Historical Ethnomusicology

‘Twelve hundred miles in pursuit of song’

by Karen McAulay

(2008) Music and the Idea of the North Conference, Leeds –

Rap Music In Houston: The Stylistic Landscape *draft*

by Chris Taylor

Etnografia musicale e colonialismo italiano: contributi sul folclore dei territori d'oltremare dall'epoca liberale al fascismo

by Isabella Abbonizio

This essay examines the Italian ethnographical studies of the African colonial domains’ musical traditions circulated... more This essay examines the Italian ethnographical studies of the African colonial domains’ musical traditions circulated from the liberal era to fascism. Published essays including ethnographical transcriptions prepared by ethnographers, officials, musicians and musicologists are my privileged sources of analysis. While rare and poor in scientific value, as well as immature in the methodology applied, these accounts are
invaluable under at least three points of view: they are the only sources referring to the musical culture of those societies during the late 19th century and the first half of the 20th century; they reflect an early interest by the Italian musical ethnography towards extra-national traditions; they are useful means to understanding the relationships between culture and politics during the Italian colonial era. The analysis of these
sources will show how traditional African music was approached and represented by ethnographers. The main causes for the lacking of a wider ethnographical production
during the Italian colonial period is also investigated.

14. Yüzyılda Musiki Tasavvuru: Hasan Kâşânî’nin “Kenzü’t-Tuhaf” Adlı Eseri

by Zeynep Yıldız

Perception of Music in the Fourteenth Century: Hasan Kâşânî’s “Kenzu’t-Tuhaf” http://www.insanvetoplum.org/index.php/IVT/article/view/23

Review in Ethnomusicology, Fall 2011

by Rachelle Louise Barlow

Review of:

Music in Welsh Culture Before 1650: A Study of the Principal Sources. Sally Harper. 2007.... more Review of:

Music in Welsh Culture Before 1650: A Study of the Principal Sources. Sally Harper. 2007. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate Publishers. xix, 441 pp., figures, maps, music examples, tables, appendix, bibliography, indexes. Cloth, £70.00.

Conference Review (co-authored): Reflections on the 2011 BFE Conference

by David Hebert

McCollum, J. & Hebert, D. G. (2011). Reflections on the 2011 BFE conference. Newsletter of the British Forum for Ethnomusicology [also online at BFE website]

Very brief non-academic report Very brief non-academic report

The Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra: A Case Study of Intercultural Music Transmission

by David Hebert

Journal of Research in Music Education

Instrumental music education in Japan has long emphasized wind bands, and in recent decades, Japanese bands have... more Instrumental music education in Japan has long emphasized wind bands, and in recent decades, Japanese bands have achieved a level of performing excellence that arguably rivals all other nations. This case study of Japan's premier wind ensemble provides insights applicable to bands throughout the nation. The study explores the influence of the ensemble's repertoire and educational activities, traces its religious origins, and examines Frederick Fennell's role as musical ambassador. The findings suggest that Japan has not only assimilated and mastered the band genre, but it has transformed the tradition. Moreover, the subculture of wind bands is argued to be a domain of internationalization that challenges Japanese notions of gender roles and ethnic identity.

Wind Bands and Cultural Identity in Japanese Schools

by David Hebert

Hebert, D. G. (2012-published). Wind Bands and Cultural Identity in Japanese Schools. Dordrecht and New York: Springer. (Series–Landscapes: arts, aesthetics, education).

This well researched volume tells the story of music education in Japan and of the wind band contest organized by the... more This well researched volume tells the story of music education in Japan and of the wind band contest organized by the All-Japan Band Association. Identified here for the first time as the world’s largest musical competition, it attracts 14,000 bands and well over 500,000 competitors. The book’s insightful contribution to our understanding of both music and education chronicles music learning in Japanese schools and communities. It examines the contest from a range of perspectives, including those of policy makers, adjudicators, conductors and young musicians. The book is an illuminating window on the world of Japanese wind bands, a unique hybrid tradition that comingles contemporary western idioms with traditional Japanese influences. In addition to its social history of Japanese school music programs, it shows how participation in Japanese school bands contributes to students’ sense of identity, and sheds new light on the process of learning to play European orchestral instruments.

Content Level » Research

David G. Hebert, PhD is a Professor of Music with the Grieg Academy, Bergen University College, Norway. He previously held academic positions with universities in the USA, Japan, Finland, Russia, and New Zealand, and has directed (or currently directs) music research projects on 6 continents. Widely published and cited as a scholar of global music education, he is chair of the Historical Ethnomusicology special interest group of the Society for Ethnomusicology.

Keywords » All-Japan Band Association - European orchestral instruments - Japanese composers - Japanese influences - Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra - Yamaha - japanese schools - music education - wind bands - young musicians

Foreword (by Bonnie Wade).- Part I: A social history of wind bands in Japanese schools. Chapter 1: Introduction: The world’s finest school bands and largest music competition.- Chapter 2: Where are these bands from?: An historical overview.- Part II: An ethnography of wind bands in Japanese schools. Chapter 3: An invitation to the Tokyo middle school.- Chapter 4: The band rehearsal ritual and its participants.- Chapter 5: Instruction in the Japanese school band.- Chapter 6: Scenes from the 50th AJBA national band competition.- Chapter 7: Winning in the band: Views from beneath and within.- Chapter 8: Winning in the band: Views from above and beyond.- Chapter 9: Japanese composers and wind band repertoire.- Chapter 10: Leadership and duty in the ensemble.- Chapter 11: Cooperative learning and mentorship in band.- Chapter 12: Organizational training of the Japanese band director.- Chapter 13: Corporate giants: Yamaha and the Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra.- Chapter 14: Metaphors of a Japanese band community.- Chapter 15: Musical identity in the band: Social class and gender.- Chapter 16: National identity in the Japanese school band.- Chapter 17: Ensemble ethos: Theorizing cultures of musical achievement.- Chapter 18: Conclusions.- Afterword.- Glossary.- Index

O samba de caruru da Bahia: tradição pouco conhecida

by Michael Iyanaga

Published in "ICTUS," 2010

Samba-de-roda is an Afro-Brazilian musical, choreographic, and poetic tradition from the Recôncavo, a maritime region... more Samba-de-roda is an Afro-Brazilian musical, choreographic, and poetic tradition from the Recôncavo, a maritime region in the northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia. Since being proclaimed a UNESCO Masterpiece of the Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2005, this tradition has becoming increasing well recognized and understood. However, many facets of the tradition remain widely unknown and unexplored. The purpose of this essay is to discuss one of these, the samba-de-caruru. In private homes throughout the Bahian Recôncavo, Catholic saints are celebrated annually through festivities and feasts.

These events, called rezas or carurus, consist of inviting relatives, friends, and neighbors into one’s home to sing Catholic hymns, perform samba-de-roda, and eat traditional Bahian food, most typically the Bahian okra dish caruru. Thus the samba performed at these events is called samba-de-caruru. This essay explores the samba-de-caruru practice from the beginning of the 19th century to the beginning of the 21st. My aims here are mostly descriptive, as I elucidate how the tradition is practiced (in both ethnographic and musicological details) in the ethnographic present before embarking on a journey through written documentation about it. I argue that understanding the samba-de-caruru not only complicates our understanding of the samba-de-roda tradition, but it also paints a more complete picture of Bahia’s religious landscape.

“Orff before Orff: The Güntherschule (1924-1945).”

by David Pruett

American Musicological Society Southern Chapter. New Orleans, Louisiana. February 2000.

Carl Orff is among the most renowned German composers of the 20th century, and much of his popularity comes from the... more Carl Orff is among the most renowned German composers of the 20th century, and much of his popularity comes from the two major undertakings of his career: Carmina Burana and the Schulwerk. However, before Carmina Burana, before the Schulwerk there was the Güntherschule. Founded in 1924 by Dorothee Günther and Carl Orff, the Güntherschule was a school for music and dance pedagogy whose significance to music history has received little recognition in the literature, until now. As translator, musician, and musicologist, I have worked with the Orff-Zentrum in Munich and former students of the Güntherschule. This paper tells their story.

This paper will discuss four individuals who were involved with the Güntherschule: Carl Orff, Dorothee Günther, Maja Lex and Gunild Keetman. For Orff, the school served as an outlet for experimentation. It was in the Güntherschule that the Schulwerk was born with the assistance of student Gunild Keetman. The school also became known as the origin of Elementarer Tanz, or Elemental Dance, a dance style taught by Günther and later perfected by student Maya Lex. The Güntherschule Dance Troupe reached international recognition. Günther and Lex provided the choreography for the troupe’s compositions; Orff and Keetman provided the music. The school was destroyed by allied bombers in 1945.

The difficulty of investigating the Güntherschule lies within its historical context. The years 1924-1933 are marked by political and economical unrest in Germany and the national socialists’ gradual rise to power. Particularly controversial were the years 1933-1945. During this time, the national socialists allowed the Güntherschule, a girl’s school for music and dance, to prosper while others were closed. This paper will address questions as to why this was possible.

The role of the Güntherschule in the history of 20th century music demands further research. From the school’s involvement in the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin to its connection with the Wagner family and the Bayreuth Festspiele, the Güntherschule is surrounded by intrigue. Only now are we able to understand the depth of its significance.

The Negotiation of an ‘Authentic’ Jewish Musical Heritage: Abraham Zvi Idelsohn’s 'Thesaurus' (1908-32) and 'Jewish Song Book' (1928)

by Yotam Baum

The Madras Corporation Band: A Story of Social Change and Indigenization

by Gregory Booth

Asian Music, 28 (1), 1996/97.  Pp. 61-87.

This study considers the history of the Tanjore/Madras Corporation Band in relation to changes in cultural context:... more This study considers the history of the Tanjore/Madras Corporation Band in relation to changes in cultural context: from private processional ensemble in colonial India, to state supported civic ensemble in independent India.  It raises questions regarding cultural interaction in a colonial framework and attempts at the adaptation of foreign cultural elements in India.  The article suggests that economic changes after the collapse of the independent princely states and a shift in the location of artistic patronage from the court centers to the commercial hubs of colonial India allowed for the technical, economic, and cultural possibility of wind band performance. 

Toward a political Anthropology of Mission Sound: Paraguay in the 17th and 18th Centuries

by Guillermo Wilde

If our modern vision is not appropriate for understanding music of the colonial era, how shall we approach the sonic... more If our modern vision is not appropriate for understanding music of the colonial era, how shall we approach the sonic experiences of the past? What are the characteristics of the indigenous musical experience in missionary regions of Paraguay during the 17th and 18th centuries? In this article I will explore a few ways to respond to these questions. In the first section, I discuss analytical models for the “sonic experience” in the missionary regions, putting special emphasis on what such models reveal about the native categories that define the limits of the sonic world. I continue by describing concrete uses of sound in the daily routine and rituals of the missions, showing how it served as a hegemonic mechanism that reinforced regimes of temporality and corporality. In the third section I refer to what can be called “counter-hegemonic uses of sound”—that is, those instances in which sound is openly linked to indigenous acts of resistance. Finally, I conclude by presenting some considerations about ambiguous or hybrid zones, in which sound is used as a means of negotiation between Jesuit authorities and the indigenous population.

El enigma sonoro de Trinidad: Ensayo de Etnomusicología Histórica

by Guillermo Wilde

This article was awarded the "Samuel Claro Valdés” Latin American Award of Musicology, Instituto de Música, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.