Time Schedule:
Rachel Devitt
MUSIC 445
Seattle Campus
Deals with areas not covered by other courses in ethnomusicology. Content varies with different instructors.
Class description
This course will examine popular music through literature on gender performance and race, class, gender, and sexuality passing. The culture of Western popular music has been dominated by various quests for authenticity and originality. We expect our favorite musicians to sing from their hearts and write their own songs, and we disparage those artists who are fakes and poseurs. But "faking it" and other strategies of theatrical inauthenticity have long provided a means of critique, and often survival, for people who are underrepresented in mainstream culture. Literature covered will include Judith Butler's theory of performativity; Jose Munoz's work on ethnicity, sexuality, and performance; and Lisa Walker's writings on queer gender identities and visibility. We will focus especially on music scholarship of gender and identity, which has been heavily impacted by Butler's work, as well as on artists (such as Billy Tipton and Madonna) and performance practices (such as lip-syncing and drag) that transgress boundaries of identity and genre and trouble notions of musical authenticity.
Student learning goals
General method of instruction
Recommended preparation
Class assignments and grading
