Image of Prof Simone Krueger Bridge

Prof Simone Krueger Bridge

Humanities and Social Science

Faculty of Arts Professional and Social Studies

Email: S.Kruger@ljmu.ac.uk

Telephone: 0151 231 5054

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The Digital Turn project

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Social Value of Music Participation (British Academy project)

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Simone Krüger Bridge is a Professor of Cultural Musicology at Liverpool John Moores University, UK, working at the intersection of ethnomusicology, popular music studies and music sociology. Her work explores the intricate interplay between music and humanity, and the profound significance of music as a fundamental aspect of human existence and cultural expression. Drawing on musicological, sociological and anthropological thought, her work regards music as a dynamic cultural artefact intimately intertwined with social structures, practices and identities, which both reflects and shapes social norms, values and power dynamics. Simone is the author of Experiencing Ethnomusicology: Teaching and Learning in European Universities (2009) and Trajectories and Themes in World Popular Music: Globalization, Capitalism, Identity (2018), and editor of The Oxford Handbook of Global Popular Music (in press), Music, Meaning and Value in Paraguayan Song (in press), The Globalization of Musics in Transit: Music Migration and Tourism (2014), and Ethnomusicology in the Academy: International Perspectives (2019). Simone is the founding editor of the Journal of World Popular Music and founding co-editor of the book series Transcultural Music Studies (Equinox). She is a Professoriate Member on LJMU's Academic Board (Senate) (2023-2026); a core member of LJMU's REF 2029 UoA leadership; an external reviewer for REF Uo33 2029 at the University of South Wales; and an active member of the AHRC Peer Review College, including grant panel memberships. She has served a four-year term as the Chair of the Arts, Professional and Social Science (APSS) Faculty Research Degree Committee (FRDC) at Liverpool John Moores University; a three-year term on the Committee of the British Forum of Ethnomusicology (BFE); and a two-year term on the Executive Committee of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM); and is currently serving on three journal editorial boards.

Current research
Since 2020, Simone's research has explored the social and cultural significance of Liverpool Cathedral’s choral music outreach initiatives, contextualized within the Liverpool City region’s socioeconomic landscape where deprivation levels are among the highest in the UK, while highlighting its contributions to social mobility, a sense of belonging and community wellbeing, and music education and social cohesion. This longitudinal research has encompassed two key projects. The Digital Turn Project (2020-2022) examined the impact of online music participation during the UK’s Covid-19 lockdowns. Using quantitative and qualitative methods, the study revealed that online music engagement fostered social connection, cultural expression and emotional resilience among participants of all ages. The Social Value of Music Participation Project (2022-2024/25), funded by the British Academy, has investigated the ongoing societal impact of Liverpool Cathedral’s egalitarian choral outreach in the Liverpool City region. Through longitudinal data collection, the research highlights the programme’s role in enhancing social mobility, belonging and wellbeing, while fostering music education and community cohesion. Together, the studies provide empirical evidence of the transformative role of choral music outreach, offering insights into the sustained impact of the Cathedral’s egalitarian choral outreach, while shaping social connection, cultural expression and community resilience. They show how religious institutions can serve as pivotal spaces for social and cultural engagement in times of crisis and recovery, and beyond.

Doctoral supervision
Simone offers supervision for postgraduate research students working at the intersection of music and critical social and cultural theory. This includes research located (broadly speaking) in cultural musicology, music sociology, ethnomusicology and popular music studies, including critical research in Cathedral music studies, as well as research in the area of community and intercultural music education.

Current PhD students:
2025-2028. Christopher Deacon (Faculty Bursary recipient 2025). Topic: Enhancing Social and Spiritual Capital: The Role of Liverpool's Cathedral Music Departments in Shaping Congregational Community and Spirituality (enrolled)
2024 - 2031. Lorraine Mahoney. Topic: Authenticity or Aesthetics: The Bridge between Memoir and Narrative Fiction in Post Punk to Britpop Storytelling (programme approved)
2024 - 2027. Finlay Gordon (VC PhD Studentship 2023/24). Topic: Loud and Proud, Strong and Wrong: The Role of Primary School Singing in Bridging a Gap between Music Education and Musical Excellence (programme approved)
2023 - 2027. Robbie Griffin. Topic: The Precarious Nature and Fluid Geographical Positioning of Liverpool's Grassroots Music Venues 1980s – Present (confirmation)
2017 - 2023. Paloma Cuadrado Miranda. Topic: Music and Identity in the Hispanic diaspora in Liverpool (on LOA)

Completed PhD students:
2018 - 2024. Lushiqi He. Thesis title: Popular Music and Identity in China: A Qualitative Analysis of "Chineseness" in Mandopop since the 1980s
2015 - 2020. Mary-Jane O’Leary. Thesis title: Encountering the comment: A phenomenological approach to reading the news online
2016 - 2020. Abi Dunnett. Thesis title: ‘They Think They Know Us Better’: Aboriginal Experiences of Education, Health and Employment in Contemporary South Australia
2015 - 2019. Jitendra Wijenayake. Thesis title: The Sinhalese Buddhist Diaspora in the United Kingdom: Negotiating Sinhalese Identity

Languages

English
German
Spanish - Latin American

Degrees

2007, University of Sheffield, United Kingdom, PhD
2003, University of Central Lancashire, United Kingdom, PGCE
2002, Liverpool Hope University, United Kingdom, BA (Hons) in Music with Computing
1999, Stralsund University of Applied Sciences, Stralsund, Germany, Diplom-Betriebswirtschafterin mit Schwerpunkt in Marketing [BSc (Hons) in Business Economics with Specialisation in Marketing]
1995, Sparkasse Neubrandenburg, Germany, Dipl.-Bankbetriebswirtin [BA in Bank Economy Management]

Certifications

2007, Higher Education Academy, FHEA

Academic appointments

Professor of Cultural Musicology, Humanities and Social Science, Liverpool John Moores University, 2023 - present
Chair APSS Faculty Research Degree Committee (FRDC), Liverpool John Moores University, 2018 - 2022
Reader in Music, Sociology, Liverpool John Moores University, 2017 - 2023
Senior Lecturer in Sociology, Department of Sociology, Liverpool John Moores University, 2015 - 2017
Programme Leader in Popular Music Studies, Liverpool John Moores University, 2013 - 2015
Senior Lecturer in Media and Cultural Studies/Popular Music, Liverpool John Moores University, 2007 - 2013
Academic Leader & SOLSTICE Research Co-ordinator, Edge Hill University, 2005 - 2007
Lecturer in Ethnomusicology, University of Wales, Bangor, 2005 - 2006

Postgraduate training

PGCE, UK, University of Central Lancashire, 2001 - 2003

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