Director of the BMRU, Dr Mykaell Riley, travelled to Cambridge earlier this month (3-6 April) to speak at the British Forum for Ethnomusicology. In collaboration with Dwandalyn Reece and Steven Lewis (Smithsonian Institution), Dr Riley featured on a panel titled “Narratives of Black Music in the US and UK”:
“The focus of the topic is Black music and the scholarly and interpretive choices we make in interpreting Black music for broad audiences. The impetus behind such work is to ensure that the history of Black-musicking takes its proper place in the national narratives and discourse of American and British music. In their brief presentations, panelists will address the kinds of futures they have imagined in presenting narratives that enrich the public’s understanding of Black music. Who is it that we need to impact, and what strategies, alliances and approaches are available to us in working with other stakeholders, such as community leaders, institutional decision makers, musicians, and scholars working within the academy? How do the products of applied ethnomusicology— exhibitions, recordings, public programs, podcasts, publications, etc. — impact the field and audience engagement and understanding of the content presented. Finally, what are the limitations and opportunities in presenting scholarly research to public audiences? The panelists will offer diverse perspectives about their work and the goals they have worked to achieve.”