Digital Commons Network^™

Paragliding The Cliff Edge: Introducing Open Mic Studies. A Creative Response To Navigating The Post-18 Landscape For Young Adults With Send., James Tarling, Charlie Robinson, Nick Hall, Sammy Shepherd

Plymouth Interdisciplinary Education Open Journal

This conceptual article investigates novel ways of thinking about Open Mic Nights (OMN) – performance spaces understood as free, community arts and performance opportunities where the members of the public are welcome to perform music, poetry and comedy in front of an audience. For the purposes of this article, music-related OMN that take place in pubs or community centres are discussed.

The article is intended to be a primer for OMN studies that offers new and emerging trailheads for future research and discussion. Its central focus is how OMN may benefit the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) community with …

Remixing Dialogue: A Case Study On Perceptions Of Hip Hop Pedagogy In A Professional Learning Course, Kelly J. Thelen

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

This qualitative case study examines how teachers’ decision-making and professional autonomy shift while participating in a Hip Hop Pedagogy Professional Learning course supported by structured FIXIT (Lo & Wachter, 2023a, 2023b, 2023c, 2023d; Wachter & Lo, 2024) game-facilitated dialogue in a rural, culturally and linguistically diverse Midwest community. Grounded in Freire’s (1970) Critical Pedagogy, Ladson-Billings’ (1995) Culturally Relevant Pedagogy, Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy (Paris and Alim, 2017), and Adult Learning Theory (Knowles et al., 2005), the study explores the reclamation of agency by teachers in a time of constrained creativity and educator autonomy shaped by strict policy environments, an emphasis on …

Resistance And Adaptation In Banyumas Traditional Gending: Musical Negotiation Between Cultural Preservation And Commercial Performance In Lengger And Ebeg, Darno Darno, Binarung Mahatmajangga

Bahasa dan Seni: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, Seni, dan Pengajarannya

This study investigates the musical dynamics of Banyumas-style traditional gending within the contestation of Lengger and Ebeg performances amid the demands of modern entertainment. Using a qualitative method combining ethnomusicological and cultural-sociology perspectives, the study examines changes in musical structure and the socio-cultural forces driving them, and asks specifically: what defines Banyumas gending musicality at the level of instrumental garap (working practice); what concrete forms of adaptation and resistance are observable in contemporary performance; and how these dynamics can be read through Merriam's concept of stability and change and Bourdieu's theory of capital and field. Data were collected through in-depth …

Flexibility In Javanese Folk Performing Arts: Adaptation, Creation, And Innovation, Kiswanto Kiswanto, Paimin Paimin, Wahyu Prihatin

Bahasa dan Seni: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, Seni, dan Pengajarannya

This study aims to uncover and explain the concept and model of flexibility as a mechanism for the sustainability of folk performing arts amidst conditions of social and cultural change. The study was conducted using an ethnographic approach, based on participatory and collaborative activities within the Turonggo Seto Boyolali group, and supported by data collection techniques including observation, interviews, documentation, and literature review. The results of this study indicate that flexibility is a principle and approach applied through the process of adaptation, creation, and innovation. This process is carried out to preserve and develop traditional performing arts, ensuring they continue …

Notes From The Field - Conference Proceedings, Summer Fellows 2025, Center For Latin American, Caribbean, And Latino Studies (Clacls)

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies

CLACLS presents proceedings papers from the third CLACLS Summer Fellows Showcase Conference, held on November 12, 2025.

The daylong event showcased the research endeavors of fourteen Summer Fellows, who offered succinct presentations on their projects funded by the CLACLS Summer fellowship. The included three panels: “Feminist and Queer Critical Perspectives”, “Language, Archive and Power”, “Social Movements and Political Imaginations.”

Negotiating Poetic And Musical Structure: The Adaptation Of Pupuh Sinom In Tembang Sunda Cianjuran, Mustika Iman Zakaria Sudrajat, Yosep Nurdjaman Alamsyah

Bahasa dan Seni: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, Seni, dan Pengajarannya

In the context of Sundanese culture, pupuh is a literary form that has static rules. As a literary form, pupuh is often used as a guide for composing song lyrics in Sundanese traditional vocal art, thereby leading to interactions with musical elements. In this case, this interaction happens to the pupuh Sinom, as mentioned in the lyrics of the tembang Sunda cianjuran song entitled Sinom Degung and Gawil Tarik. In this context, a negotiation occurs between the conventions of the pupuh Sinom and the song's melody, ultimately leading to the pupuh Sinom's adaptation. Using a descriptive analysis approach, …

Listening To Taos Amrouche, A Kabyle Woman’S Singing Voice In A Context Of Exile And Immigration : Between A Search For Intimacy And Independence, Melek Chekili

Journal of Amazigh Studies

This article analyzes the vocal, musical and literary strategies Algerian Kabyle singer and writer Taos Amrouche employs to determine the place voicing holds for her in contexts of colonization, exile and migration. I demonstrate through her singing career and her 1975 autobiographical novel l’Amant Imaginaire, that within the ambivalences stemming from her birth in Tunisia to exiled Kabyle Christian converts and her emigration to France, Taos Amrouche’s singing voice provides a space where those ambivalences can co-exist. By being adamant about keeping her artistic activity close to her body and explicitly referring to sex in her writing, she exerts …

News From The States, Blake Denton

The Southeastern Librarian

Library news reports from SELA member states

Conga Santiaguera: A Century Of Innovation And Competition, Nick Herman

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Santiago de Cuba is home to the island’s biggest, oldest, and most famous carnival.  Any local resident will confirm that “sin conga no hay carnaval (without conga there is no carnival).” In Santiago, conga refers to a vibrant street procession, the music that drives it, and the ensemble that makes the music.  Conga Santiaguera: A Century of Innovation and Competition presents a musical history of the conga from roughly 1910 to 2010.  This project, https://cuny.manifoldapp.org/projects/conga employs an eBook, musical analysis, oral histories, and audiovisual media to show how the conga has been constantly reinvigorated by innovation, competition, and Afro-Diasporic …

Reimagining Puerto Rican Sonic Identity: Musical Style And Creation After Hurricane María., Gabriel E. Bouche Caro

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation examines the manifestation of Puertorriqueñidad (Puerto Rican identity) in concert music composed after Hurricane María (2017), a catastrophe that catalyzed a profound shift in Puerto Rico's cultural consciousness. Focusing on four composers whose early careers were shaped by this period—Johanny Navarro, John Rivera Pico, Iván E. Rodríguez, and Christian Quiñones—the study combines close readings of scores and recordings with extensive original interviews to understand how musical identity is constructed in the wake of collective trauma. The analysis reveals that while the composers share a generational bond, their aesthetic practices are strikingly diverse: Navarro preserves Afro-Caribbean rhythmic structures, Rivera …

Memory Parties: Celebration As A Community Mental Health Intervention In Dementia Care, Alexis Ask

Expressive Therapies Theses

This thesis examines the relationship between memory, celebration, and collective experience, and proposes Memory Parties as a community mental health intervention for individuals with dementia, their families, and broader communities. Using a qualitative integrative literature review, this thesis synthesizes interdisciplinary research from dementia care, trauma studies, neurobiology, dance/movement therapy (DMT), cultural practices of ritual and celebration, and social psychology. The primary aim is to reconsider memory as an embodied, relational, and collective process rather than solely an individual cognitive function. Findings suggest that as cognitive and narrative memory change, individuals retain the capacity for emotional expression, relational engagement, and participation …

Soundtrack Of Struggle: Racial Injustice, Resistance, And Redemption In To Pimp A Butterfly, Carson Yee

Culture, Society, and Praxis

This paper explores and analyzes the extent to which Kendrick Lamar’s 2015 album, To Pimp a Butterfly, is a profound examination of the contemporary socio-political scene within the United States of America. In the introduction, the topic of protest art is discussed, highlighting the album’s role in addressing America’s ongoing struggle with racial justice. A context surrounding Kendrick Lamar and the formation of the To Pimp a Butterfly album follows, which then sets the stage for a thorough analysis of the various lyrical, musical, and contextual elements that suggest this album is a deeper evaluation of socio-political issues in America. …

Not Just Monetary: Arts And Humanities Scholars’ Perspectives On The Costs Of Open Access Publishing, Lindsey Skaggs, Rachel Scott, Colby Cilento

Faculty and Staff Publications – Milner Library

Bibliometric and survey-based studies have documented different open access (OA) publishing practices among scholars across academic disciplines. This article reports on interviews conducted with arts and humanities scholars from the United States and explores how OA intersects with their research and publication practices. Beyond the considerable financial costs of OA publishing, findings demonstrate that arts and humanities scholars contend with opportunity, reputational, equity, and time costs as they consider and engage with OA publishing. The authors discuss the implications of these costs for librarians who facilitate the dissemination, discovery, and preservation of arts and humanities scholarship.

Sonic Rupture And Embodied Politics:
Reconfiguring The Aesthetic Regime In The Syrian Uprising, Lynn Shabani

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis argues that the Syrian uprising of 2011 emerged as a sonic and embodied rupture within an authoritarian aesthetic regime that had long governed public sensibility. Through chants, song, and coordinated movement, political agency took form as collective, affective practice, transforming vernacular repertoires into infrastructures of mobilization, audibility, and resistance.

Centering Latinx Perspectives And Cultural Identification In Music Listening: Examining Musical Consumption Behaviors And Choices Among Latinx Adults, Javier Alejandro Silerio

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Music is a critical cultural activity and resource for people all over the world, often used for communication, recreation, identity formation, social bonding, and many other aspects of our daily lives. Moreover, this has been reported across many cultures and is not unique to a single group. Despite this, there is currently limited information and research around Latinx American music consumption and this population's overall relationship with music. Because of this, the purpose of this study is to examine music consumption behaviors among Latinx Americans, as well as possible relationships between their Latinx cultural identification and said music consumption behaviors. …

Appreciative Commoning; Musical Knowledge-Sharing In Earhouse Songwriting Club, Arya J. P. Adyuta

Wacana, Journal of the Humanities of Indonesia

This article develops the concept of “appreciative commoning” to focus on the importance of appreciation in musical community practices. By examining the practices of musical knowledge-sharing in the Earhouse Songwriting Club (ESC), a songwriting community, this article argues that greater attention should be paid to the roles of appreciation and support in facilitating media and cultural commoning in Indonesia. The article draws on ethnographic fieldwork in Earhouse, an initiative space located in Pamulang, South Tangerang, established by the musician duo Endah N Rhesa. Exploring three main activities of the community: weekly meetings, monthly showcases, and afterparties, I show how embracing …

Gendered Discourses And Classed Access Routes For Feminist Djs In Irish Subcultural Scenes, Andrea Cleary

Irish Communication Review

This article examines feminist collectives in Ireland’s electronic/dance music (E/DM) and music technology (MT) scenes, focusing on how gender and class intersect to shape access and participation. Drawing on thematic analysis of interviews with five collective members active between 2016 and 2025, it traces paths to participation from "musical homes" to instrument education to university DJ societies. To do this, it examines the overlapping family, cultural and subcultural capitals which shaped their journeys. Finally, this article considers the role of feminist collectives in creating alternative educational spaces and networks for women and gender minority participation in E/DM cultures.

‘It’S The Best Person For The Job’: Gendering Logic And The Hiring Practices Of Music Organisations In Ireland, Yvonne Kiely Dr

Irish Communication Review

Despite calls for reform in the allocation of jobs in music industries, little is known about how music organisations operate internally and the day-to-day realities that male and female workers must navigate. Findings of bullying and harassment in the arts sector by the Irish Theatre Institute prompted the Irish government in 2022 to issue a set of recommendations aimed at reforming the working conditions and gender divisions of labour of arts sector organisations under its remit. These recommendations were made in the absence of academic studies of music organisations in Ireland, and in the absence of centralised data about these …

Ecomusicological Representation Of Climate Change And Environmental Sustainability In Selected Bongo Fleva Lyrics In Tanzania, Auson N. Wincheslaus

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

This article critically explores how Bongo Fleva’s lyrics engage with environmental themes; and the interrelationship between nature and culture in the context of the Anthropocene. The data were purposively sampled from YouTube via content analysis, from which 50 Bongo Fleva songs were listened to, and only 10 environmentally-themed songs were analysed. Then, the selected songs were subjected to transcription (from oral to written form), translation (from Kiswahili into English), and close reading and textual analysis. The close reading of the selected songs focused on the employed aesthetic and rhetorical strategies, such as anthropomorphism, symbolism, antithesis, apocalyptic tones, solastalgia, rhetorical questions, …

Groove Goes The Distance: An Initial Inquiry Into Jazz Music In Egypt, Farida Gohar

Theses and Dissertations

Jazz music has been a historically contentious site of social, cultural, and political signification. From the violent subjugation that characterized its origins and aspirational freedom that animated its practice, to its transformation into a distinctly “American” music instrumentalized by the US State Department to counter Soviet influence, jazz’s capacity for the inscription of meaning is vast and regularly cause for debate. The particular configuration of jazz music in Egypt is no less complicated although seldom studied. This thesis ventures an initial mapping of the dynamics and negotiations that historically defined the initiation of “Egyptian” jazz, as well as the ones …

Digital Disruption And Karawitan Recordings: Paradigm Shifts, Aesthetic Challenges, And Opportunities For Cultural Preservation, Iwan Budi Santoso, Bagong Pujiono, Darno Darno

Bahasa dan Seni: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, Seni, dan Pengajarannya

This article explores how digital recording practices, amid contemporary technological transformation, rearticulate the musical meaning of karawitan, reshape listening experience, and reorganize its modes of cultural circulation. The study is situated within broader scholarly debates on digital mediation, particularly concerning the shifting relationship between recorded sound and the socio-spatial and ritual contexts that have historically constituted karawitan performance. Using a descriptive qualitative case-study approach, the research draws on in depth interviews with musicians (pengrawit), scholars, distributors, and listeners, supported by observations of recording environments, patterns of online circulation, archival sources, and indicators of platform based distribution. The findings indicate that …

Inventing New Pilgrimage And Religious Tourism In Lombok, Indonesia, Ujang Mahadi, Moch. Khafidz Fuad Raya, Aibdi Rahmat, Jonsi Hunadar, Rindom Harahap

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

In the contemporary Muslim world, especially in Indonesia, the boom in religious tourism is increasingly widespread after the discovery of the grave sites of saints (wali) or people who are considered holy. More than that, pilgrimage is increasingly popular when these sites display natural views and multifaceted aspects, thereby adding to the intimacy of Islamic meditation and veneration rituals. This article focuses on five holy tombs in Lombok (West Nusa Tenggara), considered tombs of Muslim saints. Using ethnography with observational techniques and unstructured interviews, we explore the construction of veneration and the marketing efforts of pilgrimages to the …

Hegemonic Microtonality: Decolonizing The Soundscape Of Music Theory Pedagogy, Ash K. Wetty

Honors Theses

This thesis examines how Western music theory pedagogy—long organized around tonal and twelve-tone equal-temperament frameworks—structures both what is taught and how students are trained to listen. Through a literature review tracing the historical construction of tonal universality in undergraduate curricula, the project argues that dominant models of music theory reproduce broader epistemic hierarchies inherited from Western conservatory traditions. Situating these histories within my own experience as a student navigating institutional listening norms, the thesis combines critical self-reflection with ethnographic research conducted across five liberal arts institutions, including the CBB consortium and JanPlan research at Wesleyan University and Amherst College. Rather …

Curriculum, Assessment, & Learning Materials Lab Renovation: A Space For Pre-Service Teachers, Joanna L. Neel Dr., Vandy C. Dubre Mrs.

Presentations and Publications

Pre-service teachers increasingly require access to current instructional materials, test-preparation resources, and hands-on manipulatives to meet rising state expectations and certification demands. This article presents a case study of the multi-year renovation of a School of Education resource room at a mid-sized regional university in the south-central United States. Through a sustained partnership between an Education Faculty member and the Education Librarian, the space evolved from a cluttered storage area into a structured, student-centered Curriculum, Assessment, and Learning Materials Lab. The narrative outlines the historical context, redesign process, cataloging system development, collection weeding, student worker training, and ongoing assessment plans. …

Introduction, Jirayudh Sinthuphan

Asian Review

No abstract provided.

Entangled Drum Histories Friction, Embodiment, And The Making Of Religious Sound In North India, Haruo Inoue

Asian Review

This paper examines the historical and performative entanglements between tablā, the dominant percussion instrument of North India, and jorī, a paired drum preserved within the Nāmdhārī Sikh community of Punjab. While previous studies have treated these instruments in terms of their historical origins or musical functions, this study argues that their relationship is best understood through forms of frictional entanglement, in which bodily technique, material conditions, aesthetic orientations, and religious practice do not align but actively interfere with one another.

Drawing on long-term engagement as a performer, ethnographic fieldwork among Nāmdhārī musicians, and historical analysis, the paper demonstrates …

Do You See What I Hear?: The Effects Of Musical Harmony On Cultural Perception And Recognition, Marvin Martin Williams

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study explores whether listeners can identify the differences in harmonic progressions in a musical composition, and, if so, whether those differences can elicit a cultural or social perception of the origins of the music. By investigating how audiences respond to variations in harmony, specifically traditional versus altered harmonic treatments, the research offers a framework for music producers, educators, healthcare providers, and other cultural gatekeepers to better understand and engage with audiences on an empathetic and meaningful level. The underlying hypothesis posits that harmony in music does more than evoke emotion but may inform a cultural interpretation, thus presenting an …

Community Approaches To Digitally Documenting And Sharing Conjunto Music In The South Texas Borderlands, René Antonio Ballesteros

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the rich tradition of conjunto music within the South Texas borderlands, examining how integrating community engagement and digital humanities methodologies can effectively enhance the documentation, conservation, and presentation of this place-based expressive culture. Recognizing existing archival gaps, the research employed community-engaged programming to gather and preserve valuable cultural data. A key methodology outcome involved creating digital maps utilizing place-based data related to conjunto music sites and activities, subsequently integrating these maps into an ArcGIS Online story map for public online access. The findings demonstrate the significant potential of community collaboration and digital humanities tools in amplifying cultural …

Black On Black Sounds: Music, Migration, And The ‘Nu-K Blak’ Identity Formation In Early 21st Century Britain, Monique Charles

Sociology Faculty Articles and Research

Examining literature on the under researched areas of Afrobeats and African migration to Britain, this article identifies significant internal shifts in the ethnic diversity of Black Britain —i.e., from Caribbean (predominantly Jamaican) to West African (Nigerian, Ghanaian) (ONS 2011). Interpreting literature and applying to the British context, it highlights how Afrobeats reshapes Blackness in Britain, particularly the incorporation of desirable Africanness through Afrobeats music. It argues that demographic and musical shifts in Britain result in a renegotiation of the Caribbean and US dominant 20th century Black Britishness — ‘UK Blak’ identity (as identified by Bradley 2013, Gilroy 1993 & Palmer …

A Lost Culture Of Touch And Sound: The Contribution Of Visually Impaired Musicians To The Evolution Of The Spanish Guitar, Marco Ramelli

Soundboard Scholar

In the story of music-making, blind musicians have played an intrinsic role, helping to drive the development not only of musical styles but also of instruments, instruction, and aesthetics. Many musical practices were cultivated first within blind communities and adopted only later by sighted musicians, often with a gradual erasure of their original context. The history of the Spanish guitar offers a compelling case study of this progression, demonstrating how the contribution of blind musicians could be both wide-reaching and yet, over time, forgotten. The history of this contribution is challenging to recover, for in Spain as elsewhere, blind musicians …