Queer sounds: The function and meaning of music in the formation and evolution of an LGBT subculture in the city of Antwerp (1960-2010).

This project aims to contribute to a better understanding of the function of music in processes of subcultural identification, focusing on the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) community in Antwerp. It is widely accepted that music plays an important role in the formation and self-definition of minorities and subcultures, but its function in the LGBT community has not been extensively investigated yet. Moreover, Flemish LGBT culture and its history have hardly come up for academic analysis to date. Our aim is, first, to find out what musical repertoire and which musical functions were shared within the LGBT scene, focusing on the largest Flemish urban centre Antwerp, between 1960 (the start of the LGBT movement in Antwerp) and 2010. Secondly, we will analyse how this repertoire and its uses operate as subcultural capital and contribute to the formation of one or more LGBT subcultures.

Keywords:CULTURAL HISTORY, MUSIC, ANTWERP, GENDER STUDIES

Disciplines:Applied sociology, Policy and administration, Social psychology, Social stratification, Social theory and sociological methods, Sociology of life course, family and health, Other sociology and anthropology, Art studies and sciences