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Performing Ethnomusicology: Teaching and Representation in World Music Ensembles.

Article Excerpt
Performing Ethnomusicology: Teaching and Representation in World Music Ensembles. Edited by Ted Solis. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2004. [vii, 322 p. ISBN 0-520-23831-1. $24.95.] Index, bibliography.

World music ensembles can be found in any number of colleges and universities throughout North America. One would thus assume that, given the recent decades of reflexivity in ethnomusicology, that a significant amount of literature would be devoted to the pedagogical and philosophical issues that surround the creation and perpetuation of world music ensembles, especially since much is written on the process of musical transmission. However, the authors of Performing Ethnomusicology: Teaching and Representation in World Music Ensembles make clear that there is, in fact, a curious absence in ethnomusicological literature concerning the relationships among world music ensemble directors, ethnomusicologists, and students. This work is an extraordinary amalgamation of essays that deal with the processes of forming, teaching, and analyzing world music ensembles in various academic settings. One of the true assets of the book is its treatment of the ethnomusicologist as "ensemble leader." Also, for those interested in the progression and history of the field of ethnomusicology, this book provides insight into how world music ensembles have helped to make a place for the ethnomusicologist in academia. Along these lines, the work also reveals how ethnomusicology sometimes conflicts with traditional academic frameworks.

World music ensembles generally comprise many different people with diverse cultural heritages. How do these different orientations create a mode for change within the ensemble, yet also...

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