Conceptual frameworks, theoretical models and the role of YouTube: Investigating informal music learning and teaching in online music community

In this article, I discuss framework models, approaches and theories advanced by new media and social science researchers for conceptualizing and investigating online communities, including the role of YouTube – and the implications this has for music learning and teaching in online and offline contexts. I will draw on my research of one online community – the Online Academy of Irish Music – (www. oaim.ie) to illustrate how these ideas, frameworks and artefacts such as YouTube videos are relevant for and applicable to music education research and practice.