Identity, Belonging and Struggle: Mobilizing Community and Transforming Individuals through Music 

Authors

  • André de Quadros Boston University Author

Keywords:

identity creation and formation, community and belonging, music education

Abstract

This paper explores the multiple dimensions of identity, belonging and struggle as they relate to two dissimilar locations and contexts. In so doing, the paper searches for threads of convergence. Specifically, in American prisons, and Israel and the Arab world, the following research questions are posed. How is identity provoked in music making? 
How is identity frequently unrecognized or just neglected in artistic work, intercultural collaboration, educational vision, and project development? How does alienation factor into music making, and can this be alleviated by making conscious decisions about artistic practice? How can community music lay bare the full extent of struggle, give genuine expression, console, create bonding and binding, and provide processes in which community can be created? How can community be generated through music when enemies, adversaries, and competitors are present? 

Author Biography

  • André de Quadros, Boston University

    André de Quadros is a conductor, ethnomusicologist, music educator, writer, and human rights activist. He  has conducted and undertaken research in over forty countries around the globe. Professor of Music, Music Education Department, College of Fine Arts; Affiliate faculty: African Studies Center; Center for the Study of Asia; Institute for the Study of Muslim Societies and Civilizations; and Prison Education at Boston University.  A sought after conductor and clinician, André de Quadros is Music Director and Conductor of the Manado State University Choir (Indonesia) with which he toured France, Sweden, Sri Lanka, and Poland.  André de Quadros believes that consensus music-making can bring people and cultures together.  To that end, he has been at the forefront of efforts for music and social change.   In 2008, he co-created Aswatuna: Arab Choral Festival in Jordan that brought together choirs from Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria.  In 2010, he co- directed a historic project with Palestinian and Israeli choral musicians in East Jerusalem working to foster understanding between the two communities (Community Heartsong). A staunch advocate for the democratization of music, André de Quadros teaches in two Massachusetts prisons. He is a member of the Scientific Board of the International Network for Singing Hospitals and a member of the steering committee of Conductors Without Borders. As author and editor, André de Quadros has edited the prestigious Cambridge Companion to Choral Music for Cambridge University Press. Since 2011, he has been the founding director of the Music Research and Creative Network of the Social Science Research Network (SSRN). 

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Published

2024-02-04

Issue

Vol. 15 (2018)

Section

Articles