Letter to Managers

February 9, 2007

To the Manager of Avenue Pizza,

I am a doctoral student at the University of Alberta enrolled in Ethnomusicology, which is the study of music situated inside culture. Currently I am enrolled in a Field Methods class, in which the students are asked to go out into the Edmonton community and collect documentation (such as interviews, photos, and videos) of music in practice. My project for this term is karaoke and I would be interested to speak to the patrons of Avenue pizza regarding their attitudes, habits, and knowledge of karaoke.

The project has been approved by the University of Alberta Ethics Board, and all participants will be asked to read and sign an ethics form before their participation in the project. The professor is Dr. Federico Spinetti (FAB 3-65), who is aware of my proposed research sites. The proposed research will not intrude significantly upon the patrons or the smooth operation of the restaurant.

The project runs until the end of March and I would be conducting participant observation until that point.

I would be happy to speak to you further about this research if you have any questions. I can be reached by email at melaena2@telus.net or by phone at 434-2606.

Thank you for your time,

Melaena Grierson