Issues in Latin American Popular Music and Culture

Learning Outcomes

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• transfer ideas about musical practice from one genre to another through the lens of issues pertaining to Latin American music cultures
• transfer methodologies from the social sciences and humanities more broadly to the study of music

Transferable and Generic Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• gather information independently from a cross-section of disciplinary resources
• assemble case studies under a thematic umbrella and apply a unified theoretical approach

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

• relevant theoretical approaches to the study of Latin American music cultures
• aesthetic, social and ethical questions associated with Latin American music and musicians
• a range of Latin American music genres within distinct social contexts

A series of topics will be presented over the semester with each topic examining music and dance forms within distinct Latin American/Latinx social contexts. Examples of issues that may be explored include: indigeneity; social inequalities and marginality; gender and sexuality; migration; ‘race’ and racism; nation-building and cosmopolitanism; politics, dictatorship and social movements; exoticism, folklore and transnationalism; scenes and countercultures; religion; violence. Although the focus will be on Latin American and Latinx popular musics, students may opt to explore Latin American art musics and/or other cultural practices in assessments. Genres and music cultures that may be explored include bolero, bossa nova, corrido, cumbia, danzón, mambo, Nueva canción, punk, rap, reggaeton, rock and roll, salsa, samba, son cubano and tango.

Teaching and learning methods

Teaching methods include;

• Lectures
• Discussion
• Sharing of ideas and materials via Blackboard and other electronic resources

Learning activities include:

• A wide range of reading (certain books and articles will be required reading) and listening/viewing of selected audio and video recordings
• Individual research

Resources & Reading list

Textbooks

Vargas, Deborah R. (2012). Dissonant Divas in Chicana Music: The Limits of La Onda. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

Mendívil, Julio, and Christian Spencer Espinosa, eds. (2015). Made in Latin America: Studies in Popular Music. New York: Routledge.

León, Javier F, and Helena Simonett, eds. (2016). A Latin American Music Reader: Views from the South. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.

Assessment strategy

Differentiation between Level 5 and Level 6 work:

The assessment of skills will be the same as for Level 5 students. For Level 6 students taking this unit, expectations will be higher than those for Level 5 students, and the assessment criteria will be accordingly stricter. In particular:

• Topics chosen should allow a greater degree of focus and detail, whether of analysis, examination of and commentary on facts, critical insight, independent argument, or other factors.
• Conversely, assignments should demonstrate a broader knowledge and understanding of context, a more confident use of analytical and critical tools, and a more mature handling of argument, etc.
• Optimal standards of presentation are required, in terms of spelling, punctuation, and grammar; sophistication of vocabulary; provision of footnotes; inclusion of full bibliographic and related details; physical appearance of work, etc.

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.

Repeat

An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.

Repeat Information

Repeat type: Internal & External