Ethnomusicology (1)

Short Description of Ethnomusicology

By Edi Nasution

The term "Ethnomusicology" first appeared in a book written by Jaap Kunst with titled 'A Study of the Nature of Ethno-Musicology of, its Problems, Methods, and Representative Personalities' (Amsterdam, 1950). In the book Jaap Kunst, a term meant wearing a hyphen: ‘ethno-musicology’, but for subsequent use without the hyphen. Based on the scope of the field of study, according to Jaaps Kunst, the use of the term 'Ethnomusicology' is more appropriate than "comparative Musicology" as a new discipline ('Ethnomusicology') is not doing more when compared to the comparative study of other disciplines.¹

At first, ‘ethnomusicology’ as a discipline of science specifically developed in accordance with the musical life (along with musical instruments and dance) in society who have 'oral traditions', art out of the boundaries of urban music (urban communities) of Europe. The main research subject is the music of the ‘non-literary society’ (‘tribal’); musical tradition passed down orally in high culture in Asia such as China, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, India, Iran, and the Arabic-speaking countries, and folk music.² In the meantime, a large area that is quite interesting from the discipline of ethnomusicology, as an example, among others, ‘change’ and ‘acculturation’, is a field of study that is quite attractive, and so on up to the study of popular music and commercial, urban music traditions while research is concentrated in certain parts of the world.³

Now ethnomusicology has been recognized as an academic discipline in universities of USA, Canada and Francis, but more expanded definition of ethnomusicology in Germany, the Netherlands, Great Britain, and also possibly in other countries. In practice, the ethnomusicologist is specialized experts trained in the field of music or anthropology, both of which are perfect together. The results of their research were brought to the music or anthropology departments at various universities, and was also placed on ethnographic museums and scientific research institutions of national academies, and institutes that have previously been set up specifically in Eastern Europe.⁴

That is probably the cause of the branch of musicology and anthropology, ethnomusicology ie, present no single definition. Alan P. Merriam (1964:7) defines an anthropologist ethnomusicology as ‘the study of music in culture’. The data collected include a variety of possible link with the musical aspects of human behavior, and the facts can then be used to explain why such music and used as such. In addition, the music collected, transcribed and analyzed, but with an emphasis on its role as a "social human behavior". Meanwhile George List (1969:195) a musicologist, defines ethnomusicology as a study of traditional music, music for example that develops orally (without writing) and is always on the changes that take place continuously (flux). Field work conducted by the research and data collection in the context of music, but it is not necessary fully accepted the view that music should be studied solely as human behavior.⁵ In the field of study ethnomusicology, music must be written with one way or another, analyze the style and structure, and compare the results (musictranscription) with musical concepts that exist in the musical culture of the community owner, if there.⁶

Indeed music can be studied as a means to solve the problem of non - musical. For example, Clark Wissler in his book about American Indians (1922:155) argues that music is a culture that is very stable and therefore provides a useful way to determine the nature of cultural diffusion, which other cultural traits need to be studied to arrive at a conclusion on the diffusion of music. This is a matter of focus. So the work of Alan P. Merriam 's The Anthropology of Music (1964), is actually more to anthropology than a work of ethnomusicology. Because the focus is primarily concerned with human behavior in making and react to the music, not the material (product) of the music self it.⁷

An ethnomusicologist Francis, namely Marcel Dubois (1965:39) argues that the very open to ethnology ethnomusicology, although in fact ethnomusicology is a special specialization in field studies musicology. Ethnomusicology life studying music, music practice in considering their wider scope, and it demonstrates the phenomenon of oral tradition. Ethnomusicology tried to put back the facts of music in their socio-cultural context, based on the situation in their thinking, actions and structures from a group of people and determine penggaruh reciprocal between each other, and compare it with the facts of each crosses several other groups of analogy individual or cultural level is not the same and association procedures in comunity.⁸

Bruno Nettl (1964) suggests that defines ethnomusicology is not an easy job. Because there are differences among experts ethnomusicology itself: for those who have done, are doing, and what might be done. For practical purposes it can be said that the experts of ethnomusicology in the past has been studying music outside Western civilization, and to reach the smaller is the folk music of Europe, as they have done in an adjacent area between musicology and cultural anthropology extensively. Musicology is defined as a field of scholarly and orientation concerning the study of all types of music and with a variety of approaches, which in fact has provided the largest contribution to the whole attention of the music of urban civilization (urban) in the Western world, which is inseparable from the tradition of writing Europe music.⁹

Musicology experts think that sometimes music also comes from (found in) the culture of other people, which they view as a field study of ethnomusicology, which ethnomusicologists sometimes considered only as experts only certain kind of music, but at other times represent a relationship with the field of study another field of study to distinguish them. Anthropologists, especially the focus on the study of culture, has confirmed that all cultures the world as a field of their power. But they actually have to spend a lot more time in their publications and is known as an expert in the culture outside of Western civilization. So experts ethnomusicology, whatever defenisinya for everything that happened, which has been done , on the one hand, is as musicology experts who investigate the music ‘exotic’ ('odd') and on the other as anthropologists who investigate the music of other aspects of human culture beyond Western civilization.¹⁰

Experts ethnomusicology has donated a parent disciplines of science, and they generally work based on methods developed in musicology and cultural anthropology. Although relatively new recognized the importance of data ethnomusicology in music history, but has no role in the field of musicology in a broader sense. Needless to say, that the main contribution involving musicology experts are eager to understand the whole music, like all human music and even musical embodiment of the animal world. While psychologists music - and some former students who study music tribes as ethnic groups - also have a need to use the tools of other cultures to validate the findings them.¹¹

But expertsmusicology in the 20th century has increasingly become a specialist in Western music. Nine centuries ago, musicology experts may be more interested in the music world as a phenomenon rather than the students in the 20th century, which have found uses and purposes to concentrate on the aspects of a very specific tradition of Western music. Although only perform a role , but the emergence of ethnomusicology might have to give a little donation, to conduct special studies. The relationship between Western music with the music of non - western adjacent , the music of the Near East, the musical tradition of the Jews, the music of India, and others, that all may strengthen ties to Western music or urban music without writing, even better known in the sharing period history of folk music. European art music is often interchangeable with the folk music tradition which is at a geographical environment, and Europe under the influence of other continents that may have been stronger than the known general. To evaluate the effects of this , as an illustration of musical motifs and how their origin, methods of approaches are necessary tools ethnomusicology. It may be mentioned one example of a widely used, studied the authenticity of the Europe polyfoni music, which is in the fine-art tradition that has so far assumed to come from the Middle Ages, including non-Western music which has an analogy or similarity polyfoni style of medieval Europe. Also includes a knowledge of musical styles that may be affected Western Europe from the Middle Ages, and folk music (as they are now, and which may present later) to be expected there is a change of ideas and musical material. One example that is quite prominent, which can be used to demonstrate the potential and services in the past ethnomusicology as the study of the history of Western music is a music polyfoni Middle Ages.¹²

The same thing can be made for the need of information about music in anthropology. Because music is a small part of the universal cultural phenomenon, then every population has some kind of music. Although variations in the style of world music is very broad, but there is quite homogeneous in musical behavior to make identification possible and simplicity of the music itself. Furthermore, it is the need of an anthropologist, if he is fully informed of a particular culture, thus also to know something about the behavior of human musical. In a variety of human cultures, playing music is an important role in the life of cosmology, philosophy, and rites. In the field of Anthropology, no music is rarely used as evidence to justify certain theories. The discovery E.M. vonHornbostel about tuning panpipe in Brazil - he thought the tuning is identical to that used in parts of the Oceania region, allegedly shows the pre - history of cultural contact between these areas . In this case is a case, where the interpretation of the Hornbostel will again be controversial, and even become a classic example of the data in the presentation of musical ethnology.¹³

Studying acculturation will give us an understanding of the results from the intimate contact between neighboring cultures, which can be traced through the music (see Wachsmann 1961:1, and Merriam 1955). Statistical data in cultural anthropology there are made ​​using musical phenomenon, which gives them the possibility of easier to predict some aspects of culture such as religion, social organization, and others (see Merriam 1956). In addition, the possibility of a difference between the music of substance and style of music, for example, between the specific composition and characteristics of the music that they share with other parts in the treasury of their songs (see Chapter 6). Theory and research in ethnomusicology made ​​very deeply by this fact. It was possible for an individual composition, for example , songs, moving from one culture to another and changed in the process, and it was possible to accentuate the style - the types of forms, scales, rhythm - which moves from one culture to the other and superimposed on songs that already exist. Differences of this kind, which is more easily made in music and other arts in culture, by anthropologists make music data from the use of a particular cultural phenomenon.¹⁴

In a further development of ethnomusicology join more closed to the historical musicology and cultural anthropology. But when the experts are very different ethnomusicology in their field definitions and emphasis, perhaps no one would deny the importance of the relationship between musicology and cultural anthropology in the research activities. Ethnomusicology also play a role in the two courts, namely anthropology - folklore and linguistics. Obviously, the music in the oral tradition and is the parent of raw materials , is an important part of the folklore, which includes aspects of culture that is alive in the oral tradition itself, and in particular includes artistic creativity. And since music is a form of communication that is linked in some way to the language, ethnomusicology field can learn the music world, can zoom in and take the field of linguistics, which in this case languages ​​exist in the world need to be studied, in particular studying the relationship between the words and the singing tones with both disciplines (musicology and cultural anthropology) in a single entity that intacth.¹⁵

According to Usman Suhana (2000), ethnomusicology is basically an interdisciplinary field that use the device and the main approaches of cultural anthropology or ethnology and musicology. One can depart from anthropology musicology or ethnomusicology to be an expert. His approach can be shifted from ethnology to musicology or vice versa. If it is assumed that ethnomusicology as a field of study, the goal is to music as part of culture and society, in general methods and techniques used come from the field of cultural anthropology. Although it is not widely recognized by ethnomusicologists, but in fact the theories they use are generally derived from the social sciences and research techniques borrowed from the field of anthropology. In its development, ethnomusicology does not limit itself only to the ethnological and or musicological approach to cultural musical phenomenon, but also often uses linguistic approach , semantic, psychological, philosophical, historical, and humanities others, even physics, acoustics, multimedia technology, and others. Until recent years, the development of ethnomusicology studies dominated by Europe and America. Ever formed a kind of common image of the character ethnomusicology Europe is considered more anthropological and/or functional theoretical, whereas in America are more likely practical. Nevertheless, the principle of the terminology of ethnomusicology itself has not changed. It is evident from the use of understanding the terminology used ethnomusicology, less is more since 1940, continued to show the knowledge of music outside the nation Eropa.¹⁶

Historically it ethnomusicology emerged from the ‘fragments’ comparative Musicology. But in its development later, ethnomusicology has the scope, approach, and orientation significantly different from the comparative musicology.¹⁷ Ethnomusicology will not assess non - western music with western music standards . In other words, non - Western music can only really be understood if it had been understood how non-Western societies are assessing their own music. Ethnocentric nature will arise when using standard Western music to make an assessment of the non-western music, which has a legacy of tradition (culture) different musical with Westerners. So if the West tries to understand non-Western music by using knowledge (culture) of their own , they will most likely mistaken in describing the musical traditions of non-Western societies because of using improper approach, even even can lead to bias.

According to George Lis each approach , theoretical framework, or the method may be used if it proves it can help to better understand the phenomenon of music such as : models, paradigms,  ethnoscience, cognitive processes, and semiotics. All knowledge is certainly useful, but before applied to a specific problem must first be considered critically. For example, if the use of the model to bring together the events of the two occur simultaneously, while in reality they do not have a significant relationship with each other ? Therefore we must be careful when dealing with models that tend to change from time to time . However, any method or data derived from other disciplines or sources may be used if it helps in developing a better understanding of the humanity that produce sound patterns. This is actually the interdisciplinary character of ethnomusicology as a discipline over the music world's attention knoledge.¹⁸ ‘Exotic‘ (‘weird’) is characterized by the first appearance in Western literature in the 18th century. As in the book Rousseau (Dictionnaire de Musique, 1768 ) introduced examples of Chinesemusic, Canadian - Indian and Finnish folk music. Various reports from the most nomadic at the time, and lately also the native songs, which sometimes provide musical notation, tends to be limited to compatibility with the norms of Western Europe. Some serious work in the form of objective observation and analysis of the music in the past has been visible in this period. In the British colonial period in India leads us to the writings of a British High Court judge William Jones in Calcutta, entitled On the musical modes of the Hindoos (1784). In Germany, the book was published under the title Ueber die der music inder (1802) translated by FB von Dalberg, the text and also attach additional examples. Other researchers are Arniot Joseph, a missionary in China for many years, has managed to write a book I'lemoire Sur La Musique des Chinois , tant anciens que modernes (1779), which contains a treatise of ancient Chinese music. Writing this book was a ‘great job’ are commendable. Napoleon invaded Egypt in 1798, ultimately resulting in a greater work called Description de l' Egupte, with 25 volumes (1809-1826). For the benefit of ethnomusicology, particularly interesting are the parts of music, which according to Guillaume AndreVilloteau who has done research for half a year, based on three important parts, namely Memoire sur la musique de l' Egypte antique, De l' etat actuel de l' art musical en Egypte, and Description historique, et Littéraire technique, des inst uments de musique des orientaux, his finding may be said to be ‘free from prejudice West’.¹⁹

In the 19th century, which is about 70 years ago, few people have studied the general western music. It is known from their reports on non-European music. Indeed, none of them reported that well even be said to be shallow, and their reports regarding non-European music was really bad. But there is one result of an incredible field, which is entitled to get a positive response that the book FJ Fetishes are entitled Historie generale de la musique (1869). This book not only discusses the music of China, Japan and India, but also Kalmyks, Kirghis, Kamchadal and other people of Siberia. From the results of his research, fetishes see that the ‘history of music’ is the ‘history of mankind’, and therefore all the music people everywhere need to be investigated or may be subject researh.²⁰

Scientific study of music began in 1880. It can be re- explored the limits of scientific studies of music ever made Adles Guido (1885), where the science of music is divided into two main divisions, namely history and systematics. In the second part, after a three-branch base (theoretical, aesthetic and pedagogic) of four principal subjects, is musicology, where comparative Musicology as one important part of the scope of musicology, giving the task to compare products sound (music) itself, especially the folk song of a society, country and different territorial final destination ethnographic. During this, Carl Stumpt followers scholars studying music Rella Coola Indians were later published in British Columbia, the analysis using the notation of the songs from a group of Indians who visited Germany in 1885. This is an event penting21 in the scientific study of music. Two innovations in the field of technology is an important role of the research object ethnomusicology, is the discovery of gramaphone (1877) and the work of AJ Ellis, a psychologist and phonetics , with pitch and interval measurements are generated for change ratio used to describe the interval between pitch into the arithmetic in order to facilitate comparison . It is a division of equal tempered semitones into 100 equal parts , called ‘cent’ (see article title:’On the musical Scales of various nations’, 1885 ). While gramaphone can repeat a musical performance that has been recorded , and by using the ‘cent’ is possible to make an accurate comparison of the different tonal system.²²

J. Walter Fewkes was the person who first recorded ‘Passamaquoddy Indian’ in Haine in 1890 , then singing ‘Zuni’ in New Hexico. Zuni chant recordings transcribed into Western notation by Benjamin Ives Gilman and published in the Journal of American Archaeology and Ethnology in 1891, while Carl Stumpt discuss it further and together with a partial translation of the article published in 1892, shows the relationship of science very internationally open at that time. Among the European nations earlier recording is Belai Tihar field in Hungary from 1896 and Evgeniya Linyova in Russia (1897) and so on ( but in this case does not take into account the activities of the recording at the center of the cities). Ponograf Edison cylindrical, with a particular repair tools, closely associated with its use before 1950. While the tape recorder began to be used in the field earlier than 1950s.²³

In a later development, manufacture re- do the old recordings. Recordings made ​​by the most well - Archiv phonogram Vienna Academy  was established in 1899, and fully active in 1901. The Musee Phonographique of Paris Societe d' Anthropologie was founded in 1900, when Carl Stumpt began collecting in 1900 which has led him to establish Phonographique Musicologi Institute Archiv of Berlin in 1905, led by Erich von Hornbostel from 1905 to 1933. Leaders Archive Berlin established that the results of collecting it into a research center, including the results collected by Hornbostel very much that through correspondence and work that has been helping collectors and scholars throughout the world.²⁴

Before World War I, later known as , that extensive studies in American - Indian by anthropologists incorporate music recording activities as part of the documentation of the culture. An example is the earliest record of Frans Boas 'Kwakiutl’ Indians, at least about 1895; Livingstone Farrand Quilente and Quinault Indian (1898); Frank Speck of Greek and Yuchi Indians (1905), and Joseph K. Dixon of Crow (1908-9). All that and the other kept in the American Museum of Natural History in New York. In this case, ethnomusicology as a discipline of science became famous after World War II, which arises from the ‘dust’ of Comparative Musicology.²⁵   [EN]