Author Identifier
Brigitta Scarfe: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3313-9151
Date of Award
2025
Document Type
Thesis
Publisher
Edith Cowan University
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
School
Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts
First Supervisor
Jonathan McIntosh
Second Supervisor
Jonathan Marshall
Third Supervisor
Clint Bracknell
Abstract
This thesis examines the gendered dynamics of music participation and performance among Aboriginal women in the remote West Kimberley region of Western Australia (WA), specifically addressing the decline in their involvement in the popular music performance scene since 2000. The research reveals that Kimberley Aboriginal women lead rich musical lives beyond the public eye, engaging in various ‘musicking’ practices––such as listening to recorded music, singing and playing music at home and broadcasting on community radio––that empower themselves, their families and communities. Despite facing significant social barriers unique to this region, many women aspire to pursue music performance, drawing on their embodied wisdom (liyan) to seek and create new avenues for musical expression. This thesis argues that Kimberley Aboriginal women use music as a cultural resource to engage in the inner work of feeling and moving towards joy. Conducted by a non-Indigenous PhD candidate, the study involved 18 months of intensive ethnographic fieldwork, which included semi-structured interviews using a culturally secure ‘yarning’ approach, participant observation and auto-ethnography. The thesis adopts a critical decolonising and phenomenological framework to explore Kimberley Aboriginal women’s lifeworlds and provides new methodological insights to enhance decolonial praxis. The priorities and direction of the research were developed in consultation with local Aboriginal stakeholders with a view to recognising and developing relevant local musicking initiatives that support the flourishing of Kimberley Aboriginal girls and women.
DOI
10.25958/c3zt-rr52
Access Note
Access to this thesis is embargoed until 3rd September 2030
Recommended Citation
Scarfe, B. (2025). Joy, connectedness and empowerment in Kimberley Aboriginal women’s musicking. Edith Cowan University. https://doi.org/10.25958/c3zt-rr52