Area Studies in Ethnomusicology (Music 465/565)
Music 465/565: Area Studies in Ethnomusicology:
Music of the Persianate World: Iran and Central Asia
Classes: Tue 2:00-4:50PM, HC 2-30
Instructor: Dr. Federico Spinetti
Office: 3-34A Arts & Convocation Hall; office hours: Wednesday 10:00-12:00am or by appointment. Tel. 492-7534;
spinetti@ualberta.ca
Course description
This course explores the musical sounds, practices and concepts of selected areas of Inner and Central Asia, with specific emphasis on areas that are broadly characterized by the presence of Persian-speaking peoples or by cultural and artistic expressions that are related to or influenced by Persian literature and culture. We will focus on the musical cultures of Iran, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, and will bring into the discussion also other areas such as Afghanistan, Chinese Turkestan and the Caucasus. Issues addressed include music repertoires and structures; musical practices and concepts; the relation of musical practices, concepts and meanings to historical, social, ideological and political contexts; the relationship between music and learned or popular literary traditions; tradition, modernization, westernization and globalization; popular music, new technologies and the media. No formal knowledge of music, ethnomusicology, Islam, the Middle East or Central Asia is a prerequisite for taking this course. Undergraduates should enroll in Music 465; graduates should enroll in Music 565.
Aims and objectives
- to become acquainted with a number of musical genres of Inner and Central Asia.
- to study local musical idioms and aesthetic perceptions in relation to their socio-historical contexts, and to develop a critical understanding of the role of music in identity construction and political-ideological processes in the geo-cultural areas under consideration
- to use this specific area focus to as a means for students to familiarize themselves with or further their knowledge of ethnomusicological practice
- to explore the interrelation of music and poetry in Inner and Central Asia, and to appreciate its spiritual, ethical and social implications.
- to consider the role of the Persian language and Persian literary traditions as transnational unifying factors, and to evaluate their role in the formation of musical identities vis-a-vis other paradigms such as religion, local or national identities, ethnicity, inter-ethnic or syncretic cultural practices, global flows.
- to thereby become acquainted with the diversity of cultural practices, collective histories and identity perceptions in the context of the areas in question, and to critique the concept of “Persianate world” in the light of notions such as difference, subculture, minority and hegemony.
- to acquire extensive knowledge of the resources available for the study of the musical cultures of Inner and Central Asia, and to develop the critical and methodological awareness necessary to undertake independent research.
