Musical Childhoods and the Cultures of Youth.Musical Childhoods and the Cultures of Youth, Edited by Susan Boynton and Roe-Min Kok. Wesleyan University Press Wesleyan University Press, founded (in present form) in 1959, is a university press that is part of Wesleyan University (Connecticut). External link
Filled with interesting stories, this cross-cultural collection of essays viewing music through the lens of childhood spans 10 centuries, four continents and many distinct repertories and cultural practices. It represents the tip of the iceberg tip of the iceberg n. pl. tips of the iceberg A small evident part or aspect of something largely hidden: afraid that these few reported cases of the disease might only be the tip of the iceberg. in a rich field of studies that refer to childhood or children. The book is important for music scholars, educators, cultural and social historians, and for scholars across the social sciences, as well as anyone interested in childhood. The book is divided into three sections. Part one, "Ritual Performance," deals with ritual from medieval through modern times from the perspective of young people. From child oblates at an Abby in Cluny, Burgundy, to choirboy's dances in early modern Seville, to the coming-of-age ceremony for a young Apache girl, we learn of the importance of music in the function of ritual. "How is the self formed during youth?" is the focus of part two, "Identity Formation." A child bored with doing homework, depicted by Ravel (music) and Colette (libretto libretto (ləbrĕt`ō) [Ital.,=little book], the text of an opera or an oratorio. Although a play usually emphasizes an integrated plot, a libretto is most often a loose plot connecting a series of episodes. ) in an opera, is explored, followed by a Malaysian young woman's memories of childhood learning classical piano in colonial Malaysia. Chapter six, "Telling Histories" grapples with how West African West Africa A region of western Africa between the Sahara Desert and the Gulf of Guinea. It was largely controlled by colonial powers until the 20th century. West African adj. & n. griots now need new ways to maintain their roles as keepers of oral history. The lives of three Korean young women, P'ansori performers, are discussed as they transition from childhood to adulthood. Part three traces "Musical Socialization socialization /so·cial·iza·tion/ (so?shal-i-za´shun) the process by which society integrates the individual and the individual learns to behave in socially acceptable ways. so·cial·i·za·tion n. " through changing German folk songs--the rehabilitation of Volkslieder post Third Reich, three stages of children's music in Japan, and investigates songleading, summer camps and identity among Reform Jewish teenagers in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . The writing of some of the essays is academic and dense, intended more for music scholars than lay readers. The book does not explicate what all of this means in practice for teachers and parents. But it does provide food for thought about the importance of childhood in musical development. It is refreshing to find a book devoted to the "child" and "childhood,"--areas that have been neglected. Reviewed by Myrna Capp, NCTM NCTM National Council of Teachers of Mathematics NCTM Nationally Certified Teacher of Music NCTM North Carolina Transportation Museum NCTM National Capital Trolley Museum NCTM Nationally Certified in Therapeutic Massage , Seattle, Washington |
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