Well, it has been a wild trip. Traveling the world from the heart of Africa to the Far East in search of that intangible thing that compels humans to articulate the uniqueness of their experience through sound.
A number of highlights of this trip stood out for me. One was the hauntingly evocative Pygmy lullaby, Rorogwela, and learning how this song traveled across continents to be reinterpreted by different musicians in different cultures.
Another highlight was simultaneously exploring the relationship between American blues and Flamenco singing. I would never have assumed these singing styles from such different cultures to have anything in common. Yet, the raw, visceral singing qualities of these styles sounded fascinatingly similar to one another, as if pain and hardship sounds the same in any language and culture.
Perhaps the most fascinating element of this course was looking at how the Internet and the blogosphere is giving voice to previously silent individuals, allowing them to express their views on music, share sound files, and encourage one another in their exploration of musical interests. The tremendous size of the information exchange going on here is very inspiring, as it is breaking across cultural boundaries and continents, uniting us in what we have in common with one another.
Because it seems that whatever the style, the inspiration for music is the same anywhere. The pain and agony in a Flamenco song has the same pain felt in a prison song from the Mississippi Delta. The exuberance and vitality of an African tribal dance has the same joyful abandon as seen in the Brazilian carnivale or in an Indian Bollywood film. We become aware of the differences in cultures from studying their different sounds, instruments, and styles; however, the main thing we are left with at the end is how much all these different cultures have in common.
The technology developments of the Internet are furthering this cultural exchange in many interesting ways. The results of this are allowing humans to better understand themselves, their place in the world, and what we all, ultimately, have in common with the other inhabitants of this planet.
I will be very interested in seeing what directions music will be taking in the next decades. I think we will only see more of the cross cultural sharing that is going on now. New, hybrid forms of music will continue to emerge; forms that incorporate different styles and instruments from different countries. I will be watching with interest.