What does it mean to decolonize a field of study? Ethnomusicologists are currently grappling with this question, rethinking how to research, write, teach, and listen in ways that engage with people and perspectives that have been historically suppressed, marginalized, and silenced. Social justice is at the heart of the decolonial project. How can ethnomusicology empower the cultures and people being studied, prioritizing indigenous voices, and building a community of conversation that stretches well beyond the academy? We will read key works in ethnomusicology and anthropology by POC, indigenous, and non-western scholars, considering how they critique, resist, and think past dominant assumptions and biases about academic knowledge and culture. As we delve into these texts, we will also pursue short collaborative research projects on different musical topics.
Learning Outcomes:
Delivery Method: Hybrid in-person and remote, with faculty in-person
Prerequisites:Students should write an email to josephalpar@bennington.edu expressing interest in taking the course.
Corequisites: Attendance at Music Mondays lecture series, 7:00 PM-8:00PM.
Course Level: 4000-level
Credits: 4
M/Th 3:40PM - 5:30PM (Full-term)
Maximum Enrollment: 14
Course Frequency: One time only
Categories: All courses , CAPA , History , Hybrid In-Person and Remote , Society Culture and Thought , Updates
Tags: anthropology , Cultural criticism , decolonization , ethnomusicology , History , music , music history , Research , SCT , theory