The role of music in our families
Social Science/History | Registration opens 8/10/2026 12:00 AM MST (Arizona)
Music plays many roles for each of us and our families. For example, when we hear a song from our teenage years, it can bring back a flood of memories about what was happening in our lives at the time. Or when we hear our mother’s favorite song, it can make us think about her. When we hear a contemporary song, it can evoke a range of emotions—either because of the lyrics or the music. For example, “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling” has frequently been played at weddings even though its words tell a sad story. In this workshop, we will write about songs that have been meaningful to us and/or other members of our families
- Duane Roen has been tracing his roots since his teenage years, building a database with more than 32,000 ancestors. He and his wife, Maureen Roen, have also been recording their family history since 1978 by writing more than 21,000 pages of daily journal entries on their children and other family members. Combining his professional and personal interests, Duane worked with colleagues to establish courses on writing and recording family history at Arizona State University. He also is founding coordinator of the Project for Writing and Recording Family History in the College of Integrative Sciences and Arts at ASU. Duane has been teaching writing for more than five decades, most recently at Arizona State University. One of the principles that he learned early on is that everyone can learn to write effectively and that there is always something new to learn. He has been writing for nearly seven decades and teaching writing for more than five, and he is still learning.
Duane Roen
Roen, Duane - has been tracing his roots since his teenage years, building a database with more than 32,000 ancestors. He and his wife, Maureen Roen, have also been recording their family history since 1978 by writing more than 19,000 daily journal entries on their children and other family members. Combining his professional and personal interests, Duane worked with colleagues to establish courses on writing and recording family history at Arizona State University. He also is founding coordinator of the Project for Writing and Recording Family History in the College of Integrative Sciences and Arts at ASU.