A statement of values for our research on music in peacebuilding: a synthesis of Galtung and Ikeda’s peace theories

Abstract

Recent years have seen a growing interest in research linking musicking and peacebuilding, and the establishment of the Min-On Music Research Institute (MOMRI) in 2014 in Tokyo follows this trend. Its mission statement is: ‘To pursue a multidisciplinary investigation of the potential application of music in peacebuilding activities,’ in short, ‘music in peacebuilding.’ In this article, I attempt to define the values that inspire the MOMRI team in our collective research. I present a synthesis of two conceptual frameworks that offer a vision for peacebuilding: Johan Galtung’s ‘Transcend method’ for the nonviolent and creative transformation of conflicts and Daisaku Ikeda’s ‘philosophy of peace’ that places the protection of human dignity at the center of all endeavors. The result of this new synthesis is the articulation of four major value concepts that can help us explore the links between music and peacebuilding, namely Inner Peacebuilding, Communicative Creativity, Planetary Awareness, and Preventive Peacebuilding. Two case studies demonstrate how these concepts can be useful when trying to analyze complex musicking events, the first based on Vegar Jordanger’s research on collective vulnerability through Guided Imagery with Music, and the second on Jason McCoy’s study of the popular musician Simon Bikindi’s role in the 1994 Rwandan Genocide.