Community music is grounded in principles of participation, bottom-up learning, accessibility, inclusion, and cultural democracy. In Türkiye, the concept of community music is relatively new, but it holds significant potential for cultural preservation and social cohesion. Although community music lacks a universally established definition in academia, scholars and practitioners embrace this openness as a means to foster ongoing development and exploration (Higgins, 2012; Bartleet & Higgins, 2018). This flexibility is especially beneficial in intercultural and transcultural contexts, allowing for diverse and evolving interpretations. For instance, in Germany, the Munich Action Research Group has contributed to defining community music within a German context, aligning closely with English-language interpretations while also addressing specific cultural and educational nuances. This definition considers a variety of settings, including formal, informal, and non-formal contexts (de Bánffy-Hall, 2019). Furthermore, de Bánffy-Hall developed a comparative framework positioning community music alongside various music education forms in Germany, such as volksmusik, elementary music education, music mediation, and school music education. Her research indicates that community music in Germany can act as a “boundary walker,” fluidly navigating different educational settings and bridging gaps in the German music education system (de Bánffy-Hall, 2017; 2019).

Using this framework as a model, the authors propose a similar comparative approach in Türkiye to develop a Turkish-specific understanding of community music. By focusing on Gezek - a traditional Turkish form of community music making - this study aims to explore how traditional musical practices can be reinterpreted and revitalized through community music principles. Through document analysis, this study will review academic literature, policy papers, and historical documents on both Gezek and community music. This will help to identify how and where community music principles can be effectively integrated into the context of music education in Türkiye, providing a basis for future program development.

Previous studies highlight a strong enthusiasm and commitment among teachers toward the digital transition in music education (Foletto and Caro, 2024; Dorfman, 2008). Paradoxically, research also report a lack of institutional support and encouragement, relying on the teacher’s personal initiative to deal with challenges such as limited equipment and insufficient training (Foletto and Caro, 2024). Despite these issues, institutional perspectives remain underexplored. Therefore, this study aims to fill this gap by investigating the viewpoints of Portuguese conservatoires and music academies regarding digital transition processes. An exploratory survey mapped the current state of digital integration, focusing on institutional challenges, needs, and strategies. A mixed-methods questionnaire, combining open and closed questions, was developed, and distributed to directors in Portugal’s music education sector under the Artistic Education framework. This study offers a snapshot of the current state of digital integration in Portuguese music conservatoires and academies, providing valuable insights to guide the future of digital transformation in music education. Statistical analysis and an inductive thematic analysis for the qualitative data were conducted. Preliminary findings reveal that digital technologies are more widely implemented for school management than for teaching and learning. While most music schools consider themselves reasonably or well-adapted to the digital era, very few have made significant curricular changes. More advanced or expensive technological tools remain largely absent such as smartboards, AI tools or virtual reality. About the challenges, the general perception points to insufficient funding, lack of infrastructure and technological resources, and low training and digital literacy of the teachers, assuming almost no support to teacher’s training in this area. In times when there is a strong debate about the use of technologies within general education, this study is one first step to understand how this digital transition is happening within the Portuguese music education system.