Musicologist lectures on campus Friday

Noted musicologist Nathan Kruse, associate professor of Music Education and coordinator of Graduate Studies in Music Education at Case Western Reserve University, will lecture 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 24 in Bliss Recital Hall at Youngstown State University.

The lecture, titled “Community Music, the Aging Process, and Lifespan Learning: Directions in Adult Music Participation,” is free and open to the public.

The lecture is part of a series sponsored by the YSU Dana School of Music and the Dana Research Society, a student organization promoting student research in music. For more information, email Ewelina Boczkowska at eboczkowska@ysu.edu.

Music teachers and scholars have endeavored to understand adult music learning practices across the lifespan, as well as music making experiences in community contexts. Previous research has shown that music participation can contribute to the quality of life among aging and older adults, and that several of the stereotypes once associated with the aging process have been reexamined. Participation in community ensembles designed for adults and intergenerational learners has been linked to enhanced self-confidence, identity, and a sense of purpose. Still, music educators continue to search for ways to involve adults in meaningful musical endeavors. These and other considerations might contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the ways in which individuals participate in musical experiences across their life, and how tenets of healthy aging can be applied to music education.

Kruse teaches courses in research methods, music cognition and learning, vernacular music and classroom guitar. Kruse’s research interests include adult music education and lifespan learning, ethnographic traditions of community music, and school-university partnerships. He earned a B.M.E. from Butler University, an M.M. in Music Education from the University of New Mexico, and a Ph.D. in Music Education from Michigan State University.

Parking is available in the M30 Wick Avenue parking deck via Walnut Street for a nominal fee. Patrons are advised to watch for posted detours as construction progresses on Wick Avenue. More at 330-941-2307.