I write to apply for the position of Assistant Professor of Ethnomusicology at the College of Arts, Media and Design, Northeastern University, Boston.
Ihold a PhD degree in Ethnomusicology and Composition from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, the University of Sydney. I also have a twenty-year background as a jazz and operatic performer, composer, and teacher in France, French Polynesia, and Australia. My international experience as a musician and scholar relies on a strong education background in jazz and popular music, with sound references in art music. I have successfully led several creative and practice-as-research projects in Europe and in the Pacific, in a range of musical genres, including jazz and intercultural music. Since 2012, I have published my ethnomusicological research in several book chapters and peer-reviewed journals, and I have presented both my ethnomusicological and my artistic research outcomes in a number of national and international conferences around the world. I am currently the artistic and
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I have taught internationally jazz piano, theory, harmony, arrangement, and composition in a variety of educational contexts, ranging from conservatories and music academies to universities. I also have designed and monitored several workshops in Ethnography of Polynesia and in Creativity, intended for postgraduates in France and Australia, as well as for the French cultural institution, the Philharmonie de Paris. I consider jazz more as an artistic and human mindset drawing on experience, which can expand beyond this specific musical context. This drives my teaching goals, which can be summarized as follows: (i) bring students towards autonomy in individual and collective jazz practice; (ii) perpetuate knowledge through the study of jazz repertoire, theory, history, styles, and connections with other musical and artistic realms; (iii) inspire learning in creating and maintaining
Jazz is referred as “America’s classical music,” and is one of North America’s and most celebrated genres. The history of Jazz can be traced back to the early era of the 20th century of the U.S. “A History of Jazz” presents From Ragtime and Blues to Big Band and Bebop, jazz has been a part of a proud African American tradition for over 100 years. A strong rhythmic under-structure, blue notes, solos, “call-and response” patterns, and
The word “jazz” is significant to America, and it has many meanings. Jazz could simply be defined as a genre or style of music that originated in America, but it can also be described as a movement which “bounced into the world somewhere about the year 1911…” . This is important because jazz is constantly changing, evolving, adapting, and improvising. By analyzing the creators, critics, and consumers of jazz in the context of cultural, political, and economic issue, I will illustrate the movement from the 1930’s swing era to the birth of bebop and modern jazz.
Robbins Burling, David F. Armstrong, Ben G. Blount, Catherine A. Callaghan, Mary Lecron Foster, Barbara J. King, Sue Taylor Parker, Osamu Sakura, William C. Stokoe, Ron Wallace, Joel Wallman, A. Whiten, Sherman Wilcox and Thomas Wynn. Current Anthropology, Vol. 34, No. 1 (Feb., 1993), pp. 25-53
Richard Colwell, Carol Richardson. The New Handbook of Research on Music Teaching and Learning: A Project of the Music Educators National Conference. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.
Schultz, Emily A. & Lavenda, Robert H. 2005, Cultural Anthropology, 6th edn, Oxford University Press, New York, Chapter 3: Fieldwork.
Jazz is more than music. It is a way of thinking that has defined literature, philosophy and music. Surrounded by its own unique lifestyle and culture, jazz has been in perpetual evolution. Emerging from the oppression of slavery, Jazz inspired musicians to define and express freedom through music. As jazz evolved it began to inspire freedom just as freedom had inspired it. New anthems written for the civil rights and anti-apartheid protests demonstrated that jazz had the power to inspire change. Coated in a shell of glory, jazz had been hiding its own internal darkness. Discrimination has been rampant throughout the culture of jazz. Racism, addiction, ageism, mental illness and the power of first impressions have limited or ended the careers of many great jazz musicians.
Raglio, A., Filippi, S., Bellandi, D., & Stramba-Badiale, M. (2014). Global music approach to persons
...frican American Musicians as Artists, Critics, and Activists. Berkeley, CA: University of California, 2002. 54-100. EBSCOhost. Web. 8 May 2015.
“How Musical is Man?” was published in 1974. This book was written by John Blacking, a musician turned social anthropologist. His goal in writing this ethnography, and several other papers during this same time period, was to compare the experience of music-making that takes place within different cultures and societies throughout the world. In this book, he discusses and describes the musicology of the Venda people in South Africa. Though he does go to Africa to research and learn about the Venda people and their music, he specifically states that his book is “not a scholarly study of human musicality” (ix), but rather it is a summary (written from his point of view), which is both expressive and entertaining, of several different issues and ideas that he has seemingly been contemplating for some time.
"Music is a common experience and a large part of societies. In fact, anthropologists note that all human communities at all times and in all places, have engaged in musical behaviours. Music as a mode of human activity is a cultural phenomenon constituting a fundamental social entity as humans create music and create their relationship to music. As cultural phenomeno...
Music played a very important role in the lives of people is diaspora communities. It served as a reminder for the immigrants of their homeland, which allowed them to proudly express their national and cultural identities. Diaspora refers to an international network of communities linked together by the identification of a common ancestral homeland and culture. People in these communities are no longer living in their homelands, with no guarantee of a return either. (Bakan, 19). Music played a large role in African diaspora communities. This was first started by the slave trades many years ago when slave traders traveled to the coast of West Africa to capture Africans and brought them back to the United States to be slaves on plantations. Slaves were more prone to loose a sense of their own culture because every new aspect of their lives was forced upon them, therefore they were undoubtedly forced to abandon their n...
Throughout the semester, various styles of music and the aspects of culture associated with these styles have been analyzed. Musical elements such as dynamics, texture, form, timbre, melody, instruments, etc., have been used to thoroughly explore each kind of music from different areas of the world, with an emphasis in music from Africa, India and Indonesia. These aspects of music go far beyond just music itself. Culture also plays a huge role in music and the accompanying musical elements. Each country and culture has a different style and distinctiveness that add to what makes the music of that certain culture unique. Music in Africa may differ dramatically from music in Indonesia or India not only due to those certain elements but also due to how it is interpreted by people and what it represents for those people. In addition to this, what one may consider music in one culture may not be music to another. These differences have been made apparent in the several demonstrations that we have been exposed to in class.
The arts are a dying study in today’s society. The arts allow humans to escape their shells and fully express themselves. In jazz, I find myself altering a piece of music to my liking. The “bleeps and swoops” in my playing depict emotions that I may not be able to convey in person. I feel that I can be rather quiet and reserved, but with a horn in hand, the gates which hold back the seas of emotion open and allow the currents to flow. It is quite magical and many are deprived of this.
Expertise, experience and preparation are key components to the success of an musician. As a music educator, I have taught classroom music, instrumental music and flute in many schools with varying curricula in the United States and Australia. These teaching experiences have been crucial for my overall development as a musician as they have enabled me to dissect, analyze and
Music has played a role in society since the dawn of man. Said to be the beginning of communication in early civilization, music and dance have influenced how we think, act and treat members of our own society. Song and dance is used in rites of passage ceremonies such as births, weddings and funerals throughout the world. Jamaican and Yoruba cultures have made many contributions to our society. The uses of this music as a vehicle for political issues, values, and beliefs have been used by many musicians from different cultures. I intend to discuss the Contribution of these two contemporary cultures music and their effect on society.