‘Sawt al-Shifaa’ – Muslim Experiences of Music, Sound, and Healing: A Short-Term Community Research Project in London, UK
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Abstract
Inspired by my work as a Muslim musician working in UK healthcare and community settings, ‘Sawt al-Shifaa’ (the sound of healing) was a research project I undertook during a 10-month postdoctoral research residency at a music conservatoire in London, UK. For three months, I worked with 16 participants who identified as Muslim/of Muslim heritage to explore how they were accessing music and sound for healing. I did this via six two-hour sessions held at a local community theatre, where we came together for discussions and music-making.
I applied a thematic analysis approach to my data, which consisted of detailed notes I took about music-making, participants’ own reflections and feedback, and messages in our WhatsApp group chat. This article explores five themes I constructed from the data. At the end of the project, I made a co-created zine alongside participants, combining creative writing, drawing and reflections about the project.
In keeping with the improvised nature of the music-making throughout the project, and the focus on Muslim people’s experiences, the article is grounded in participants’ words and includes links to music that they shared, alongside my own illustrations and handwritten notes from the zine. It is my hope that this work can enable more people from Muslim communities to access music for healing/health, as well as to feel empowered to do research in community about these topics.
Throughout the article, I explore what it might mean to activate a decolonial approach to community music making in Muslim community settings, thinking with healing justice frameworks to understand healing as something embodied, politicised, and inherently connected to liberatory anti-colonial practices. I explore what an Islamic ethics of hospitality might mean for music facilitation, as well as reflecting on the importance of sound and sonic practices alongside musical considerations.
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