If I had to proffer one up, I would argue for a dialectical materialist approach to understanding musical functionality and applied practices. An understanding of fundamental and descriptive terms that can be applied to any given musical or cultural context will be both considerate of variate methodological understandings of what music i…
If I had to proffer one up, I would argue for a dialectical materialist approach to understanding musical functionality and applied practices. An understanding of fundamental and descriptive terms that can be applied to any given musical or cultural context will be both considerate of variate methodological understandings of what music is, and capable of mediating between the material bases of sound production and the cultural practices that generate genre and style.
Though I can't say I think the term is good, I think "ethnomusicology" in some circles is meant to be or understood to attempt this, though I gather its not a field without faults or essentialism. Systematic musicology is another discipline that is more common in Europe from my understanding and might have some basis in this approach. Ultimately, I'd like to see a performance-oriented musicology take the place of theory dept.s at the college level, and let the 1800s Chamber Music be its own minor.
Huh, I’m not familiar with systematic musicology! I wouldn’t say ethnomusicology is what I’m describing, it sounds more to me like you’re trying to revamp ethnomusicology lol. Though, you could apply what I’m suggesting to an ethnomusicological context, it’s not my foundational focus as much as it’s considerate of those factors. I get wanting things to be performance-oriented, I think that would be a great change. It would be more practical to base theory and analysis on contemporary industry trends and applications for people interested in making a career of it imo, but I get why it’s been institutionally situated the way it has been for so long in a eurowestern classical background. Historical context and tradition can be really helpful, like I’ve found in Jazz (and ostensibly for different classical traditions), but the presentation is definitely backwards in classical scenes where it places their perspective as the “center of the world” for theory and analysis instead of how it’s situated in the broader context of music making. Classical styles would make way more sense as minor focuses imo.
If I had to proffer one up, I would argue for a dialectical materialist approach to understanding musical functionality and applied practices. An understanding of fundamental and descriptive terms that can be applied to any given musical or cultural context will be both considerate of variate methodological understandings of what music is, and capable of mediating between the material bases of sound production and the cultural practices that generate genre and style.
Though I can't say I think the term is good, I think "ethnomusicology" in some circles is meant to be or understood to attempt this, though I gather its not a field without faults or essentialism. Systematic musicology is another discipline that is more common in Europe from my understanding and might have some basis in this approach. Ultimately, I'd like to see a performance-oriented musicology take the place of theory dept.s at the college level, and let the 1800s Chamber Music be its own minor.
Huh, I’m not familiar with systematic musicology! I wouldn’t say ethnomusicology is what I’m describing, it sounds more to me like you’re trying to revamp ethnomusicology lol. Though, you could apply what I’m suggesting to an ethnomusicological context, it’s not my foundational focus as much as it’s considerate of those factors. I get wanting things to be performance-oriented, I think that would be a great change. It would be more practical to base theory and analysis on contemporary industry trends and applications for people interested in making a career of it imo, but I get why it’s been institutionally situated the way it has been for so long in a eurowestern classical background. Historical context and tradition can be really helpful, like I’ve found in Jazz (and ostensibly for different classical traditions), but the presentation is definitely backwards in classical scenes where it places their perspective as the “center of the world” for theory and analysis instead of how it’s situated in the broader context of music making. Classical styles would make way more sense as minor focuses imo.