Works do not simply disappear.

An empirical reconstruction of the importance of musical texts in music didactics courses

Abstract

This text is based on the findings of an ethnographic research project which revealed that pieces of music are central to music didactics courses. This contradicts the academic discussion, in which musical practices, rather than pieces of music, are considered the primary reference. The aim is therefore to reconcile these two positions. Using actor-network theory, it is demonstrated that musical pieces act as influential factors in teaching and play a significant role in the transformation of practices into musical practices. However, the empirical reconstruction also shows that, in the analysed courses, pieces of music are understood as supratemporal variables, a perspective that is open to criticism from a practice theory standpoint. This juxtaposition results in an advocacy for a musical text conceived as a practice, as defined by Roland Barthes.