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Staff Profile

Dr Adam Behr

Reader in Music, Politics and Society

  • Address: International Centre for Music Studies (ICMuS)
    School of Arts and Cultures,
    Armstrong Building,
    Â鶹´«Ã½,
    Â鶹´«Ã½ upon Tyne, NE1 7RU
Background

Adam Behr teaches and researches the intersections between the creative industries, cultural policy, music, and politics. He is also interested in the sociology and history of popular music and their relationship to the politics of popular culture.


Following a PhD on the historical context and social dynamics of rock bands at the University of Stirling, he has researched and published on cultural policy, music and politics, music and election campaigns, the music industries, and the popular music of the mid-twentieth to twenty first centuries.


Prior to joining Â鶹´«Ã½, he taught widely across Popular Music Studies and Media Studies at Stirling University, the University of Glasgow, the University of Edinburgh and City University (London).


In addition to academic writing, he has written extensively for the web, as an editor and contributor to the site, for and elsewhere.


Memberships:

  • International Association for the Study of Popular Music
  • Political Studies Association
  • Royal Musical Association
  • City of Edinburgh Council 'Music is Audible' working group
  • Scottish Parliament Cross Party Group on Culture
  • Scottish Parliament Cross Party Group on Music

Current Administrative Role:

  • Head of Music

Previous Administrative Roles:

Deputy Head of Music, Music Impact Co-ordinator, Undergraduate Admissions Tutor for Music, Chair of Undergraduate Board of Studies in Music, Degree Programme Director for BA Hons Contemporary and Popular Music, Web Co-ordinator for Music)

Research

Adam Behr's research lies broadly within the interdisciplinary field of Popular Music Studies. Key areas of interest include:

  • The music industries
  • Cultural policy
  • The intersection of music and politics (including electoral politics)
  • The sociology and history of popular music

Research includes:

  • 'The Live Music Music Mapping Project' - https://livemusicresearch.org/
  • 'The UK Live Music Census': An AHRC funded exercise to gather data about live music across the UK. The words first national live music census. http://uklivemusiccensus.org/
  • 'Facilitating Music Tourism for the Creative Economy': An investigation of the beneficiaries of music tourism designed to inform policymakers about the concerns of music and tourism-related business. Funded by the AHRC and National Productivity Investment Fund
  • An examination of the musical components of UK and US General Election Campaigns.

Previous projects include:

  • The Edinburgh Live Music Census
  • From Pub to Stadium: The ecology of public and commercial investment in British live music venues. (Part of the AHRC's Cultural Value Project)
  • The cultural value of live music: A Case Study of Enthusiast, State-funded, and Commercial Events at the Queen's Hall (Part of the AHRC's Cultural Value Project).
  • Scotland On Tour: Strategies for Promoting the Scottish Music Industry Within and Outwith Scotland. (AHRC Cultural Engagement Fellowship)
  • An investigation and typology of Edinburgh's open mic nights.
  • The social dynamics of rock bands

Current PhD supervisions:

  • Creative industry development and cultural policy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
  • British Popular Music Journalism and Gender: How music journalists and critics perpetuate or challenge stereotypes about women rock musicians
  • 'Why P-Funk?' A Case Study of the Evolution of P-Funk Through a 'Production of Culture' Model

Successfully completed PhDs supervised:

  • Theorising songwriting, industry and autoethnography
  • The role of narrative in the work of Kate Bush
Teaching

Current Teaching:

  • Music, Politics and Policy (module leader) - undergraduate final year
  • Popular Music and Media (module leader) - undergraduate Stage 2
  • Academic Practice for Music Studies (contributor) - undergraduate Stage 1
  • Introduction to Popular Music Studies (contributor, previously module leader) - undergraduate Stage 1
  • Studies in Popular Music - (contributor) - postgraduate elective

Previous Teaching

  • The Folk Revival (contributor) - undergraduate Stage 3
  • Issues in Popular Music Culture (contributor) - undergraduate Stage 2
  • Popular Music Policy: Case Studies and Context (module leader) - postgraduate elective
  • Advanced Popular Music Studies (module leader) - postgraduate elective


Publications

  • Articles

    • Ord M, Behr A. . Tourist Studies 2023, 23(3), 177-265.
    • Behr A. . Popular Music and Society 2022, 45(1), 31-47.
    • Behr A, Hamilton C, Rozbicka P. . Journal of World Popular Music 2022, 9(1-2), 31-48.
    • Behr A. . The New European 2021, (258), 38-39.
    • Zazzo L, Behr A. . Journal of Music, Health and Wellbeing 2021, Autumn 2021.
    • van der Hoeven A, Behr A, Hamilton C, Mulder M, Rozbicka P. . Arts and the Market 2021, 11(2).
    • Behr A. . The New European 2020, (203), 32-33.
    • Behr A, Webster E, Brennan M, Cloonan M, Ansell J. . Popular Music and Society 2020, 43(5), 501-522.
    • Behr A, Cloonan M. . International Journal of Cultural Policy 2020, 26(1), 95-108.
    • Behr A. . The New European 2020, (184), 6-7.
    • Behr A. . The New European 2020, (180), 35-39.
    • Behr A. . The New European 2019, (139), 29-32.
    • Behr A. . Popular Music History 2019, 11(3), 187-188.
    • Behr A. . The New European 2018, (119), 44.
    • Behr A. . The New European 2018, (124), 36-38.
    • Behr A, Negus K, Street J. . Political Studies 2018, 66(1), 63-80.
    • Behr A. . Participations: Journal of Audience and Reception Studies 2017, 14(1), 352-375.
    • Behr A, Negus K, Street J. . Journal for Cultural Research 2017, 21(3), 223-240.
    • Negus K, Street J, Behr A. . European Journal of Cultural Studies 2017, 20(4), 363-380.
    • Behr A, Brennan M, Cloonan M, Frith S, Webster E. . Rock Music Studies 2016, 3(1), 5-23.
    • Behr A. . Rock Music Studies 2015, 2(1), 1-21.
    • Behr A, Brennan M. . Cultural Trends 2014, 23(3), 169-177.
    • Behr A, Brennan M, Cloonan C. . International Journal of Cultural Policy 2014, 1-16.
    • Behr A. The real "crossroads" of live music - the conventions of performance at open mic nights in Edinburgh. Social Semiotics 2012, 22(5), 559-573.

  • Book Chapters

    • Behr A. . In: Frith S; Cloonan M; Williamson J, ed. Made in Scotland: Studies in Popular Music. London and New York: Routledge, 2023, pp.126-134.
    • Behr A. . In: Homan S, ed. The Bloomsbury Handbook of Popular Music Policy. New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2022, pp.137-148.
    • Rozbicka P, Behr A, Hamilton C. . In: Homan,S, ed. The Bloomsbury Handbook of Popular Music Policy. New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2022, pp.321-332.
    • Behr A. . In: Hill,S, ed. One-Hit Wonders: An Oblique History of Popular Music. New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2022, pp.21-28.
    • Behr A, Brennan M, Cloonan M, Webster E. . In: Osborne, R; Laing, D, ed. Music by Numbers: The Use and Abuse of Statistics in the Music Industry. Bristol: Intellect, 2021, pp.104-120.
    • Behr A. . In: Anderton,C;Pisfil,S, ed. Researching Live Music: Gigs, Tours, Concerts and Festival. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, 2021, pp.212-224.
    • Behr A, Brennan M, Cloonan M. . In: Ballico,C; Watson,A, ed. Music Cities: Evaluating a Global Cultural Policy Concept. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, 2020, pp.167-188.
    • Behr A. . In: Jackson, D; Thorsen, E; Lillekar, D; Weidhase, N, ed. UK Election Analysis 2019: Media, Voters and the Campaign. Poole, England: Political Studies Association/Centre for Comparative Politics and Media Research, 2019, pp.122-122.
    • Behr A, Street J. . In: Thorsen, E; Jackson, D; Lillekar, D, ed. UK Election Analysis 2017: Media, Voters and the Campaign. Poole, England: Political Studies Association/ Centre for the Study of Journalism, Culture and Community, 2017, pp.134-134.
    • Behr A. . In: Horn D; Shepherd J, ed. Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World. London; New York: Bloomsbury - Continuum Books, 2017.
    • Behr A. . In: John Shepherd and Kyle Devine, ed. The Routledge Reader on The Sociology of Music. New York and London: Routledge, 2015, pp.277-286.

  • Editorial

    • Flath B, Behr A, Cloonan M. . IASPM Journal 2019, 9(1), 3-5.

  • Online Publications

    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2023. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2023. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2023. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2023. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2023. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2022. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2022. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2022. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2022. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2021. Available at: .
    • Behr A, Rozbicka P, Hamilton C. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2021. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2021. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2021. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2021. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2020. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2019. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2019. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2019. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . The Conversation Trust, 2018. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2018. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . The Conversation Trust, 2018. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London, UK: The Conversation Trust, 2018. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . The Conversation Trust, 2018. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . The Conversation Trust, 2018. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2017. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2016. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2016. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . The Conversation Trust, 2016. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2016. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2016. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . London: The Conversation Trust, 2016. Available at: .
    • Behr A. . The Conversation Trust, 2015. Available at: .

  • Reports

    • Rozbicka P, Behr A, Hamilton C. . Aston University; Birmingham City University; Â鶹´«Ã½, 2022. 2.
    • Rozbicka P, Behr A, Hamilton C. . Aston University; Â鶹´«Ã½; Birmingham City University; AHRC, 2022. Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre Discussion Papers.
    • Ord M, Behr A. . Â鶹´«Ã½/AHRC/ Scottish Music Industry Association/Music Tourist, 2019.
    • Rozbicka P, Hamilton C, Behr A, Correa Vila P, Davies LJ. . Aston University; Birmingham City University; Â鶹´«Ã½, 2019. 1.
    • Webster E, Brennan M, Behr A, Cloonan M, Ansell J. . 2018.
    • Behr A, Brennan M, Cloonan C. . Arts and Humanities Research Council, 2015.
    • Behr A, Cloonan M. . Edinburgh, UK: Creative Scotland, 2015.
    • Behr A, Webster E, Brennan M. . Edinburgh, UK: Live Music Exchange/University of Edinburgh, 2015.
    • Behr A, Brennan M. . Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh/AHRC/Live Music Exchange, 2013.

  • Reviews

    • Behr A. . Popular Music 2016, 35(1), 136-139.
    • Behr A. [Book Review] Remembering Woodstock. Edited by Bennett Andy. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2004. xxi + 159 pp. ISBN 0 7546 0713 5. Popular Music 2007, 26(3), 525-528.
    • Behr A. [Book Review] The Rolling Stones: An Oral History. By Alan Lysaght. Toronto: McArthur and Company, 2003. 310+v pp. ISBN 1-55278-392-8 (paperback). Popular Music 2006, 26(1), 189-91.
    • Behr A. [Book Review] The Last Party: Britpop, Blair and the Demise of English Rock. By John Harris. London: Fourth Estate, 2003. 448 pp. ISBN 0-00-713472-X. Popular Music 2004, 23(2), 224-227.
    • Behr A. [Book Review] The Cambridge Companion to the Guitar. Edited by Victor Anand Coelho. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. 278 pp. ISBN 0–521–00040–8. Popular Music 2004, 23(3), 389-91.
    • Behr A. [Book Review] Karaoke Nights: An Ethnographic Rhapsody. By Rob Drew. Atamira Press, 2001. 160 pp. ISBN 0759100470. Popular Music 2004, 23(1), 97-98.