The diverse musics of the Caribbean form a vital part of the identity of individual island nations and their diasporic communities. At the same time, they witness to collective continuities and the interrelatedness that underlies the region's multi-layered complexity. This Companion introduces familiar and less familiar music practices from different nations, from reggae, calypso and salsa to tambú, méringue and soca. Its multidisciplinary, thematic approach reveals how the music was shaped by strategies of resistance and accommodation during the colonial past and how it has developed in the postcolonial present. The book encourages a comparative and syncretic approach to studying the Caribbean, one that acknowledges its patchwork of fragmented, dynamic, plural and fluid differences. It is an innovative resource for scholars and students of Caribbean musical culture, particularly those seeking a decolonising perspective on the subject.
Edited by:
Nanette de Jong
Imprint: Cambridge University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 244mm,
Width: 168mm,
Spine: 15mm
Weight: 490g
ISBN: 9781108433068
ISBN 10: 1108433065
Series: Cambridge Companions to Music
Pages: 320
Publication Date: 04 August 2022
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Foreword Lester Monts; 1. Introduction to the Caribbean and its History – An Overview Nanette de Jong; 2. Race and Transculturation – The Cuban Son Robin Moore; 3. Salsa Soundings – Puerto Rico and the Americas Frances R Aparicio; 4. Blackness and Identity – Dominican Merengue Angelina Tallaj; 5. From the island to global stages – Dominican bachata on the move Deborah Pacini-Hernandez; 6. Investigating the Caribbean's African past – Kokomakaku stickdance from Curaçao Nanette de Jong; 7. Reframing diasporic belonging – Curaçao Tambú parties in the Netherlands Nanette de Jong; 8. Competition, Conflict and Cooperation – Haitian Rara Michael Largey; 9. Uncovering hidden histories of meaning – Guadeloupe Gwoka Brenda F. Berrain; 10. The Foundations of rap music and postcolonial emancipation – Guadeloupe Hip-Hop Florabelle Spielmann; 11. Konpa, Zouk and the politics of world music – Haiti, Dominica, Guadeloupe and Martinique Hélène Zamor and Apollinaire Anakesa Kululuka; 12. Globalisation in Reggae and the Dub Diaspora – Jamaica David V Moskowitz; 13. Musical orality and literacy in the transmission of knowledge and praxis – Trinidad and Tobago Felicity Laurence and Nanette de Jong; 14. Narratives of Return – Carriacou and the Big Drum Ritual Nanette de Jong and Linda F. Williams; 15. Decolonising Caribbean imaginings – Conclusion Nanette de Jong and Julio Nazario.
Nanette de Jong is a Senior Lecturer at the International Centre for Music Studies, Newcastle University. Her work on the Caribbean has focussed primarily on Curaçao, exploring themes of identity, ritual and cultural memory. Her monograph, Tambú: Curaçao's African-Caribbean Ritual and the Politics of Memory (Indiana University Press, 2012), was shortlisted for the 2013 Albert J. Raboteau Prize for Best Book in Africana Religions. She has worked more recently as ethnomusicologist consultant for various NGOs and local organisations across the Caribbean and Southern Africa. De Jong is also an accomplished classical and salsa flautist.
