This module provides an overview of globalization and mobility as fields of study, as well as an in-depth exploration of their entanglement with music. Whether through travel, trade, migration, or telecommunication, music moves through circuits that connect the local and the global. Together, we will encounter a series of conceptual frameworks and concrete case-studies that foreground the role of movement in musical life. This module will consider how people experience music on the move, why some musical actors are more mobile than others, and the impact of accelerating global flows. In-class discussions will address such topics as: how travel and migration shape music-making and musical senses of place; how systems of mobility enable or constrain musical agency; the expansion of multinational media conglomerates; the impact of travel and tourism on local music scenes; the influence of recording and telecommunications technologies upon musical production, distribution, and consumption.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the module students should be able to:
Demonstrate a broad and nuanced grasp of the fields of globalization studies and mobility studies, including knowledge of the major concepts and debates.
Apply the insights gleaned from the abovementioned fields of study to the analysis of relevant musical case studies
Demonstrate a broad familiarity with ethnomusicological, anthropological, and sociological approaches to the study of musical life.
Gather and critically engage with scholarly literature to inform judgments that reflect on globalization and mobility in music.
Demonstrate an ability to produce sophisticated assessed work independently using appropriate resources, literature and techniques.