UCC hosts international conference on ethnomusicology and traditional music

4 Apr 2024

• The conference brings world-leading experts together to explore the study of music in social and cultural contexts, including in times of war and migration.
• Ethnomusicology embraces music from around the world, old and new, traditional and newly invented, and applies research for social improvement.

The use of sound in deception warfare, indigenous cultural activism and a global hip hop research project are among the topics which will be discussed at a conference at University College Cork (UCC) this week.

Ethnomusicologists - including researchers, musicians, dancers, and activists - will convene at UCC to share research and insights at the British Forum for Ethnomusicology and International Council for Traditions of Music and Dance Ireland Joint-Annual Conference will take place from Thursday, 4 April to Sunday, 7 April.

The conference will explore ethnomusicology, the study of music in its social and cultural contexts, and commemorations of the past, representations of the present realities and visions of a better world, or even dystopian world.

Participants will share their experiences as ethnomusicologists across a broad range of areas, including music as a social practice that is connected to diverse elements of social life and culture; ethnographic and historical research; and public and applied work including the impact of music across cultural policy, conflict resolution, health, environmental sustainability, and advocacy.

Professor Beverley Diamond will deliver the keynote address on ‘Spaces of Impact’, which will reflect on her career and her relationships with several cultural communities - with several cultural communities – Inuit in Canada’s far north, First Nations and Sami cultural promotors and culture bearers, and institutions charged with support for cultural initiatives. Professor Diamond was the first Canada Research Chair in Ethnomusicology at Memorial University of Newfoundland where she established and directed the Research Centre for the Study of Music, Media, and Place (MMaP).

Professor Jonathan Stock, UCC Professor of Music and Chair of BFE-ICTM organising committee said: “It’s our pleasure to welcome musicians, dancers and researchers to Cork for this joint conference. UCC scholars and students have made significant contributions to the field of ethnomusicology through their dedication to research, education, and community engagement. This week, we’re delighted to connect with peers who driving advances in a wide range of fields including musicology, anthropology, diasporic studies, political science and sociology.”

The conference was organised by Ms Kelly Boyle, Dr Michelle Finnerty, Dr Ann-Marie Hanlon, Dr Alexander Khalil, Dr Matthew Machin-Autenrieth, Mr Luigi Monteanni, Dr Lijuan Qian, Dr Kaylie Streit and Dr Jack Talty.

View the conference programme here.