Public Music Theory: A Way of Understanding

Abstract Public Music Theory (PMT) can be difficult to define, just as, more broadly, the denotation of music theory can be challenging. I move toward a preliminary definition of PMT by drawing on the SMT plenary talks and podcast interviews, then I consider possible aims of PMT as an extension of those insights based on existing PMT in spaces like YouTube. In the third section, I consider three ways of presenting analyses that could help build bridges to several public audiences and, in turn, I demonstrate, from my own research, successful approaches that correspond to each of the three principles.