Sonic Politics: Music and Social Movements in the Americas

260 Pages·2019·7.656 MB·English

by  Olaf Kaltmeier (editor), Wilfried Raussert (editor)

Sonic Politics
This volume analyses the narration of the social through music and the
seismographic function of music to detect social problems and envision
alternatives.
Beyondstate-drivenattemptstolinkmusicalproductiontotheofficialnarra-
tive of the nation, mass musical movements emerged during the 20th century
that provided countercultural and alternative narratives of the prevailing
socialcontext.The Americascontainnumerousexamplesof thestrongcon-
nection between music and politics; Woody Guthrie’s “This Land is Your
Land” envisioned a socialist transformation of the U.S., the Chilean Nueva
Cancióncreatedanarrativeandaffectiveframefortherecognitionofpopu-
larcultureasacentralelementoftheculturalpoliticsoftheChileanwayto
socialism,andReggaeemergedasaresponsetoBritishcolonialism,drawing
inspirationandguidancefromthepan-AfricanistvisionsofMarcusGarvey.
Providing a significant contribution to the study of music and politics/
social movements from an inter-American perspective, this book will
appeal to students and scholars of U.S. and Latin American Cultural
Studies, Transnational Studies, History and Political Studies, Area Studies,
and Music Studies.
Olaf Kaltmeier is Chair and Professor of Latin American History and Dir-
ector of the Center for InterAmerican Studies (CIAS) as well as Director of
the Maria Sibylla Merian Center for Advanced Latin American Studies
(CALAS) at Bielefeld University, Germany.
Wilfried Raussert is Chair and Professor of North American Literary and
Cultural Studies and Co-Directorof InterAmerican Studies (CIAS) at Biele-
feld University, Germany.
InterAmerican Research: Contact, Communication, Conflict
Series Editors: Olaf Kaltmeier, Josef Raab, Wilfried Raussert, Sebastian Thies
The Americas are shaped by a multitude of dynamics which have extensive,
conflictiveandattimescontradictoryconsequencesforsociety,culture,politics
and the environment. These processes are embeddedwithin a history of inter-
dependence and mutual observation between North and South which origin-
ates in the conquest and simultaneous “invention” of America by European
colonialpowers.
TheserieswillchallengethewayswethinkabouttheAmericas,inparticular,
and the concept of area studies, in general.Put simply, the series perceives the
Americas as transversally related, chronotopically entangled and multiply
interconnected. In its critical positioning at the crossroads of area studies and
cultural studies the series aims to push further the postcolonial, postnational,
and cross-border turns in recent studies of the Americas toward a model of
horizontaldialoguebetweencultures,areas,anddisciplines.
The series pursues the goal to “think the Americas different” and to explore
thesephenomenafromtransregionalaswellasinterdisciplinaryperspectives.
For more information about this series, please visit www.routledge.com/Inter
American-Research-Contact-Communication-Conflict/book-series/ASHSER-
1426
Practices of Resistance in the Caribbean
Narratives, Aesthetics and Politics
Edited by Wiebke Beushausen, Miriam Brandel, Joseph T. Farquharson,
Marius Littschwager, Annika McPherson and Julia Roth
Political Protest and Undocumented Immigrant Youth
(Re-)framing Testimonio
Stefanie Quakernack
Critical Geopolitics of the Polar Regions
An Inter-American Perspective
Dorothea Wehrmann
Sonic Politics
Music and Social Movements in the Americas
Edited by Olaf Kaltmeier and Wilfried Raussert
Sonic Politics
Music and Social Movements in the
Americas
Edited by Olaf Kaltmeier and
Wilfried Raussert
Firstpublished2019
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LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Names:Kaltmeier,Olaf,1970-|Raussert,Wilfried.
Title:Sonicpolitics:musicandsocialmovementsintheAmericas/
editedbyOlafKaltmeierandWilfriedRaussert.
Description:Abingdon,Oxon;NewYork,NY:Routledge,2019.|
Series:InterAmericanResearch:Contact,Communication,Conflict;
ASHSER-1426|Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
Identifiers:LCCN2019004454|ISBN9781138389397(hardback)
Subjects:LCSH:Music—Politicalaspects—America—History.|
Music—Socialaspects—America—History.|Socialmovements—
America—History.
Classification:LCCML3917.A63S662019|DDC306.4/
8420973—dc23
LCrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2019004454
ISBN:978-1-138-38939-7(hbk)
ISBN:978-0-429-42393-2(ebk)
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Contents
Listofillustrations vii
Listofcontributors ix
Introduction:Sonicpolitics:musicandthenarrationofthe
socialintheAmericasfromthe1960stothepresent 1
OLAFKALTMEIERANDWILFRIEDRAUSSERT
1 Singingresistance,rebellion,andrevolutionintobeing:
collectivepoliticalactionandsong 19
HELENCORDESANDERICSELBIN
2 AfricanAmericanmusicintheAmericas:slavery,sounds,
andformsof“knowledge” 44
ULFRIEDREICHARDT
3 “OnlyaPawnintheirgame?”Civilrightssounding
signaturesinthesummerof1963 51
FRANKMEHRING
4 Inter-public-agenda-settingeffectthroughpoliticalactivism:
theroleofhip-hopmusicinthe2004U.S.Presidential
Election 73
MARÍADELOSÁNGELESFLORES,CAROLL.ADAMS-MEANS,
ANDMAXWELLE.MCCOMBS
5 “Callingoutaroundtheworld”:howsoulmusic
transnationalizedtheAfricanAmericanfreedomstrugglein
theblackpowerera(1965–1975) 88
MATTISTEINITZ
vi Contents
6 “SiUnaVez”:chicanasensibilitiesandXicanista
soundscapes 107
MIRIAMSTRUBE
7 Hip-hopinCiudadJuarez:aformofpoliticalparticipation 121
MARÍADELCARMENDELAPEZAC.
8 TheFandangoSinFronterasmovementandsonic
migrations:performingcommunityacrossborders 142
WILFRIEDRAUSSERT
9 ThesearchforanewcollectiveepicinNicaraguan
post-revolutionarymusic 158
LUISE.DUARTE
10 Rockin’forPachamama:politicalstruggleandthe
narrationofhistoryinEcuadorianrockmusic 179
OLAFKALTMEIER
11 Punkisdead.Orisit?Strategiesofsubcultural
positioninginthe(re-)makingofthepunkmovement 205
MARTINBUTLER
12 Politicalpie-throwing:DeadKennedysandthe
Yippie-Punkcontinuum 216
MICHAELSTEWARTFOLEY
Index 238
Illustrations
Figures
3.1 PhotographbyPeterByrneCooke,Newport.Performing“We
ShallOvercome,”(lefttoright):ThegroupPeter,Paul,and
Mary(PaulStookey,MaryTravers,PeterYarrow),JoanBaez,
BobDylan,RuthMaeHarris,CharlesNeblett,CordellReagon,
BerniceJohnson,andPeteSeeger.PhotographedonJuly26,
1963,byJohnByrneCookeattheNewportFolkFestival,
singing“WeShallOvercome”withastandingaudienceof
13,000joiningin 60
3.2 PhotographofJoanBaezandBobDylanperformingatthe
MarchonWashington,Aug.28,1963.RowlandScherman,
U.S.NationalArchivesandRecordsAdministration(Public
domain) 61
3.3 MarchonWashingtonforJobsandFreedomprogram,Aug.28,
1963(Publicdomain) 62
6.1 LydiaMendozaasanearlyexampleofaChicanaappropriating
musicalgenreandinstruments 112
8.1 FromlefttorightMichelleHabell-Pállan(FandangoProject,
Seattle),WilfriedRaussert(speaker,GlobalFandango
Conference,CUNYNewYork2015),MarthaGonzalez
(leadsingerfromtheChican@bandQuetzal)attheGlobal
FandangoConferenceatCUNY,NewYork2015.
©WilfriedRaussert 145
8.2 Xalapa,Mexico2014.WorkshopMúsicaPopulardelSotavento
VeracruzanoorganizedbySiraniGonzalez,YaatsilGuevara
González.©WilfriedRaussert 148
10.1 Aztra,CoverImageof“TierraLibre” 187
10.2 Aztra,“TierraLibre,”Booklet 188
10.3 Aztra,“TierraLibre,”Booklet 189
viii Illustrations
10.4 Aztra,“TierraLibre,”Booklet 190
10.5 Aztra,“TierraLibre,”Booklet 191
Tables
4.1 Hip-hopagenda-settingeffectinDecision2004 82
Contributors
The Editors
Olaf Kaltmeier is Chair and Professorof Latin American History at Bielefeld
University, Germany. He isDirectorof the Center for InterAmerican Stud-
ies (CIAS) in Bielefeld and Director of Maria Sibylla Merian Center for
Advanced Latin American Studies (CALAS) at Bielefeld University. His
research interests include heritage studies, indigenous movements, and
Inter-American studies. He is co-editor of The Routledge Handbook to the
History and Society of the Americas (2019) and co-editor of the Routledge
series InterAmerican Research: Contact, Communication, Conflict.
Wilfried Raussert is ChairandProfessorofNorthAmericanLiteraryandCul-
turalStudiesandCo-DirectorofInterAmericanStudies(CIAS)atBielefeld
University, Germany. He is the founder and general editorof the e-journal
fiar (Forum for Inter-American Research, www.interamerica.de), the online
journal of the International Association of Inter-American Studies. He is
Director of the International Association of Inter-American Studies and
Chairof the research project “Entangled Americas/The Americas as Space
ofEntanglement(s)”atBielefeldUniversity,fundedbytheGermanMinistry
for Education and Research. He has held visiting professorships at the
University of Mississippi, the Universidad de Guadalajara, Humboldt
UniversityinBerlin,andUniversityCollegeCork. Heistheeditorofthe
RoutledgeCompaniontoInteramericanStudies(2017).
The Contributors
Carol L. Adams-Means holds Master of Art and Doctor of Philosophy
degreesinJournalismfromTheUniversityofTexasatAustin.Dr.Adams-
Means has commercial and public media experience and became a college
professor in 1982 at Prairie View A & M University where she served as
News Director for NPR station KPVU-FM. She has received numerous
prestigious fellowships and awards including 1st Place Faculty paper, Top
Panel, from the Entertainment Studies Division of Association for Educa-
torsinJournalismandMassCommunication.