Acting In Concert. Music, Community And Political Action

Cover Type: Softcover
Book Condition: Fine
Jacket Condition: None Issued
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
Publisher Place: Usa
Publisher Year: 1998
Edition: First Edition

Description: 184 pages. Book appears to have hardly been read and is in Fine condition throughout. The only exception is a small inscription to the inside page.

Publishers Description: "A highly readable, innovative investigation of the potential political implications of popular music." --Edwar Bryan Portis, Texas A&M University "Political science has too often ignored the critical political dimensions of music in social life. Now Mark Mattern has given us a groundbreaking examination of the varied political functions of populist musics--from social glue to social dynamite--as reflected in three fascinating, diverse, and disenfranchised case-study communities. Acting in Concert is, truly, music to intellectual ears." --George H. Lewis, author of Side Saddle on the Golden Calf: Social Structure and Popular Culture in America "Acting in Concert is a pioneering work that opens up new ways of thinking about the public dimensions of music. In an era when music is all too often packaged, standardized, and drained of energy and political passion, Mattern shows through vivid case studies and probing discussion of large ideas like politics and community that peoples participation in the creation and experience of music can be a vital resource for democracy." --Harry C. Boyte, coauthor of Building America In this lively account of politics and popular music, Mark Mattern develops the concept of "acting in concert," a metaphor for community-based political action through music. Through three detailed case studies of Chilean, Cajun, and American Indian popular music, Mattern explores the way popular muisicians forge community and lead members of their communities in several distinct kinds of political action that would be difficult or impossible among individuals who are not linked by communal ties. More than just entertainment, Mattern argues that popular music can serve as a social glue for bringing together a multitude of voices that might otherwise remain silent, and that political action through music can increase the potential for relatively marginalized people to choose and determine their own fate. Mark Mattern is an assistant professor of political science at Chapman University, Orange, California.

ISBN: 9780813524849