Abstract
The intimate relationship of musical practices with the social life of communities, and the risk of disappearance several of these face around the world, motivate public and private efforts toward the protection of musical heritage. These initiatives, which range from folk music inventorying to business-based musical ventures (such as Coke Studio Pakistan), nurture an intense debate on what to sustain and how to protect this heritage. In this debate, the interdisciplinary concept of cultural sustainability emerges as a holistic approach that addresses music as part of a sociocultural ecosystem, identifying cultural transmission via practice and grassroots participation as central to sustaining musical heritage.
This talk engages with the opportunities and challenges that such an approach entails in the context of developing countries and aims to propose complementary guidelines for sustaining musical heritage under the social, political, and economic conditions of the global south. This discussion will be framed by current debates on cultural heritage, tradition and authenticity, and cultural property.
Speaker
Rodrigo Chocano
PhD in ethnomusicology from Indiana University, USA. His work focuses on the relationship between musical heritage, cultural governance, and ethnic minorities. He is a former heritage specialist at the Peruvian Ministry of Culture and at the UNESCO Representation in Peru, and has taught anthropology, ethnomusicology and musicology at institutions in the United States and Latin America.
Date: January 23rd, 2020
Time: 7:00 – 8:00 pm
Venue: H.M. Habib Auditorium
