Interdisciplinary Studies in Musicology
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Czechoslovak Folk Music and Dance Ensembles and the World Youth Festival in the 1950s: An Ethnomusicology and Oral History Perspective
Full text linkOne of the most significant mass manifestations of the state-subsidised cultural expres- sions of the Socialist Bloc in the second half of the 20th century was “Red Woodstock”, the World Festival of Youth and Students. The first edition took place in the summer of 1947 in Prague. Incidentally, this festival featured Czechoslovak amateur and professional folk music and dance en- sembles in a preliminary line-up, which later became the most important established ensembles in the country. Some of these ensembles then appeared regularly at Youth Festivals. Such festival performances were considered very influential performance opportunity for ensembles of folk music and dance in Czechoslovakia in the 1950s. The present article, based on data gathered through interviews grounded in oral history and archival research, explores the role of the World Youth Festivals in the process of foundation of Czechoslovak ensembles of folk music and dance and their repertoire negotiation of the traditional music and dance within the vague framework of socialist realism on the one hand, and an everyday-life perspective and ordinary desire to perform pronounced by the ensembles’ members on the other
Virtual Authenticity: On Reinvention, Transformation and Functionality of Traditional Dancing during COVID-19
Full text linkThe following article is dedicated to the changes in folk dancing caused by the Covid pandemic and presents the author’s theoretical ideas on dancing in the digital world. The examples concern the phenomenon of dancing the Bulgarian way by Bulgarians and non-Bulgarians in urban settings, which the author has been studying for years and now diagnoses the emergence of a new virtual model and defines virtual authenticity. On the one hand it relates to the fluid notion of authenticity and organises self-reflection, free expression and rediscovering of one’s own identity in cyberspace. Distance-dancing the Bulgarian way provides a psychosomatic environment with previously unknown online effects and paradoxical dichotomies. In this notion of subjective authenticity, the memory of the social intimacy of circle dancing helps with the social intimacy in the online communication and supports the belief in the whole world as an open community. On the other hand, in addition to focusing on themselves through constrained aloneliness, dancers also engage with themes of the political past, cultural essence and national determination. The verbal discussions in social networks, at virtual folk dance camps and in university classes reveal the solid notion of authenticity. Transparency leads to more knowledge about Bulgaria and its interpretations; endless accessibility improves the correctness of the sources. Nevertheless, the new roles and hierarchies in digital Bulgaria provoke vulnerability and emotion. Recognising the phenomenon as persuasive and flattering communication, the increased verbal exchange connects both the individual and community aspects of authenticity. Even if the dance enthusiasts from Bulgaria and from abroad are not yet fully united in the so-called imagined or digital Bulgaria, the phenomenon participates more than ever in the idea of a global village. Distance-dancing the Bulgarian way creates third spaces of protection and resistance and establishes a global community that has a future beyond the pandemic.The following article is dedicated to the changes in folk dancing caused by the Covid pandemic and presents the author’s theoretical ideas on dancing in the digital world. The examples concern the phenomenon of dancing the Bulgarian way by Bulgarians and non-Bulgarians in urban settings, which the author has been studying for years and now diagnoses the emergence of a new virtual model and defines virtual authenticity. On the one hand it relates to the fluid notion of authenticity and organises self-reflection, free expression and rediscovering of one’s own identity in cyberspace. Distance-dancing the Bulgarian way provides a psychosomatic environment with previously unknown online effects and paradoxical dichotomies. In this notion of subjective authenticity, the memory of the social intimacy of circle dancing helps with the social intimacy in the online communication and supports the belief in the whole world as an open community. On the other hand, in addition to focusing on themselves through constrained aloneliness, dancers also engage with themes of the political past, cultural essence and national determination. The verbal discussions in social networks, at virtual folk dance camps and in university classes reveal the solid notion of authenticity. Transparency leads to more knowledge about Bulgaria and its interpretations; endless accessibility improves the correctness of the sources. Nevertheless, the new roles and hierarchies in digital Bulgaria provoke vulnerability and emotion. Recognising the phenomenon as persuasive and flattering communication, the increased verbal exchange connects both the individual and community aspects of authenticity. Even if the dance enthusiasts from Bulgaria and from abroad are not yet fully united in the so-called imagined or digital Bulgaria, the phenomenon participates more than ever in the idea of a global village. Distance-dancing the Bulgarian way creates third spaces of protection and resistance and establishes a global community that has a future beyond the pandemic
Flash Mob Impact on Dissemination and Evaluation of Cultural Heritage
Full text linkFlash mob is a newly coined practice which is flourishing in urban spaces in the beginning of the 21st century. Its specific form known as art mob is affirmed as a good means for promotion and dissemination of music and dance as well as for demonstration of ideas and advertisements. In this way art mobs receive new content compared with the initial flash mob forms. Due to the new borderless communications and global mobile networks, flash mobbing became a good opportunity for achieving different goals and conveying special messages, but it is also made for commercial use. Thus, different roles and functions of cultural heritage are shown and cultural symbols are presented through flash mob actions. Also, national memory signs are activated through this practice. The research continues my previous studies on the topic. In this survey further questions arise. In what way is cultural heritage shown in flash mob actions? How does it happen in three different Slavic- speaking countries? Which are the chosen music and dance symbols in flash mobs and what do their messages look like? The main focus of my research is flash mob impact on dissemination and evaluation of cultural heritage through various actions.Flash mob is a newly coined practice which is flourishing in urban spaces in the beginning of the 21st century. Its specific form known as art mob is affirmed as a good means for promotion and dissemination of music and dance as well as for demonstration of ideas and advertisements. In this way art mobs receive new content compared with the initial flash mob forms. Due to the new borderless communications and global mobile networks, flash mobbing became a good opportunity for achieving different goals and conveying special messages, but it is also made for commercial use. Thus, different roles and functions of cultural heritage are shown and cultural symbols are presented through flash mob actions. Also, national memory signs are activated through this practice. The research continues my previous studies on the topic. In this survey further questions arise. In what way is cultural heritage shown in flash mob actions? How does it happen in three different Slavic- speaking countries? Which are the chosen music and dance symbols in flash mobs and what do their messages look like? The main focus of my research is flash mob impact on dissemination and evaluation of cultural heritage through various actions
Between (Pseudo)Silence and Noise – the Perceptive Status of Music in the Lo-Fi Environment: The Case of Contemporary Shopping Malls
Full text linkModern shopping malls are interesting examples of lo-fi soundscapes where the recipi- ents experience diverse auditory phenomena. One of the key factors organising the space is so called programmed music provided by audiomarketing companies. To what extent can this specific context change the perception of music, noise, and silence? Is the imposed music viewed from the perspec- tive of the listeners as music or perhaps noise? These questions shape the discussion on the per- ceptive status of music in lo-fi environments. More than 200 participants (between 18–30) took a soundwalk in one of the shopping malls in Warsaw where audiomarketing strategy is implemented. They were asked to record the characteristic places, to fill in the questionnaire of observation and evaluation and to write a narrative essay once the soundwalk was finished. As a result, an exten- sive set of qualitative and quantitative data was obtained, which was then subjected to a multi-stage analysis: thematic (text data), statistical (quantitative data), auditory and spectral (audio files). The results show that in the case of shopping malls the line between silence, music and noise is blurred because imposed music can become both a part of cacophonic experience and “silence zones”. During the soundwalks, 27% of the participants (n = 57, N = 208) declared they did not experience silence and 75% of the participants (n = 151) identified varied “silence zones”, even with the programmed music in the background. These observations lead to the problems of desensitisation and habituation as possible long-term consequences of noise pollution.Modern shopping malls are interesting examples of lo-fi soundscapes where the recipi- ents experience diverse auditory phenomena. One of the key factors organising the space is so called programmed music provided by audiomarketing companies. To what extent can this specific context change the perception of music, noise, and silence? Is the imposed music viewed from the perspective of the listeners as music or perhaps noise? These questions shape the discussion on the perceptive status of music in lo-fi environments. More than 200 participants (between 18–30) took a soundwalk in one of the shopping malls in Warsaw where audiomarketing strategy is implemented. They were asked to record the characteristic places, to fill in the questionnaire of observation and evaluation and to write a narrative essay once the soundwalk was finished. As a result, an extensive set of qualitative and quantitative data was obtained, which was then subjected to a multi-stage analysis: thematic (text data), statistical (quantitative data), auditory and spectral (audio files). The results show that in the case of shopping malls the line between silence, music and noise is blurred because imposed music can become both a part of cacophonic experience and “silence zones”. During the soundwalks, 27% of the participants (n = 57, N = 208) declared they did not experience silence and 75% of the participants (n = 151) identified varied “silence zones”, even with the programmed music in the background. These observations lead to the problems of desensitisation and habituation as possible long-term consequences of noise pollution
Communism and Folklore Revisited: Russian Traditional Music and the Janus-faced Nature of Soviet Cultural Politics
Full text linkSince the late Soviet period, ethnomusicologists and folklorists from Russia and other parts of the former Soviet Union (Izaly Zemtsovsky, Boris Putilov, Alma Kunanbaeva, Elena Razu- movskaia, Aleksandr Romodin) opened critical debates of the impact of the totalitarian system both on traditional expressive culture and on scope, theory, and method of its academic study. In the focus of these debates were a) repression against certain traditional genres and performance situations, b) imposition of arranged forms of staged performance, considerably differing from the traditional repertoire, and c) restriction, manipulation, and international isolation of scholarship.
It is inherent to any totalitarianism that it demands not only obedience but also active support of a specific worldview through cultural practices. Consequently, totalitarian cultural politics include repressive as well as pedagogical aspects. Their impact on traditional music is therefore both repressive and in some (often unpredictable) ways productive.
While no historically informed observer could have reason to abandon the anti-totalitarian im- petus of late 20th century Russian ethnomusicologists, I would like to offer some additions to a too simplified understanding of Soviet cultural politics impact on traditional culture. My main arguments are the following:
1. Repressive measures against traditional expressive culture, as well as the promotion of newly arranged folk music, often with a political motivation, are not a prerogative of Soviet cultural politics.
2. Stage performance in the framework of Soviet amateur art could include not only arranged folk music but also traditional forms.
3. Sometimes, Soviet reality provided new perspectives for a dynamic development of traditional expressive culture.Since the late Soviet period, ethnomusicologists and folklorists from Russia and other parts of the former Soviet Union (Izaly Zemtsovsky, Boris Putilov, Alma Kunanbaeva, Elena Razumovskaia, Aleksandr Romodin) opened critical debates of the impact of the totalitarian system both on traditional expressive culture and on scope, theory, and method of its academic study. In the focus of these debates were a) repression against certain traditional genres and performance situations, b) imposition of arranged forms of staged performance, considerably differing from the traditional repertoire, and c) restriction, manipulation, and international isolation of scholarship.It is inherent to any totalitarianism that it demands not only obedience but also active support of a specific worldview through cultural practices. Consequently, totalitarian cultural politics include repressive as well as pedagogical aspects. Their impact on traditional music is therefore both repressive and in some (often unpredictable) ways productive.While no historically informed observer could have reason to abandon the anti-totalitarian im- petus of late 20th century Russian ethnomusicologists, I would like to offer some additions to a too simplified understanding of Soviet cultural politics impact on traditional culture. My main arguments are the following:1. Repressive measures against traditional expressive culture, as well as the promotion of newly arranged folk music, often with a political motivation, are not a prerogative of Soviet cultural politics.2. Stage performance in the framework of Soviet amateur art could include not only arranged folk music but also traditional forms.3. Sometimes, Soviet reality provided new perspectives for a dynamic development of traditional expressive culture
Quantitative Method as a Tool in Musicological Interdisciplinary Research of Musical Rhetoric
Full text linkThe choice of research method significantly affects the course of research itself. It is becoming increasingly common to see cases of methods from various fields combined to achieve the required results. This is exemplified by the use of a quantitative method in traditional score analysis to verify premises in the field of music psychology. The article addresses the previous views of tradi- tional musicology on the use of natural methods in the field and presents instances of the usefulness of the quantitative method in music research. In the second part, by referring to musical-rhetorical figures, it is shown how this method can deepen the knowledge of both musical-rhetorical figures and have a valuable contribution to the psychology of music.The choice of research method significantly affects the course of research itself. It is becoming increasingly common to see cases of methods from various fields combined to achieve the required results. This is exemplified by the use of a quantitative method in traditional score analysis to verify premises in the field of music psychology. The article addresses the previous views of traditional musicology on the use of natural methods in the field and presents instances of the usefulness of the quantitative method in music research. In the second part, by referring to musical-rhetorical figures, it is shown how this method can deepen the knowledge of both musical-rhetorical figures and have a valuable contribution to the psychology of music
Why does a creative city need its local music? A study of the contemporary Wroclaw jazz scene
Full text linkThe aim of the article is to look at serious musical leisure activities in selected places in Wroclaw, in order to explain their significant contribution to making the capital of lower Silesia a creative city. Taking the perspective of research on music scenes and leisure studies, the author tries to demonstrate that the music scene in Wroclaw, although it didn’t develop its original sound, functions in a very effective way, providing a space for personal development, shaping the identity of individuals and the entire city. The discussed places not only serve as a physical space for a performance but primarily are communities based on internal and external cooperation. They are real “meeting places,” as the promotional slogan of Wroclaw says, for audiences and performers, amateurs, and professionals alike. The article is based on research on the Wroclaw music scene conducted since 2019. live performances that took place before the COvID-19 pandemic and between subsequent lockdowns were taken into account.The aim of the article is to look at serious musical leisure activities in selected places in Wroclaw, in order to explain their significant contribution to making the capital of lower Silesia a creative city. Taking the perspective of research on music scenes and leisure studies, the author tries to demonstrate that the music scene in Wroclaw, although it didn’t develop its original sound, functions in a very effective way, providing a space for personal development, shaping the identity of individuals and the entire city. The discussed places not only serve as a physical space for a performance but primarily are communities based on internal and external cooperation. They are real “meeting places,” as the promotional slogan of Wroclaw says, for audiences and performers, amateurs, and professionals alike. The article is based on research on the Wroclaw music scene conducted since 2019. live performances that took place before the COvID-19 pandemic and between subsequent lockdowns were taken into account
Identity Representations: How Did the 1979 Iranian Revolution Affect Kurdish Folk Music?
Full text linkThe following paper constitutes a part of my master thesis on the consequences of the 1979 Iranian Revolution on Kurdish folk music. The strong identity claimed by the Islamic Republic of Iran and particularly by Ruhollah Khomeini led to an obscuration of the Iranian cultural plurality, dominated by the Persian culture. Iranian music is often understood as Persian music while regional genres were confined to small areas. The domination of folk and regional identities by institutional, more-erudite identities is not limited to Iran but can be observed worldwide; however, the restricted access to music and research in the years following the Iranian Revolution enhanced this tendency in the country. In other words, vernacular genres including Kurdish folk music were denied a global presence and are still overshadowed by the dominance of classical music. Academic works made shortly after the revolution by important figures such as Jean During highlights a confusion between what was intended as folk music by the Kurdish population and what was perceived as such by foreign researchers. For this reason, the distinction between vernacular and classical music is still enforced nowadays, leading to an increasing gap between Persian culture and that of Iranian minorities. Furthermore, with Kurdish folk music being a regional genre and as political conflicts arouse between Iranian Kurds the Islamic Republic of Iran after 1979, Kurdish music is often perceived through a political lens only, denying the variety of reasons a genre may become popular and reducing music to a mean towards an objective. Through the perception of Kurdish folk music, this paper interrogates how political conflicts and cultural hegemony in music affects the representation of vernacular identities and seeks to explore how this participates in the discrimination of minorities.The following paper constitutes a part of my master thesis on the consequences of the 1979 Iranian Revolution on Kurdish folk music. The strong identity claimed by the Islamic Republic of Iran and particularly by Ruhollah Khomeini led to an obscuration of the Iranian cultural plurality, dominated by the Persian culture. Iranian music is often understood as Persian music while regional genres were confined to small areas. The domination of folk and regional identities by institutional, more-erudite identities is not limited to Iran but can be observed worldwide; however, the restricted access to music and research in the years following the Iranian Revolution enhanced this tendency in the country. In other words, vernacular genres including Kurdish folk music were denied a global presence and are still overshadowed by the dominance of classical music. Academic works made shortly after the revolution by important figures such as Jean During highlights a confusion between what was intended as folk music by the Kurdish population and what was perceived as such by foreign researchers. For this reason, the distinction between vernacular and classical music is still enforced nowadays, leading to an increasing gap between Persian culture and that of Iranian minorities. Furthermore, with Kurdish folk music being a regional genre and as political conflicts arouse between Iranian Kurds the Islamic Republic of Iran after 1979, Kurdish music is often perceived through a political lens only, denying the variety of reasons a genre may become popular and reducing music to a mean towards an objective. Through the perception of Kurdish folk music, this paper interrogates how political conflicts and cultural hegemony in music affects the representation of vernacular identities and seeks to explore how this participates in the discrimination of minorities
Towards “The Nature and Secrets of Music”: W. C. Printz and the natural history tradition
Full text linkThe present article provides arecontextualization of Wolfgang Caspar Printz’s (1641–1717) landmark music history published in 1690 (Historische Beschreibung der edelen Sing- und Kling-Kunst). later commentators have read it as a primitive, naïve and even failed attempt at writing the history of music. Still, they seem to agree that the text, in virtue of its subject matter, forms part of a canon of music historiography. The present article will seek the interpretative key in the wider intellectual context, outside of the narrow confines of texts about the musical past. It will advance the thesis that Printz built his music historiography from elements of the natural history tradition. Two arguments support this thesis. First, it will be argued that the organization of the material in chapters XIv, Xv and XvI betrays the influence of a classical version of taxonomy closely associated with the natural history tradition. Secondly, that Printz’s inquiry into the purpose of music reveals his reliance on a concept of nature similarly rooted in natural history.The present article provides arecontextualization of Wolfgang Caspar Printz’s (1641–1717) landmark music history published in 1690 (Historische Beschreibung der edelen Sing- und Kling-Kunst). later commentators have read it as a primitive, naïve and even failed attempt at writing the history of music. Still, they seem to agree that the text, in virtue of its subject matter, forms part of a canon of music historiography. The present article will seek the interpretative key in the wider intellectual context, outside of the narrow confines of texts about the musical past. It will advance the thesis that Printz built his music historiography from elements of the natural history tradition. Two arguments support this thesis. First, it will be argued that the organization of the material in chapters XIv, Xv and XvI betrays the influence of a classical version of taxonomy closely associated with the natural history tradition. Secondly, that Printz’s inquiry into the purpose of music reveals his reliance on a concept of nature similarly rooted in natural history
“Acoustic wallpaper” under control – the case of musique d’ameublement and Muzak
Full text linkAttention is one of the most important cognitive processes. Its functioning and key characteristics play a vital role in the perception of music, especially in everyday situations when music becomes an acoustical background. Thanks to selectiveness, shift and division of attention, the listener can balance between an active and a passive act of listening, however, the results of auditory perception may be difficult to determine.
Can the sender, in the process of musical communication, manage the listener’s attention in such a way as to achieve the effect of “acoustic wallpaper” understood as a perception-based effect of background music, where music, in line with the sender’s intentions, is located in the peripheral zone of the listener’s attention, within extensive attention? What function, from the perspective of the sender, is performed by “acoustic wallpaper”? Is it a target result or a mechanism leading to cer- tain reactions in an indirect way? What factors play a decisive role for the efficiency of an adopted strategy?
The main aim of this article is to answer the above questions by the analysis of two exemplary concepts of background music (musique d’ameublement by Erik Satie and Muzak) through the prism of the author’s theoretical model of “acoustic wallpaper” (Makomaska, 2021). This novel ap- proach derives from the psychologically-based reciprocal feedback model of musical response (hargreaves, et al., 2005) and socio-musicological studies on pragmatic forms of musical communication (brown, 2006). It assumes that the effectiveness of “acoustic wallpaper” being under control of the sender (the composer or a professional company) is conditioned by correlations between structural characteristics of music, the listener, and historical-social context. The analysis shows that the intended functions of background music (seen from the perspective of the sender) can differ from the real ones and in the case of particular concepts can be moderated by various groups of factors. The results provoke further discussion on the application potential of the proposed model in psychologically, historically and/or marketing-oriented studies on such concepts as e.g. ambient music and contemporary audiomarketing strategies implemented in commercial environments, where music located on the periphery of the listener’s attention can become an effective tool of mani- pulation.Attention is one of the most important cognitive processes. Its functioning and key characteristics play a vital role in the perception of music, especially in everyday situations when music becomes an acoustical background. Thanks to selectiveness, shift and division of attention, the listener can balance between an active and a passive act of listening, however, the results of auditory perception may be difficult to determine.
Can the sender, in the process of musical communication, manage the listener’s attention in such a way as to achieve the effect of “acoustic wallpaper” understood as a perception-based effect of background music, where music, in line with the sender’s intentions, is located in the peripheral zone of the listener’s attention, within extensive attention? What function, from the perspective of the sender, is performed by “acoustic wallpaper”? Is it a target result or a mechanism leading to cer- tain reactions in an indirect way? What factors play a decisive role for the efficiency of an adopted strategy?
The main aim of this article is to answer the above questions by the analysis of two exemplary concepts of background music (musique d’ameublement by Erik Satie and Muzak) through the prism of the author’s theoretical model of “acoustic wallpaper” (Makomaska, 2021). This novel ap- proach derives from the psychologically-based reciprocal feedback model of musical response (hargreaves, et al., 2005) and socio-musicological studies on pragmatic forms of musical communication (brown, 2006). It assumes that the effectiveness of “acoustic wallpaper” being under con- trol of the sender (the composer or a professional company) is conditioned by correlations between structural characteristics of music, the listener, and historical-social context. The analysis shows that the intended functions of background music (seen from the perspective of the sender) can differ from the real ones and in the case of particular concepts can be moderated by various groups of factors. The results provoke further discussion on the application potential of the proposed model in psychologically, historically and/or marketing-oriented studies on such concepts as e.g. ambient music and contemporary audiomarketing strategies implemented in commercial environments, where music located on the periphery of the listener’s attention can become an effective tool of mani- pulation