A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal

Music Festivals and Individualised Sociality: Investigating the Experience of Solo Festival Attendees




AuthorsQuinn, Bernadette; Kinnunen, Maarit; Honkanen, Antti

PublisherCognizant, LLC

Publication year2025

Journal:Event Management

Journal name in sourceEvent Management

Volume29

Issue7

First page 1003

Last page1018(16)

ISSN1525-9951

eISSN1943-4308

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.3727/152599525X17385344274559

Publication's open availability at the time of reportingNo Open Access

Publication channel's open availability Partially Open Access publication channel

Web address https://doi.org/10.3727/152599525X17385344274559

Self-archived copy’s web addresshttps://researchprofiles.tudublin.ie/en/publications/music-festivals-and-individualised-sociality-investigating-the-ex/


Abstract

The growing individualisation of society has long been a topic of discussion, with ongoing debates querying the implications for social connectivity. However, these debates have yet to substantively connect with the festivals literature and this oversight needs redress. While festivals have long been prized for their collective sociality, a small minority of people attend on their own. This paper reports findings from a music festival audience survey which found that 3% attended predominantly alone. The findings emphasise that aloneness exists within the sociality of the festival. They further suggest that festivals can constitute safe spaces enabling solo attendees to feel at ease among other like-minded music enthusiasts and feel the benefits of attending alone. The experience is not always perfect, however, especially at particular moments, and some solo attendees would like to have company, but compensation comes in the flexibility and empowerment that being alone affords.



Last updated on 2025-26-11 at 15:57