17520
Seminar
Music and Politics
Joao Cardante Romao
Comments
"How political is music?" is perhaps one of the most frequently asked questions in musicological and journalistic literature. Reflections on the power of music abound, from Plato to Adorno to the present. Numerous examples confirm that music and politics intersect on many levels. Among the most frequently cited are the role of music in shaping the identity of social movements (e.g., protest songs), or the valuable use of music in promoting social justice (e.g., "El Sistema" in Venezuela). But if the intersection between music and politics seems a given, it is crucial to think of music as a political act beyond its most obvious manifestations. In this sense, thinking music politically invites us first and foremost to rethink what both music and politics are, as well as to rethink their function in society.
Ultimately, this seminar aims to contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of how music has been the subject of constant negotiations between the aesthetic, the institutional, and the social. We will therefore focus on some historical and contemporary examples that illustrate the most common debates about the politics of music, especially its material-environmental relations and the political-economic conditions of its production, reception and circulation.
close
12 Class schedule
Regular appointments
Mon, 2025-04-14 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-04-28 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-05-05 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-05-12 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-05-19 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-05-26 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-06-02 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-06-16 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-06-23 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-06-30 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-07-07 10:00 - 12:00
Mon, 2025-07-14 10:00 - 12:00