Currently, her research explores the social value of Liverpool Cathedral’s egalitarian music outreach programme and its societal contribution to the Liverpool city region.

Simone is the founding editor of the Journal of World Popular Music and founding co-editor of the book series Transcultural Music Studies (Equinox). She is a Professoriate Member on LJMU's Academic Board (Senate) (2023-2026); a core member of LJMU's REF 2029 UoA leadership; an external reviewer for REF Uo33 2029 at the University of South Wales; and an active member of the AHRC Peer Review College, including grant panel memberships. She has served a four-year term as the Chair of the Arts, Professional and Social Science (APSS) Faculty Research Degree Committee (FRDC) at Liverpool John Moores University; a three-year term on the Committee of the British Forum of Ethnomusicology (BFE); and a two-year term on the Executive Committee of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM); and is currently serving on three journal editorial boards.

Research interests: intercultural music education, musical globalization, music and capitalism, global music city, music in Paraguay, musical value, Cathedral music

Current research:
Liverpool Cathedral makes a substantial contribution to society through its music outreach programme with highly positive impacts on the Liverpool city region that it serves. This is the focus of impactful research since 2020 that sheds light on the value of Liverpool Cathedral’s vast egalitarian music outreach programme, and evaluates its benefits and impact for music education and social mobility, social capital and belonging, beauty and emotion, and spiritual wellbeing. For details, see:
* The Social Value of Music Participation: Exploring the Impacts of Liverpool Cathedral's Music Outreach Programme in Post-Covid-19 Society (2022-2024). https://trackimpact.org/project/eu-west-1/9856/overview
* The Digital Turn: Exploring the Social Value of Liverpool Cathedral's Online Music Outreach Programme during the Covid-19 Pandemic (2020-2022). https://trackimpact.org/project/eu-west-1/9745/overview

MPhil/PhD students:
Simone offers supervision for postgraduate research students working at the intersection of music and critical social and cultural theory. This includes research located (broadly speaking) in cultural musicology, music sociology, ethnomusicology and popular music studies, including critical research in Cathedral music studies, as well as research in the area of community and intercultural music education.

Current PhD students:
2025-2028. Christopher Deacon. Topic: Great Expectations and A Tale of Two Cathedrals: How the Attitudes of Cathedral Visitors Towards Religion and Spirituality Impacts the Expectations Placed Upon Liverpool’s Cathedral Music Departments (enrolled)
2024 - 2031. Lorraine Mahoney. Topic: Authenticity or Aesthetics: The Bridge between Memoir and Narrative Fiction in Post Punk to Britpop Storytelling (enrolled)
2024 - 2027. Finlay Gordon (VC PhD Studentship 2023/24). Topic: Loud and Proud, Strong and Wrong: The Role of Primary School Singing in Bridging a Gap between Music Education and Musical Excellence (programme approved)
2023 - 2027. Robbie Griffin. Topic: The Precarious Nature and Fluid Geographical Positioning of Liverpool's Grassroots Music Venues 1980s – Present (programme approved)
2017 - 2023. Paloma Cuadrado Miranda. Topic: Music and Identity in the Hispanic diaspora in Liverpool (on LOA)

Completed PhD students:
2017 - 2024. Matt Dicken (Bath Spa University). Topic: The Paraguayan Polka.
2018 - 2024. Lushiqi He. Topic: Popular Music and Identity in China: A Qualitative Analysis of "Chineseness" in Mandopop since the 1980s (https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/22930/)
2015 - 2020. Mary-Jane O’Leary. Thesis title: Encountering the comment: A phenomenological approach to reading the news online (http://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/14209/)
2016 - 2020. Abi Dunnett. Thesis title: ‘They Think They Know Us Better’: Aboriginal Experiences of Education, Health and Employment in Contemporary South Australia (http://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/14191/)
2015 - 2019. Jitendra Wijenayake. Thesis title: The Sinhalese Buddhist Diaspora in the United Kingdom: Negotiating Sinhalese Identity (http://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/11772/)

Languages

English
German
Spanish - Latin American

Degrees

2007, University of Sheffield, United Kingdom, PhD
2003, University of Central Lancashire, United Kingdom, PGCE
2002, Liverpool Hope University, United Kingdom, BA (Hons) in Music with Computing
1999, Stralsund University of Applied Sciences, Stralsund, Germany, Diplom-Betriebswirtschafterin mit Schwerpunkt in Marketing [BSc with Honours in Business Economics with Specialisation in Marketing]
1995, Sparkasse Neubrandenburg, Germany, Bankbetriebswirtin [Master Professional in Banking Services and Operations]

Certifications

2007, Higher Education Academy, FHEA

Academic appointments

Professor of Cultural Musicology, Humanities and Social Science, Liverpool John Moores University, 2023 - present
Chair APSS Faculty Research Degree Committee (FRDC), Liverpool John Moores University, 2018 - 2022
Reader in Music, Sociology, Liverpool John Moores University, 2017 - 2023
Senior Lecturer in Sociology, Department of Sociology, Liverpool John Moores University, 2015 - 2017
Programme Leader in Popular Music Studies, Liverpool John Moores University, 2013 - 2015
Senior Lecturer in Media and Cultural Studies/Popular Music, Liverpool John Moores University, 2007 - 2013
Academic Leader & SOLSTICE Research Co-ordinator, Edge Hill University, 2005 - 2007
Lecturer in Ethnomusicology, University of Wales, Bangor, 2005 - 2006

Postgraduate training

PGCE, UK, University of Central Lancashire, 2001 - 2003

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