Held in person at McKimmon Center: In 1964, Alan Merriam publish the seminal work The Anthropology of Music.  In this groundbreaking book, he outlined ten functions of near universal utility.  Every society in the world has some form of music, and while there are many ways that musical sound is organized, the uses for musical sound are few.  People use music to express emotion, enjoy beautiful tones, and entertain themselves. They use music to dance, to structure rituals, to represent non-musical ideas, and communicate. Using Merriam as a point of departure, we will examine a wide variety of traditions to observe these commonalities of musical expression.

Recommended Reading:   The Anthropology of Music, Alan Merriam<em>; What in the World Is Music?, Alison Arnold and Jonathan Kramer

Registration Deadline: Mar. 21