Musics of South Asia: a means for connecting communities?

英格兰东北部是众多多样的南亚社区的家园。这些是由地理来源(例如印度、巴基斯坦、孟加拉国和这些地区内的许多地区)、宗教和其他社会和历史因素来定义的。在这些社区中，音乐往往扮演着关键但复杂的角色。它是个人建立网络的活动，也是社区让自己和更广泛的社区听到他们的文化的媒介。然而，音乐的意义可能是双刃剑。它可以是一种接触其他社区的工具；同样，它也可能是一种转向内部的方式--一种抵制联系的症状，或者是一种差异的断言。社区(南亚裔、其他少数民族和白人)可以通过音乐和其他艺术进行有意义的接触--但除了偶尔的公共活动之外，这是如何培养的？这些文化形式的本地和全球意义如何超越它们的种族起源而被传达和理解，以及这些可能如何塑造一个拥有多元文化--可能是多重联系--的社会的新想象？这里提出的范围研究试图从民族音乐学、城市音乐学、文化研究和社会学等领域审查与这些和其他问题密切相关的现有文献。它还借鉴了在代表和支持南亚和其他少数族裔社区方面已经拥有丰富实践经验的组织的专门知识。这些组织包括艺术发展组织，如宝石艺术、卡拉普雷米和萨朗-艺术和文化，这些组织与另一个项目合作伙伴Sage Gateshead一起，拥有丰富的社区参与经验。为了最终建立一个更大的、实际参与的项目(实际上是一项互动的田野工作)，这篇评论旨在探讨一些关键问题和基本方法-既询问现有的学术和理论文献，又借鉴关注(或包括)南亚音乐的艺术或宗教的重要实践经验。我们的主要研究问题包括：*南亚音乐以什么方式作为一种表达身份、培育和联系社区的工具--包括与“多数族裔”社会的联系？(反过来，音乐差异如何加强文化差异？)*如何进一步开发这种潜力，艺术组织和教育机构在这方面可以扮演什么角色？组织之间如何更好地互动？*阶级、宗教、性别、种族、民族和迁徙历史等因素在塑造社区方面有什么影响，在促进和阻碍它们之间的联系方面又有什么影响？*音乐(和其他艺术形式)能在多大程度上帮助跨越这些因素(以及在多大程度上可以加强它们)？*在这些背景下，我们应该如何理解“网络”和“社区”这样的术语，一个如何加强另一个？*上述问题的答案在多大程度上与其他少数族裔社区有关，以及对多元文化的更广泛的理解？在这次调查中，我们将通过结构化访谈和研讨会的方式与艺术发展组织合作。我们将分享我们各种类型的专业知识，旨在进一步制定战略，影响那些通过音乐和其他艺术寻求更大文化和社会联系的社区和群体，或者更好地与他们合作。除了文献综述，我们的成果还将包括会议报告、至少两篇同行评议的文章，以及我们自己的高等院校、社区和艺术组织之间未来互动的行动计划。

The North East of England is home to numerous and diverse South Asian communities. These are defined by geographic origin (e.g. Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, and the many regions within these areas), religion, and other social and historical factors. Within these communities music often plays a key, but complex role. It is an activity around which individuals build networks, and a medium through which communities make their culture audible to themselves and the wider community. Music's significance, though, may be double edged. It can be a vehicle through which to reach out to other communities; equally it may be a way of turning inwards - a symptom of resistance to connection, or an assertion of difference.Communities (South Asian, other minority ethnic, and white) can come into meaningful contact through music and other arts - but how is this fostered, beyond the occasional public event? How can both the local and global significance of such cultural forms be communicated and understood beyond their ethnic origins, and how might these shape new imaginings of a society of multiple - and possibly multiply connecting - cultures?The scoping study proposed here seeks to review existing bodies of literature germane to these and other questions, from such fields as ethnomusicology, urban musicology, cultural studies and sociology. It also draws on the expertise of organisations that already have much practical experience in representing and supporting South Asian and other minority ethnic communities. These include arts development organisations such as Gem Arts, Kalapremi, and Saarang - Arts and Culture, which, alongside The Sage Gateshead, a further Project Partner, have substantial experience of community engagement.With a view to an eventual larger, practically engaged project (in effect a piece of interactive fieldwork), this review aims to scope out some of the key issues and essential methodologies - both interrogating the existing scholarly and theoretical literature, and drawing on the significant practical experience of arts oranisations whose concern is with (or includes) South Asian music. Our key research questions include:* In what ways do South Asian musics act as a vehicle for articulating identity and for fostering and connecting communities - including connections with 'majority ethnic' society? (Conversely, how might musical differences reinforce cultural ones?)* How could this potential be further developed, and what role could arts organisations and educational institutions play in this? How can organisations better interface with one another?* What is the impact of such factors as class, religion, gender, race, ethnicity, and histories of migration in shaping communities, and in both facilitating and impeding connection between them?* To what extent can music (and other art forms) serve to cut across such factors (and to what it extent might it reinforce them)?* How, in these contexts, should we understand such terms as 'network' and 'community', and how might the one strengthen the other?*To what extent are answers to the above relevant to other minority ethnic communities, and to broader understandings of multiculturalism?In this investigation we will collaborate with arts development organisations by means of structured interviews and workshops. We will share our various types of expertise with the intention of further developing strategies for impact on - or, perhaps better, agency with - communities and groups who seek greater cultural and social connectivity through music and other arts. Our outputs, in addition to the literature review, will include conference presentations, at least two peer reviewed articles, and an action plan for future engagement between our own HEI, communities and arts organisations.