Theory and Method in Historical Ethnomusicology.

Hunter, Justin R.

Theory and Method in Historical Ethnomusicology. Edited by Jonathan McCollum and David G. Hebert. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2014. [xviii, 411 p. ISBN 9780739168264 (hardcover), $110; ISBN 9781498507059 (e-book), $109.99.] Music examples, illustrations, bibliography, index.

Theory and Method in Historical Ethnomusicology is a much-needed resource for music scholars from many disciplinary approaches. From the topics discussed and the ethnographies presented, this work fits well into the literature of ethnomusicological theory, but also should be considered in other fields of musical study. This lengthy collection is presented as a bridge, of sorts, that works to highlight the potential of merging musicological branches--namely, historical musicology and ethnomusicology. The editors clarify that this is a collection of theories and references to historically-oriented works not previously presented together; as such, it is a valuable resource for any music scholar interested in the past and its relationship with the present. The editors state, "a central objective of this book is to reclaim the role that historical studies have long quietly occupied in ethnomusicology, despite the field's recent emphasis on ethnographic studies of contemporary music practices, and to demonstrate new ways of conducting insightful historical research on musical traditions around the world" (p. 2). Using a broad spectrum of geocultural examples, the volume includes several engaging strategies for using and writing about history in order to understand the world's musics.

In Chapters 1, 2, 3, and 11, the editors delve into a multitude of frameworks for the uses of historical perspective. As such, I will discuss these chapters together, although they are separated in the final product. In chapter 1, the editors expansively trace the early days of ethnomusicology (and its predecessors) and the drastic shift from the recording and analyzing of history (seen as musicology) to ethnographic studies (seen as ethnomusicology). This description of and attention drawn to the discipline's early reliance on historical studies is especially compelling and a worthwhile read for historical music researchers, especially those without ethnomusicological training.

Chapter 2 is lengthy, method-heavy reading. This exhaustive discussion is especially useful for considering how historical studies could be applied to ethnographic research. The editors examine the numerous ways the past can be accessed--oral histories, musical recordings, documents, and musical texts, etc.--and the many avenues for researchers to find such resources (archives and beyond). But with historical research comes the need for (or adventure of) finding sources not always consulted in depth in ethnographic studies--e.g., studio recordings, newspaper articles, album covers, sales records, and online resources. These, as the editors point out, are exciting ways to engage with the histories of the musics we study.

In chapter 3, with a thorough exploration of ideas from inside and outside of ethnomusicology, the editors work through philosophies of history. From theoretical debates to the ethics of representation, the chapter is a jaunty and robust contribution to how music studies could be enhanced by a sensitivity to historical pasts. McCollum and Hebert's lengthy discussions of the cognitive dissonance of cultural memory are particularly poignant for researchers working to connect oral histories with written sources. A novel approach in this chapter is the consistent discussion of digital media. With higher education's growing interest in digital humanities, these discussions seem fitting and timely.

With the exception of a brief synopsis for each contribution, chapter 11 functions more as an extension of ideas previously discussed than a conclusion. In this final chapter, the editors take time to develop additional ideas not yet discussed in the book. Especially intriguing are the calls for more research into the history of music education and the need to remain academically rigorous in historical studies. In highlighting the function of each chapter here, the editors group them together by themes: foundations of, methodological approaches to, and theoretical concerns in historical ethnomusicology. While these groupings seem logical and this discussion helps to draw larger connections between the chapters, arranging the book according to these themes might have been a more effective strategy.

Chapters 4-10 are individual contributions that, with the exception of chapter 10 by Keith Howard, are largely based on the authors' personal experiences in conducting historical and ethnographic work. In chapter 4, Judah Cohen begins with a thoughtful history of his journey to historical studies. This leads to the crux of his chapter, which is a comparison of disparate music projects that use Passover as "symbolic capital," using a concept of "facing." Cohen suggests that through music, and with a reading of Jewish and African histories as an interdiasporic exploration (p. 153), these two groups come together both symbolically and historically. As a point of application, he rightly notes that words are limiting in describing music, and suggests that words equally limit the perceived reality of history. By discussing both music and history, scholars might develop an understanding of the past with "multisensory perceptions."

Ann Lucas discusses, in chapter 5, the sometimes persistent discontinuity between history and the present: in this case, in modern musics related to ancient Persian music. Lucas points out the region's long history, and discusses assertions by contemporary peoples who claim ties to the ancient civilization based on their interpretations of that history. She rhetorically asks if modern Iranians have any claim to Persian music prior to the inception of Iran. She posits that despite a lack of a clear line of inheritance (pp. 178-79), many Iranian musicians claim legitimacy through historicizing claims to ancient Persian musical ideology. Following Michel Foucault, Lucas points to an archeological methodology in historical ethnomusicology, viewing specific points in time as successive but not necessarily cumulative (pp. 179-80). Seeing these points as separate and not always connected allows researchers to view historical records as distinct moments of recorded (past) presents (p. 189).

Chapter 6, by editor Jonathan McCollum, follows in a similar vein. McCollum, who also finds historical studies potentially problematic based on different accounts of the past, discusses the issue of missing documentation. Using Armenian khaz as an example, this chapter looks at the oft-used strategy of piecing together disparate resources--primary, secondary, and tangential--to build a mosaic of the past. These written histories of musical practice are fascinating avenues for developing modern understanding, but McCollum attempts to draw the reader's attention to history's purpose: "History, after all is what actually happened, but the writing of history is inevitably an interpretive step, parsing history into segments of knowledge" (p. 231). As McCollum demonstrates, historical ethnomusicology has a goal of working out musical history as one would piece together a jigsaw puzzle--"to uncover some pieces of its puzzle reveal the larger picture of knowledge that helps in understanding the past" (ibid.).

In chapter 7, Chris Goertzen looks to the American South to discuss the historical transmission of fiddle traditions through three snapshots: late-eighteenth-century Scotland, early-nineteenth-century England, and finally mid-nineteenth-century America. Written in personal storytelling prose, this chapter is evocative and compelling. The modern framework of fiddle competitions that pit hereditary old-time fiddlers against urban revivalists looking for "authentic" experiences is something unexpected yet encouraging, showing the new and old converging. In describing these relationships, Goertzen borrows the term "edge effects" from ecology to describe conservancy through "interfaces between popular, high, and traditional cultures" (p. 273). These "edge effects" work to blur the lines between traditions and ideologies that remain "bound up with interaction of the borders of different cultural spheres and the linked repertoires and performance practices" (ibid.). Goertzen calls for the need to foster relationships between fiddling communities that would encourage revivals and a better understanding of regional styles.

Daniel M. Neuman's chapter 8 seems a typical "historical" offering, but he points out that history is not always viewed or experienced universally. This chapter utilizes his forty years of Indian music scholarship to provide an insightful reading of Hindustani music history as Neuman developed it in his own ethnographic studies. The chapter highlights, yet again, that dif ferent groups have different understandings of history--here, specifically, two groups of music researchers: the Khandani (mostly Muslim hereditary musicians) and the Pandit (Hindu scholarly Brahmans). While each group may see the succession of their tradition's history differently, Neuman works to elucidate the common threads.

Chapter 9, focusing on the importance of archival research, highlights the unique responsibility ethnomusicologists have in music history. Diane Thram discusses recording and archiving as essential tools in early ethnomusicology and its predecessor, comparative musicology (p. 310). She points out that archival research is not only important to historical studies but the need for such research should be nurtured in ethnographic studies as well. She discusses a way of integrating archival work--both researching materials and the act of archiving--into a practice she calls "engaged ethnomusicology" (p. 311). She notes, "implicit in the term [engaged ethnomusicology] is commitment to giving back to communities who cooperate with the scholar's research in ways appropriate to their needs" (p. 321). This idea of reciprocity seems to tie nicely into the idea that scholars are present in the creation of history by recording and documenting contemporary times. This engaged ethnomusicology pushes scholars to understand their role in their informants' history-making and their ethical responsibility to contribute to those efforts on behalf of those they study.

Keith Howard's contribution, chapter 10, seems a bit out of place for this volume. Instead of concentrating on his own historical work or documenting the development of a particular strand of musical scholarship, he focuses the chapter on his issues with a group of scholars known as the "Picken school," or more commonly the "Cambridge group," and their interpretation of East Asian musical history. While Howard states "that it is not [his] intention in this essay to deny the many contributions to our knowledge made by [Lawrence] Picken and the members of the Picken school" (p. 344), he uses a tone of condemnation throughout. In the end, this chapter does bring to light an issue in (or possibly a strength of) historical research: each scholar develops and constructs an interpretation of events based on readings of written history which, in Picken's case, is Tang Dynasty era musical notations. In many ways, Lucas and Neuman similarly discuss these different interpretations of history. With this in mind, the arguments against the Picken school seem overgeneralized and misplaced in a volume that, despite being critical at times, remains a positive and propelling compilation.

While I applaud this work and what it accomplishes in bringing together examples, references, theories, and methods for historical study, 1 still ponder the need for specialized terms such as "historical ethnomusicology." As the metaphorical line between (historical) musicology and ethnomusicology continues to blur, it seems fitting that historical ethnomusicology should fill the gap, as the editors suggest. But, as Howard alludes in the forward, "musical practice is accorded value through nuanced interpretations of history, and our understandings of musical meaning make use of a complex blend of diachronic and synchronic evidence" (p. xii). So then, are not all music studies focused on history? Indeed, our present is surely someone else's history. Lucas and Thram ponder such ideas and consider this a missed opportunity to actively engage in historymaking. The editors do point out that this book is not intended to elevate yet another "hyperspecialized" subfield within ethnomusicology; rather, they call for this book to highlight the need and importance of historical work alongside ethnographic study.

As a collection of essays, the four chapters by the editors seem ponderous and overly idealistic. While the inclusion of a wide range of references and the calls for historical work are useful, the discussions in these chapters are a bit wandering. Trimming the theoretical sections would have made the book more accessible as a whole. The middle chapters, which are mostly ethnographic in nature, are much more readable and practical. Filled with novel ideas for incorporating or using history to improve our understanding of the present, these chapters are as delightful as they are insightful. Judah Cohen's and Ann Lucas's chapters in particular stand out as exemplary, as does Goertzen's chapter, for parsing historical groundings with conservancy ideals of the present. This title would be of interest to any researchers in historical music studies, but would be an especially compelling resource for those wanting to better engage with historical processes in their ethnographically-focused studies.

Justin R. Hunter

University of Arkansas