Instructions:
A common thread throughout this course has been the way that music and other folk traditions unite and empower oppressed and marginalized populations. Think of the way music functions as a connection both to the past and to one another for the Shona (mbira), contemporary Native Americans (intertribal music), or, if you’ve read ahead, the Chilean revolutionaries (nueva canción).
Review the various types of Ethnomusicology discussed in Chapter 11. Then find a music-cultural practice strongly identified with a traditionally oppressed or marginalized population. This can be a population closely associated with your surroundings or experience, or one you find through research. But either way, it must be accessible to you in a way that allows you personal experience and interaction with the practice or the participants, either in person or online.
Aim to be present (online/recorded or in-person) at a performance or event of at least 45 minutes’ length, and write a report about the event using the guidelines in Chapter 11. (Be sure to take notes while you’re watching). Find someone involved in the practice to interview, or, if you are a first-hand source, share the information you have, personally, about the practice.
Then write a 750-word paper introducing us to the practice and performers. Tell us:
What the genre or general type of music is.
What the cultural context for the event was.
Who the artist or performers are.
How the practice relates to the social experiences and contexts of the artists.
What the artistic expression means or symbolizes for those involved in it.
What instruments were used and what songs were played (if you don’t know titles, just describe them).
How the audience responded (YouTube comments are fine)
What the practice means to you, personally, and what you took away from it.
Then make three specific connections to concepts learned in class so far.
You must include a screenshot and/or other visual elements.
You must cite all sources used for the content you submit in APA, MLA, or other consistent long-form citation format.
