Lecturer
- About
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- Email Address
- christina.ballico@abdn.ac.uk
- School/Department
- School of Language, Literature, Music and Visual Culture
Biography
Hailing from Perth, Western Australia, I research and teach in the field of popular music studies. I am the editor of Geographically Isolated and Peripheral Music Scenes: Global insights and perspectives (Palgrave, 2021), and the co-editor of Music Cities: Evaluating a global cultural policy concept (Palgrave, 2020). I am the Treasurer of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM), a Collaborator with the Center for Music Ecosystems, and an Editorial Board Member for the Anthem Impact in Music Business, Technology and Culture series. I am currently an External Examiner for the MA Music Business Management course at the University of Westminster and have undertaken research consultancies for music advocacy bodies and state government arts' departments in Australia. I was the Research Fellow (2016 - 2019) on the Australian Research Council Linkage Project, Making Music Work: Sustainable portfolio careers for Australian musicians (LP 150100497).
My research is primarily focused on examining the structure and function of place-based music industries and scenes, including their associated career, business, and infrastructure development, and music-related urban governance. It considers the role of music in creative and cultural cities paradigms - including the music cities concept and emergent music ecosystems framework - and places a strong focus on the influences of locality, particularly geographical isolation and peripherality, on the ways in which music industries and scenes function.
I am writing a manuscript for the Bloomsbury 33 1/3 Oceania series on The Triffids' breathtaking 1986 album Born Sandy Devotional, while continuing to expand on my research agenda in music's relationship to place. This includes upcoming research and publishing projects exploring the capacity for arts and cultural engagement within chronourbanist frameworks, and the place-specific impacts of creative and cultural cities frameworks and associated initiatives.
External Memberships
Treasurer, International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM): 2025 - Present
External Examiner, MA Music Business Management (University of Westminster): 2024 - PresentEditorial Board Member, Anthem Impact in Music Business, Technology and Culture series: 2024 - Present
Collaborator, Center for Music Ecosystems: 2021 - Present
Member-at-Large, International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM): 2023 - 2025Editorial Board Member, IASPM Journal: 2019 - 2023
- Publications
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Page 1 of 1 Results 1 to 30 of 30
The Making of a Music City: Catalysts, Approaches, Benefits and Challenges of Enactment
The Routledge Handbook of Urban Cultural Planning. Amirtahmasebi, R., Schupbach, J. (eds.). 1st edition. Taylor and Francis Ltd., pp. 222-232, 11 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003400592-20
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Centre Stage:: Traversing Australian Live Music Careers in Light of the COVID-19 Pandemic
MUSICultures, vol. 51, pp. 9-34Contributions to Journals: ArticlesCapacity building and professional development in contemporary music careers: An Australian contemporary music case study
International Journal of Music Education, vol. 42, no. 4, pp. 511-522Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTaking music to the (museum) masses: Museum Engagement with the Country and Grunge Music Heritages of Nashville and Seattle
New Geographies of Music 2: Music in Urban Tourism, Heritage Politics, and Place-Making. Johansson, O., Guillard, S., Palis, J. (eds.). 1 edition. Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 97-116, 20 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)The Portfolio Music Career: Understanding the Australian experience.
The Intellect Handbook of Global Music Industries. Anderton, C., James, M., Nordgård, D., Pisfil, S. (eds.). Intellect Ltd.Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)‘Cities’
M/C Journal, vol. 25, no. 3, pp. 1-6Contributions to Journals: EditorialsMusic cities or cities of music?
Researching Live Music: Gigs, Tours, Concerts and Festivals.. Anderton, C., Pisfil, S. (eds.). Routledge, 13 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780367405038-15
You get to know the scene inside out, but the cost of travel is a burden: The impacts of isolation and peripherality on the contemporary music scene of Perth, Western Australia.
Geographically isolated and peripheral music scenes: Global insights and perspectives.. Ballico, C. (ed.). Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 35-53, 18 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)Geographically Isolated and Peripheral Music Scenes: Global Insights and Perspectives
Books and Reports- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-4581-5
Eco-friendly practices and pro-environmental behaviours: the Australian folk and world music festival perspective.
Arts and the Market, vol. 11, no. 2, pp. 76-91Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/AAM-10-2020-0046
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Caught in the act: the impact of liquor regulation on original live music activity in Perth, Western Australia
International Journal of Cultural Policy, vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 394-408Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10286632.2020.1766450
A long way to the top: Australian musicians balance multiple roles to make their careers work.
The ConversationContributions to Specialist Publications: ArticlesBuilding capacities in the West Australian music sector: Mentoring and other opportunities
Books and Reports: Commissioned ReportsFair play WA: Gender discrimination and sexual harassment in Western Australia’s contemporary music industry and scene
West Australian MusicBooks and Reports: Commissioned ReportsMaking Music Work: Sustainable Portfolio Careers for Australian Musicians: Australian Research Council Linkage Report
Queensland Conservatorium Research Centre: Griffith University. 122 pagesBooks and Reports: Commissioned ReportsMusic Cities: Evaluating a Global Cultural Policy Concept
Books and Reports- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-35872-3
'It allowed me to deliver the biggest show of their national tour': An examination of contemporary live music festivals in peripheral and geographically isolated locales.
Marginalisation and Events. Walters, T., Jepson, A. (eds.). Routledge, 14 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429506697
Building sustainable portfolio careers in music: Insights and implications for higher education
Music Education Research, vol. 21, no. 3, pp. 282-294Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14613808.2019.1598348
Everyone wants a festival: The Growth and Development of Western Australia's Contemporary Live Music Festival Sector
Event Management, vol. 22, no. 2, pp. 111-121Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.3727/152599518X15173355843280
A state of constant prodding: live music, precarity and regulation
Cultural Trends, vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 203-217Contributions to Journals: ArticlesAnother typical day in this typical town: place as inspiration for music creation and creative expression.
Australian Geographer, vol. 48, no. 3, pp. 349-363Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00049182.2016.1223518
Caught in the act: Live music and liquor licensing.
Books and Reports: Commissioned ReportsLive music, liquor and the city: An examination of the influence of liquor regulation on place-specific live music activity.
Cidades Comunidades e Territórios, vol. 32, pp. 103-117Contributions to Journals: ArticlesPerth: An examination of the one movement for music festival which was a three to five year plan, but stopped after two
Culture, creative industries and urban regeneration: Narratives on creative urban development from around the world.. Kunzmann, K., Yan, T. (eds.), pp. 126-133Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)'Place'
M/C Journal, vol. 19, no. 3Contributions to Journals: EditorialsLiner notes: An exploration of local print music journalism in Perth’s indie pop/rock music industry.
Perfect Beat, vol. 16, no. 1-2Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1558/prbt.v16i1-2.23973
The people who watch the bands are the people who are in the bands: The influence of social networks and social capital on creative and business activity in local music scenes.
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Conference Proceedings- [ONLINE] https://www.iaspm-anz.com
Perth bands were all the rage man!: Routes, routines and roots of popular music explored through the end of fashion.
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Conference ProceedingsAlive and gigging: An exploration of the role of the live music environment in the Perth indie pop/rock music industry.
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Conference ProceedingsTyranny of distance: Viability and relevance in regional live music performance.
Unesco Observatory, vol. 1, no. 5Contributions to Journals: Articles
