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Archive Receives Second OID Grant

"Ethnomusicology could never have grown into an independent science if the gramophone had not been invented. Only then was it possible to record the musical expression of foreign peoples objectively" ( Kunst, Jaap. 1959. Ethnomusicology: A study of its nature, its problems, methods, and representative personalities to which added a bibliography. 3rd Edition. The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff. Page 12).

The words of ethnomusicology founding father Jaap Kunst still ring true today: the growth of ethnomusicology is inextricably intertwined with the invention and development of recorded sound. Sound recordings and, to an increasing degree, audiovisual recordings, constitute the core data of this discipline.

Due to this interconnectedness, it is essential for audiovisual recordings to be accessible in the classroom. The very success of ethnomusicology education, especially at the undergraduate level, is dependent in great part upon being able to play examples of the music cultures being discussed. The performance-related nature of ethnomusicological subject matter in essence demands that faculty employ a diverse array of audiovisual resources to fulfill their teaching goals.

With Ethnomusicological Audiovisual Recording Retrieval System (EARRS herein), the second OID-funded Archive project, the UCLA Ethnomusicology Archive will digitize and make accessible 196 hours of audiovisual recordings for use in 19 undergraduate classes. Currently held by ethnomusicology faculty, these recordings exist on a variety of obsolete or nearly obsolete analog formats. These materials have been identified by faculty as having great potential for use in their undergraduate classes if digitized and made accessible in a reliable and easy to use manner. Some of these materials are already being used by faculty in their undergraduate classes, though their cumbersome analog nature makes them difficult to play in class and even more difficult to make accessible outside of the classroom.

Overview of the EARRS Project
With the input of six ethnomusicology faculty, we have identified 196 hours of audiovisual recordings that will be digitized and made accessible as part of EARRS. We plan to digitize the video with analog play equipment in the Archive wired to a Powerbook using Final Cut Pro. We currently have 3 audio digitization stations that we will use for the sound recordings. Bibliographers, ideally with digitization experience, will be hired to digitize these materials and enter metadata about each item into our Finding Aid Database. The digitized recordings, along with materials digitized as part of our previous OID-funded project, will be stored on an array of hard drives and backed up onto DVD-R. Once the recordings are digitized and accessible via our hard drives, we hope to establish a portable faculty viewing and listening station in the Archive. This station should consist of a cart with the Powerbook, relevant hard drive(s), data projector, and speakers.

The purpose of EARRS is to support and enrich undergraduate education in the Department of Ethnomusicology. Though the 19 classes listed within this proposal focus on distinct traditional, popular, and classical musical genres within specific regions of the world, all Department of Ethnomusicology undergraduate classes share a common mission:
§ To introduce undergraduates (both ethnomusicology and non-ethnomusicology majors) to fundamental concepts within the discipline of ethnomusicology by way of lectures, in-class performances, multimedia presentations, and access to primary source materials.
§ To educate students about the role of music in society and its relationship to other arts.
§ To train students to develop listening and analytical skills, as well as a heightened sense of cross-cultural understanding.
§ To explore the world of music by examining culturally specific scale structures, rhythmic patterns, instruments, musical forms, and performance standards.

Total undergraduate enrollment for the 19 undergraduate classes identified as part of this grant is about 850 students. We estimate that, depending on the class, from 60% to 80% of these students are non-ethnomusicology majors. Based upon an increased higher demand for undergraduate ethnomusicology classes, the Department is committed to accommodating an increase in enrollment while effectively realizing our undergraduate mission, in great part by giving our faculty easy and seamless access to multimedia and primary source materials. In short, with access to a 21st century palette of resources, we will propel these undergraduate classes forward, increase undergraduate enrollment, and enrich what already is an exceptional undergraduate learning experience.

If you are interested in learning more about EARRS, contact the Archive for more information.

Written by John Vallier

Archive CD Review

by Erin Ensley

Title: Amandla! [sound recording] : a revolution in four-part harmony.
Published/distributed: [New York] : ATO Records : BMG, [distributor], p2003.
Publisher number: ATO 0009 ATO Records
Cast/performers: Various performers including Hugh Masekela, Miriam Makeba, and Vusi Mahlasela.
Call Number: ARCD 1819

The documentary film Amandla! A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony (ARCD1819) explores the importance of music in the black South Africans' fight against the apartheid regime in South Africa. Apartheid, or the extreme segregation of races, came into existence in 1948 after the Nationalist Party gained control of the government. In 1958, when Henrik Verwoerd became leader of the white minority government, the suppression of the overpowering black population became mainstream. Racial discrimination flourished during this period. Not only were laws created forcing blacks to relocate to the 'Homelands,' there were laws prohibiting the social mixing of races and laws requiring all blacks to carry several types of identification on them at all times. Throughout the ensuing decades of oppression and debasement, blacks were often motivated by their music. It was through music that they found solace and a renewal of their cause. Their dreams of political and social equality were not realized until 1994, when freedom fighter Nelson Mandela was overwhelmingly elected as leader in the nation's first free election.

The soundtrack of the award-winning film (Audience, Freedom of Expression Awards, 2002 Sundance Film Festival) begins much the same way that many resistance rallies were brought to order: a cry of 'Amandla' (Power) echoed by 'Awethu' (to the People) in a responsorial fashion. The sense of community and communal power engendered by the introductory track is a recurrent theme; a majority of the 29 tracks are performances by large homophonic choral groups accompanied by simple percussion (i.e. hand clapping, foot stomping), if accompanied at all. Most notable among these is the recording of 'Makuliwe' by the Soweto Community Hall vocal ensemble (Track 22), whose inherent call-and-response harmonies are added upon with whistles, ululation and shouts of joy by the audience and choir members alike.

The 80 minutes of music provide the listener an emotional rollercoaster, as the different musical selections trace the gamut of emotions experienced by black South Africans. Overwhelming sadness is heard in the mournful vocals of Vusi Mahlasela in 'Thina Lomhlaba Siwugezi' (Track 13), and slower tempos and minor chords of the SABC Choir in 'Thina Sizwe' (Track 15), both of which were written to memorialize the unexplained death of an influential black musician in prison. However, despite the dire circumstances faced under the apartheid system, the CD retains a surprisingly optimistic quality. Hugh Masekela's upbeat arrangement of 'Bring Him Back Home' (Track 19) commemorates the release of Nelson Mandela from prison. Even 'Meadowlands' (Track 4) by Nancy Jacobs and Sisters, a song whose lyrics speak of the forced relocation of the blacks to the homelands, seems joyous in nature.

As a student of African Languages at UCLA, I immediately recognized the pivotal role language played in the struggle against apartheid. After all, it was by using an African language that Miriam Makeba was able to directly threaten South African leader and architect of apartheid Henrik Verwoerd at a performance in his honor ('Beware Verwoerd,' Track 7). Whereas Afrikaans was forced upon all children as the national language of apartheid, black South African children were also raised learning Zulu and Xhosa. As a result they were able to relate their struggles and ideas to one another without whites being any the wiser.

This CD is a staple of my personal library, and helped me to understand an important era of history that is quickly being forgotten. I also highly recommend the accompanying documentary, which includes rare footage and interviews with musicians and political activists who thrived during apartheid.

Erin Ensley is currently entering her fourth year at UCLA as an African Languages and French major. She studied abroad in Ghana in Fall 2003, and spent six weeks in Tanzania in Summer 2004 as part of a Fulbright intensive Swahili program. Erin plans to pursue graduate studies at the Chuo Kikuu cha Dar es Salaam.


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