Dr Thomas McKean

Dr Thomas McKean
Dr Thomas McKean
Dr Thomas McKean

PhD, University of Edinburgh (1993); AB, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH (1983)

Lecturer

About
Email Address
t.a.mckean@abdn.ac.uk
Telephone Number
+44 (0)1224 273882
Telephone Number
+44 (0)1224 272996
Office Address

The Elphinstone Institute MacRobert Building King's College Aberdeen AB24 5UA

School/Department
School of Language, Literature, Music and Visual Culture

Biography

I am a folklorist specializing in Scots and Gaelic song, along with custom and belief, community craft traditions and their relevance in today's world, and fieldwork methodology. Of particular interest is the relationship of traditional practices to the individual, the role of creativity in tradition, and how traditional skills can help build individual and community resilience in challenging times.

As part of the James Madison Carpenter Project team, I have been working with cylinder and disc recordings of North-East singers made between 1929 and 1935, leading towards publication of a critical edition of the collection. The project has been funded by the British Academy and the National Endowment for the Humanities under the auspices of the American Folklore Society, and in association with the Library of Congress, Washington, DC (www.abdn.ac.uk/elphinstone/carpenter).

Ongoing research with boatbuilding traditions looks at the idea of 'knowing by doing': how people young and old learn embodied craft skills by imitation, proximity, and osmosis, and how these skills enhance people's cultural confidence and self esteem.

My postgraduate teaching includes Custom and Belief, Scots and Gaelic Song, along with Fieldwork and Archiving methodology. I have organized a number of conferences, including the 1999 and 2007 Kommission für Volksdichtung ballad conference.

In 1993, I established the North East Folklore Archive at Mintlaw, Aberdeenshire as part of my work as Traditional Music Resident for Banff and Buchan District Council (now Aberdeeenshire), 1993-1996. The archive has continued to develop under the direction of Gavin Sutherland and much of my fieldwork material is now available on the web at the Banff and Buchan Collection.

Research

Current Research

Current research includes:

  • Scotland's fire festivals, particularly the burning of the Clavie in Burghead, Moray;
  • Creativity within traditional forms
  • Craft traditions and knowing by doing
  • New England vernacular architecture;
  • The effects of field collection in the North-East;
  • Macaronic song traditions;
  • The relationship of memory and song in west coast Gaelic communities.
Publications

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  • Satire and the Exchange of Song in an Isle of Skye Community

    McKean, T.
    Northeast Folklore: Essays in Honor of Edward D. Ives. MacDougall, P., Taylor, D. (eds.). University of Maine Press and Maine Folklife Center, pp. 113-136
    Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)
  • The Making of Child 306

    McKean, T.
    in Bridging the Cultural Divide: Our Common Ballad Heritage. Georg Olms Verlag, pp. 273-290
    Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)
  • 'You Make Me Dizzy Miss Lizzie': Elizabeth Stewart’s Up-tempo Ballads

    McKean, T.
    Northern Scotland, pp. 103-15
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • La collecte du chants gaélique en Ecosse

    McKean, T.
    La Bretagne et la littérature orale en Europe. Postic, F. (ed.). Centre de Recherche Bretonne et Celtique
    Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters
  • Celtic music and the growth of the Feis movement in the Scottish Highlands

    McKean, T.
    Western Folklore, vol. 57, pp. 245-259
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
  • Gordon Easton and “The Beggarman” (Child 279/280)

    McKean, T.
    Ballads into Books: The Legacies of Francis James Child. Cheesman, T., Rieuwerts, S. (eds.). Peter Lang, pp. 237-248
    Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)
  • Hebridean Songmaker: Iain Macneacail of the Isle of Skye

    McKean, T.
    Polygon, Edinburgh
    Books and Reports: Books
  • Gordon Easton’s “The Friendly Ploughing Match at Tyrie”: A Song of Regional, Local and National Identity

    McKean, T.
    Visions and Identities. Tungulist, pp. 101-113, 13 pages
    Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters (Peer-Reviewed)
  • A Gaelic Songmaker's Response to an English-Speaking Nation

    McKean, T.
    Contributions to Conferences: Oral Presentations
  • A Gaelic Songmaker's Response to an English-Speaking Nation

    McKean, T.
    Oral Tradition, vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 3
    Contributions to Journals: Articles
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