Dr. John Caldwell

Visiting Scholar, Comparative Humanities
School of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences
john.caldwell@ahss.habib.edu.pk

Education

  • Ph.D., Musicology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA (2021)
    Dissertation: “Songs from the Other Side: Listening to Pakistani Voices in India”
    Advisor: Dr. Michael Figueroa
  • M.A., Musicology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA (2015)
    Thesis: “The Musical Language of Indian Film Song in the 1940s”
    Advisor: Dr. Phillip Vandermeer
  • M.B.A., International Business (Global Trade Policy and Development in South Asia), Yale University School of Management, USA (1991)
  • M.M., Bassoon Performance, University of Michigan School of Music, USA (1987)
  • B.A., magna cum laude, History and Literature (Russia and the Soviet Union), Harvard University, USA (1985)

Research Interests

  • South Asian and Southeast Asian Music
  • Indian Film Music and Popular Culture
  • Diaspora and Religious Performance (e.g., Ramlila)
  • Hindi-Urdu Literature and Translation
  • Music and Identity in India–Pakistan Relations
  • Multimedia Language and Cultural Education

Biography

Dr. John Caldwell is a scholar and performer specializing in South Asian and Southeast Asian music, Hindi-Urdu languages, and cultural studies. With a background in musicology, performance, and international business, his work explores the intersections of music, film, diaspora, and religious identity in modern India and Pakistan. He is an accomplished bassoonist, composer, poet, and director of gamelan ensembles, contributing to both academic and public engagement through teaching, outreach, and creative projects.

Selected Publications

Academic

  • “The Musical Language of Indian Film Song in the 1940s.” In The Routledge Companion to Global Film Music in the Early Sound Era, edited by Jeremy Barnham. New York: Routledge, 2022.
  • “Songs from the Other Side: Listening to Pakistani Voices in India.” Doctoral Dissertation, ProQuest, 2021.
  • “Lord Rama Plays the Parking Lot: Ramlila in the Diaspora.” Asian Theatre Journal 37(1): 200–227, Spring 2020.
  • “The Movie Mujrā: the Trope of the Courtesan in Urdu-Hindi Film.” Southeast Review of Asian Studies 32: 120–128, 2010.

Creative

  • Hindi Poetry: “Madhūmakkhī kā gīt,” “Patangā,” “Shamā parvānā,” “Ek barfīlī sham” (Hindi translation of Robert Frost’s Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening), “Anchunā rāstā” (Hindi translation of The Road Not Taken). In Man Kī Tarapāī. Sihor, M.P.: Shivna Prakashan, 2022, pp. 143–148.
  • “Since a sigh requires a lifetime.” Translation of a ghazal by Ghalib (Urdu to English). Monsoon Magazine, Chapel Hill, 2021.
  • Translations: Short stories in Premchand: The Complete Short Stories, edited by M. Asaduddin. Gurgaon, India: Penguin Books, 2017.
  • “Postcards from Wagah.” Monsoon Magazine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, November 1, 2014.

Digital Scholarship

Music Compositions

  • Opus Zero: Promethean Love. Song for voice & piano or voice & orchestra.
  • Opus 1: String Symphony. Premiered September 17, 2022, Raleigh Symphony Orchestra.
  • Opus 2: Signs and Seasons. Premiered April 23, 2023, Durham Symphony Orchestra.
  • Opus 3: Fire and Honey. Five songs for voice & piano or orchestra.
  • Opus 4: Songs In a Troubled Key. Six settings of poems by Langston Hughes.

Grants and Fellowships

  • American Institute for Indian Studies Dissertation to Book Workshop, October 19, 2022
  • Carolina Asia Center Language Course Development Grants, 2019–2022
  • Carolina Asia Center Course Development Grant, Indonesia, $3,800, Summer 2018
  • Fulbright-Nehru Dissertation Research Scholarship, India, Spring–Summer 2017
  • Jim and Judy Cox Asia Initiative Award for Southeast Asia, $3,500, Winter 2015

Selected Conference Presentations

  • “In the Realm of Ecstasy: Sufi Diplomacy at the ‘Jahan-e-Khusrau’ Music Festival,” Society for Ethnomusicology Annual Meeting, October 23, 2025.
  • “Weddings, War, and Worship: A Timbral Archeology of the Naubat Ensemble,” Society for Ethnomusicology Annual Meeting, October 17, 2024.
  • “Dancing in Chains: Anti-Authoritarian Songs in Pakistani Films of the 1960s,” Annual Conference on South Asia, November 2, 2024.
  • “Verbal Structure / Vocal Spontaneity: Improvisation in Ghazal Performance,” Annual Conference on South Asia, October 20, 2023.
  • “Performing Partition: The India–Pakistan Border Ballet at Wagah,” Society for Ethnomusicology Annual Meeting, 2019.

Teaching Experience

  • Teaching Associate Professor, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (2006–Present)
    • Music: Music of South Asia; Performance in Southeast Asia; Gamelan Ensemble
    • South Asian Studies: Religious Identity, Journalism, Diaspora, Study Abroad Hindi
    • Hindi-Urdu Language: Elementary to Advanced, Script, Journalism, Health & Medicine
  • Co-Director, UNC–Chapel Hill Summer in India Study Abroad Program (1999–2019)
    • Developed and taught courses on Indian culture, music, language, media, and journalism

Languages

  • Hindi and Urdu: Near-Native (ACTFL Certified Superior)
  • French: Working Knowledge
  • Russian: Working Knowledge
  • Bahasa Indonesia: Currently Studying

Professional Skills

  • Bassoon Performance (Principal, Durham and Raleigh Symphony Orchestras)
  • Gamelan Direction and Instruction (Kendhang)
  • Music Composition and Arrangement
  • Poetry Writing and Translation (Hindi–Urdu–English)
  • Multimedia Curriculum Development
  • Radio Hosting and Curation (Geet Bazaar, WKNC 88.1 FM)
  • Literary Society Management (Urdu Majlis)
  • Documentary Consulting and Public Outreach
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