Staff

Professor Andy Bennett

Chief Investigator

Andy Bennett is Professor of Cultural Sociology in the School of Humanities, Languages and Social Science at Griffith University. He has written and edited numerous books including Popular Music and Youth Culture, Music, Style and Aging, British Progressive Pop 1970 – 1980 and Music Scenes (co-edited with Richard A. Peterson). He is a Faculty Fellow of the Yale Center for Cultural Sociology, an Adjunct Researcher with the Institute of Sociology, University Porto, an International Research Fellow of the Finnish Youth Research Network, a founding member of the Consortium for Youth, Generations and Culture and a founding member of the Regional Music Research Group. He is also co-Editor of the journal DIY, Alternative Cultures and Society (SAGE) and co-founder /co-convenor of the biennial KISMIF (‘Keep it Simple, Make it Fast’) conference dedicated to DIY and alternative cultures.

Professor Andrew R Brown

Chief Investigator

Andrew R. Brown is an educator, researcher, musician and author. His academic expertise is in technologies that support creativity and learning, computational music and art, and the philosophy of technology. Andrew’s creative activities focus on real-time audio-visual works using generative digital techniques, in particular his musical practice is live-coding performance. He is the author of many academic articles and books including Making Music with Computers: Creative Programming in Python, published by CRC Press.

Associate Professor Catherine Strong

Chief Investigator

Dr. Catherine Strong is a sociologist specializing in popular music studies and an Associate Professor in the Music Industry program at RMIT University. Her latest book, Unsilenced: Women Musicians and Gender-Based Violence in the Popular Music Industries (Bloomsbury, 2025), explores critical issues of gender and power in the music world. Currently, she is researching how the music industry is adapting to the climate crisis. Dr. Strong has collaborated with industry organizations such as APRA AMCOS and the VMDO on projects examining working conditions in music, gender inequalities in music-making, and popular music as history and heritage. Through her research, she continues to advocate for a more equitable and sustainable future for the music industry.

Dr Ben Green

Chief Investigator

Dr. Ben Green is a cultural sociologist specializing in popular music and youth studies at RMIT in Melbourne. His research focuses on cultural infrastructure, planning, and live music development. He has led studies on young musicians' well-being during COVID-19 and the pandemic’s impact on the Queensland arts sector. Dr. Green has researched regional music scenes across Australia and written extensively on Australian popular music history, covering festivals, media, record stores, and Brisbane’s music scenes. He is the author of Peak Music Experiences (Routledge, 2021) and co-editor of Popular Music Scenes (Palgrave Macmillan, 2023). His work has appeared in Sociology, Popular Music, and The Conversation. He is also co-author of a forthcoming book on Screamfeeder’s Kitten Licks for Bloomsbury’s 33 1/3 series (2024).

Associate Professor John Ferguson

Chief Investigator

Dr. John Ferguson is a post-digital/electronic musician and sound/multimedia artist based in Brisbane, Australia. He serves as Associate Professor and Head of Creative Music Technology at Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University (QCGU). Prior to his appointment at Griffith University, Dr. Ferguson held the position of Visiting Assistant Professor in Computer Music and Multimedia at Brown University in the USA and was a Lecturer in Music and Creative Music Technology at Kingston University London. His Ph.D., funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, was completed in 2009 at Newcastle University in the UK. Dr. Ferguson's doctoral research focused on electronic and digital media, advocating for the role of artistic methods in developing and interpreting knowledge, while proposing innovative approaches to understanding and creating in the fields of music and technology.

Dr Devpriya Chakravarty

Research Assistant

Dr Devpriya Chakravarty is an ethnographer specializing in Electronic Dance Music (EDM) culture, Indian urban youth culture, and popular music. She completed her PhD at Griffith University, where her doctoral research explored the motivations of Indian youth attending Electronic Dance Music festivals. She has also conducted extensive fieldwork as a research fellow at MICA, India, using participant observation at EDM festival sites. Her research focuses on developing a novel conceptual and theoretical framework of vibe, drawing from insider perspectives to deepen our understanding of the subjective experiences within youth music cultures. Through her work, she seeks to enrich sociological and cultural discussions around music, identity, and social belonging.

Ms Tara Pattenden

Research assistant

Tara Pattenden is an artist, educator, and creative technologist based in Meanjin. She is currently a PhD candidate at the Queensland Conservatorium (Griffith University), where her research explores audience experiences with costume-based tactile instruments and participatory performance. Her work investigates play and performance through interactive technologies, creating engaging, hands-on sound experiences. Alongside her artistic practice, Tara has over a decade of experience facilitating workshops in creative technologies. She has collaborated with leading institutions, including the V&A Museum (UK), Goldsmiths University (UK), RMIT (AU), and Onassis Stegi (GR), sharing her expertise in interactive performance and sound.

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