Symposium Exploring Cultural Music Studies: Theory and Practice at UCLA
The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music hosted a day-long symposium and an evening concert on May 19, 2017, in honour of UCLA Distinguished Professor Timothy Rice, who was retiring in June. The event, titled "Ethnomusicology in Theory and Practice," brought together a diverse group of scholars to discuss and examine the nature of theorizing in ethnomusicology.
The symposium began at 9:00am with opening remarks by Steven Loza, Chair of the Department of Ethnomusicology. The first session, titled "What is Music Good For?", was chaired by Mark Kligman from UCLA and featured presentations by Anthony Seeger, Michael Bakan, and Jane Sugarman. The topic of this session was the effect of ethnomusicologists engaging with real-world problems on ethnomusicological theorizing.
Session 2, titled "Studying Music or Studying Sound?", was chaired by Jessica Schwartz from UCLA and included presentations by Nina Eidsheim and Shana Redmond. This session focused on how expanding the purview from the study of music to the study of sound might help ethnomusicologists better understand music and sound.
Session 3, chaired by Daniel Neuman from UCLA, discussed what ethnomusicologists might gain from an increased emphasis on comparative studies. Thomas Turino from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, emeritus presented a talk titled "You Never Know Where You're Going Till You Get There: Dialectics of Experience and Theory." Harris Berger from Memorial University, Newfoundland presented a talk titled "Others, Dialectics, Horizons: Comparativisms, Work, and Life for Ethnomusicologists."
Session 4 of the symposium, chaired by Robert Garfias from UC Irvine, discussed the relationships between ethnographic fieldwork and ethnomusicological theorizing. Jeff Todd Titon from Brown University presented a talk titled "From Music in Its Sonic Context to Music as Sound: Some Theoretical Implications." Martin Daughtry from New York University presented a talk titled "Sound Studies Provincializes Music Studies. What Provincializes Sound Studies?"
Maureen Mahon from New York University presented a talk titled "Race in Theory and in Ethnomusicology." Judith Becker from University of Michigan, emerita presented a talk titled "Ethnographic Puzzle to Theoretical Formulation: Transwomen and Burmese Spirit Ceremonies." Ruth Stone from Indiana University presented a talk titled "Comparative Studies in Ethnomusicology from Microanalysis to Big Data." Deborah Wong from University of California, Riverside presented a talk titled "Will Sound Studies Decolonize Ethnomusicology?"
A coffee break was scheduled at 10:30am. The symposium concluded with a talk by Mark Slobin from Wesleyan University, emeritus titled "Confessions of a Theory Skeptic."
The day-long symposium was followed by a "Grand Concert: Celebrating the School's Musics" in Schoenberg Hall at 7:30pm. The concert featured performances by UCLA professors and ensembles performing European classical music, world music, and jazz.
The symposium and concert were a testament to the vibrant and diverse community of ethnomusicologists at UCLA and beyond. The event provided a platform for scholars to share their research, engage in thoughtful discussions, and celebrate the richness and complexity of music and sound.
Attendees then had the opportunity to refresh and network during the coffee break at 10:30am, which served as a break from the intense learning and discussions. After the symposium concluded, the evening presented an opportunity for entertainment, as the "Grand Concert: Celebrating the School's Musics" in Schoenberg Hall at 7:30pm showcased performances by UCLA professors and ensembles, mixing education-and-self-development with music and entertainment.
