World Music Studies and Ethnomusicology at the University of Manchester
Courses
- Undergraduate Courses
- World Music
- Special Subject in Ethnomusicology: World Music in Africa
- Gamelan
- Dissertation
- Others (career related): Arts Administration
- MusM in Musicology (including Ethnomusicology)
- PhD in Musicology (including Ethnomusicology)
Ethnomusicology and World Music Studies:
It is possible to take a substantial proportion of your undergraduate degree - and a full complement of Masters modules - in Ethnomusicology and World Music Studies. Here you have the opportunity to explore the enormous diversity of sounds produced by the world’s peoples, from ancient folk and tribal music through dazzlingly sophisticated classical traditions to contemporary popular music scenes. Along the way you will engage with key issues such as globalisation, nationalism, censorship, gender politics and techno-culture. Topics covered in the level 2 World Music module, for example, include the music of the Australian aborigines, classical music and dance in South India, protest song in Chile, music and censorship in Afghanistan, and the use of ‘ethnic’ instruments in Western popular music. Western popular music also comes into the spotlight in our focus on the 1960s, with Bob Dylan as a special case study.
Many of our students choose to write their final year dissertations in the field of ethnomusicology or popular music, often carrying out original fieldwork in the UK or overseas. Recent topics include: refugee music in Manchester; Britpop and British Asian music; Disney and ethnicity; music, politics and war in former Yugoslavia; concepts of tradition and modernity in indigenous Fijian musical practices; Moroccan women’s music from local to global; and a study of Nigerian Afrobeat artist Fela Kuti.
The department has its own gamelan degung, which you can learn to play - and compose new music for - under the expert guidance of Dr Rachel Swindells (Gamelan and Community Projects Officer with the Hallé orchestra). You may also have the opportunity to take part in occasional workshops led by visiting performers. Recently we have journeyed into Bulgarian singing with Dessislava Stefanova, music from the Babylonian Jewish tradition with Sara Manasseh, and Georgian, Corsican and Shape Note singing with Northern Harmony.
Last but not least, you can catch live performances by visiting world music stars at several Manchester venues, from the flagship Bridgewater Hall to the legendary Band on the Wall.
Staff: Dr Caroline Bithell, Dr Rachel Swindells