Atlantic Roots and Routes: Introduction

• Published in: Canadian journal for traditional music Vol. 40; no. 1; p. 1
• Main Authors: Sparling, Heather, Szego, Kati, Wilkins, Frances
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Calgary Canadian Society for Traditional Music 01.01.2013
• Subjects: Diaspora; Folk music; Globalization; Music industry; Musical performances; Musicians & conductors; Oceans; Popular music; Traditions; World music; New Zealand; United Kingdom > UK; Arctic region; Europe; Chicago Illinois; Australia
• ISSN: 1920-4213; 1920-4221

Afrocubism, dubbed "Buena Vista Take Two," was deliberately created for the world music market in 2008, and Whitmore's analysis reveals the power differentials involved when a British world music producer, Nick Gold, hand-picks musicians of varying experience, expertise and musical genres from Cuba and Mali to play together. [...]while Bob White argues that understanding the emergence of world music "as a commercial and musical phenomenon improves our ability to understand the links between consumer capitalism, new regimes of technology, and the evolution of the modern nation-state" (2), there are other, sometimes more productive, aspects of musical encounter worth investigating. All papers clearly identify how transatlantic musical movement has involved high degrees of collaboration between musicians from diverse cultural and musical backgrounds.The six articles illustrate clearly the global circulation of music and dance performance, both in early instances of globalization through human movements (as in articles by Wilkins, Melin, Smith and Dillane) and through more contemporary movements of music via the ever-expanding music industry (as in articles by Whitmore and Hillhouse). [...]it's hard to know where oceans begin and end.