The Cambridge Companion to Caribbean Music

Introduces the richly varied musical traditions of the Caribbean from interdisciplinary perspectives that will support decolonised curricula and research.

Nanette de Jong (Edited by)

9781108421928, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 4 August 2022

320 pages
25 x 17.4 x 2.1 cm, 0.64 kg

The diverse musics of the Caribbean form a vital part of the identity of individual island nations and their diasporic communities. At the same time, they witness to collective continuities and the interrelatedness that underlies the region's multi-layered complexity. This Companion introduces familiar and less familiar music practices from different nations, from reggae, calypso and salsa to tambú, méringue  and soca. Its multidisciplinary, thematic approach reveals how the music was shaped by strategies of resistance and accommodation during the colonial past and how it has developed in the postcolonial present. The book encourages a comparative and syncretic approach to studying the Caribbean, one that acknowledges its patchwork of fragmented, dynamic, plural and fluid differences. It is an innovative resource for scholars and students of Caribbean musical culture, particularly those seeking a decolonising perspective on the subject.

Foreword Lester Monts
1. Introduction to the Caribbean and its History – An Overview Nanette de Jong
2. Race and Transculturation – The Cuban Son Robin Moore
3. Salsa Soundings – Puerto Rico and the Americas Frances R Aparicio
4. Blackness and Identity – Dominican Merengue Angelina Tallaj
5. From the island to global stages – Dominican bachata on the move Deborah Pacini-Hernandez
6. Investigating the Caribbean's African past – Kokomakaku stickdance from Curaçao Nanette de Jong
7. Reframing diasporic belonging – Curaçao Tambú parties in the Netherlands Nanette de Jong
8. Competition, Conflict and Cooperation – Haitian Rara Michael Largey
9. Uncovering hidden histories of meaning – Guadeloupe Gwoka Brenda F. Berrain
10. The Foundations of rap music and postcolonial emancipation – Guadeloupe Hip-Hop Florabelle Spielmann
11. Konpa, Zouk and the politics of world music – Haiti, Dominica, Guadeloupe and Martinique Hélène Zamor and Apollinaire Anakesa Kululuka
12. Globalisation in Reggae and the Dub Diaspora – Jamaica David V Moskowitz
13. Musical orality and literacy in the transmission of knowledge and praxis – Trinidad and Tobago Felicity Laurence and Nanette de Jong
14. Narratives of Return – Carriacou and the Big Drum Ritual Nanette de Jong and Linda F. Williams
15. Decolonising Caribbean imaginings – Conclusion Nanette de Jong and Julio Nazario.

Subject Areas: World music [AVGW], Reggae [AVGS], Music: styles & genres [AVG]