Dr. Carolyn Dike

An Orange County native, Dr. Carrie Dike completed her Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick, Ireland, where she lived for five years. Her doctoral dissertation is entitled “A Singing Space: Re-Contextualizing Tradition,” for which she investigated the sustainability and relevance of local traditions in modern society. She focused on what are called Irish traditional singing sessions—organized gatherings where local singers share traditional songs with each other. She conducted field research as a participant-observer, learning Irish traditional songs to participate in the singing sessions, speaking with other participants, and interviewing important figures in the Irish traditional song community for a personal, first-hand ethnography into the sustainability and relevance of tradition.

The Government of Ireland awarded Dr. Dike with the prestigious Irish Research Council Postgraduate Grant. As a part of the IRC, Dr. Dike participated in a study exchange at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, where she presented on her research and helped coordinate the Button Boxes and Moothies Festival (a festival dedicated to accordians and harmonicas). Additionally, Dr. Dike helped coordinate the Sheffield Festival of Village Carols (a festival dedicated to the learning and singing of carols unique to Sheffield villages). She has given presentations throughout Ireland and Europe, including at the International Ballad Conference meetings in Pécs, Hungary, and Prishtina, Kosovo, and at the International Council for Traditional Music chapter meetings.

Dr. Dike received her M.A. in Music History and Literature from California State University, Fullerton, where she focused on Anglo-Irish influences in Western Art Music and was an active member in the university’s choral program.

In addition to her involvement in research and academia, Dr. Dike is also an accomplished mezzo-soprano. She has performed in the Los Angeles Master Chorale and Pacific Chorale and regularly gigs throughout Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties. She sang professionally in Ireland as a soloist and ensemble vocalist with local orchestras, St. Mary’s Cathedral Choir, the female chant ensemble Cantoral, and the chamber ensemble Ancór, for which she was also assistant director. She is currently the Music Ministry Assistant and Alto Section Leader at Our Lady Queen of Angels in Newport Beach.

Dr. Dike is an avid traveler and has so far visited 37 countries. She enjoys exploring new cultures and sharing what she has learned from her travels, and believes Musicology is the perfect way to marry her passion for music and travel.