The Study of Ethnomusicology: Twenty-Nine Issues and Concepts by Bruno NettlReview by: Carol E. RobertsonEthnomusicology, Vol. 29, No. 2 (Spring - Summer, 1985), pp. 377-380Published by: University of Illinois Press on behalf of Society for EthnomusicologyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/852159 .

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Book Reviews 377 Book Reviews 377

riam with his breadth of experience and bibliographic knowledge, should be able to draw together all of the recent studies on African rhythm and leave us with at least some tentative conclusions. On the plus side, he does pro- vide some fascinating insights on the general time-sense reckoning in Africa, but he leaves us with precious little else. Even his handling of the etic-emic category was peculiar, since the emic was still devoted to scholars' descriptions of the African time-sense, rather than to the insights that Afri- can musicians themselves can give us about their music.

As an historical document of a pioneer, African Music in Perspective is a particularly lucid insight into the thinking processes of a brilliant scholar. Perhaps the format of the book makes Alan particularly vulnerable to criti- cism, for he was not able to edit out, as most authors can, irrelevancies, naivete, some examples of poor scholarship, and semantic difficulties. An article must stand as originally written, modified only slightly with com- ments at the beginning. A less renowned scholar would be decimated by such vulnerability. Alan could take such criticism in stride, and in fact, he thrived on it. I only regret that he cannot now answer back to these criti- cisms. In spite of the weaknesses of this book, which are significant, there is sufficient substance from which remaining Africanists can build in such a way that would have been impossible without its publication and the schol- arship of Alan Merriam as a foundation.

Pittsburgh PA Robert Kauffman

Reference Merriam, Alan P.

1964 The Anthropology of Music. Evanston: Northwestern University Press.

Nettl, Bruno. The Study of Ethnomusicology: Twenty-nine Issues and Con- cepts. Urbana: The University of Illinois Press, 1983. 410 p., bibliog- raphy, index. $35 (cloth), $12.95 (paper).

During a century of existence, ethnomusicology has benefited from the perspectives and generalizations of a handful of scholars who have dared to outline the boundaries of our inquiry. Sachs (1930 and 1962), Silbermann (1963), Merriam (1964), Hood (1971), and Blacking (1973) have offered us general overviews that have guided many a seminar in ethnomusicology. What these scholars have contributed through their more general works il- lustrates the idiosyncratic tolerance within our field, as well as the breadth of perspectives we have been able to embrace. The true nature of a dis- cipline is reflected in the kinds of discussion and controversy nurtured over

riam with his breadth of experience and bibliographic knowledge, should be able to draw together all of the recent studies on African rhythm and leave us with at least some tentative conclusions. On the plus side, he does pro- vide some fascinating insights on the general time-sense reckoning in Africa, but he leaves us with precious little else. Even his handling of the etic-emic category was peculiar, since the emic was still devoted to scholars' descriptions of the African time-sense, rather than to the insights that Afri- can musicians themselves can give us about their music.

As an historical document of a pioneer, African Music in Perspective is a particularly lucid insight into the thinking processes of a brilliant scholar. Perhaps the format of the book makes Alan particularly vulnerable to criti- cism, for he was not able to edit out, as most authors can, irrelevancies, naivete, some examples of poor scholarship, and semantic difficulties. An article must stand as originally written, modified only slightly with com- ments at the beginning. A less renowned scholar would be decimated by such vulnerability. Alan could take such criticism in stride, and in fact, he thrived on it. I only regret that he cannot now answer back to these criti- cisms. In spite of the weaknesses of this book, which are significant, there is sufficient substance from which remaining Africanists can build in such a way that would have been impossible without its publication and the schol- arship of Alan Merriam as a foundation.

Pittsburgh PA Robert Kauffman

Reference Merriam, Alan P.

1964 The Anthropology of Music. Evanston: Northwestern University Press.

Nettl, Bruno. The Study of Ethnomusicology: Twenty-nine Issues and Con- cepts. Urbana: The University of Illinois Press, 1983. 410 p., bibliog- raphy, index. $35 (cloth), $12.95 (paper).

During a century of existence, ethnomusicology has benefited from the perspectives and generalizations of a handful of scholars who have dared to outline the boundaries of our inquiry. Sachs (1930 and 1962), Silbermann (1963), Merriam (1964), Hood (1971), and Blacking (1973) have offered us general overviews that have guided many a seminar in ethnomusicology. What these scholars have contributed through their more general works il- lustrates the idiosyncratic tolerance within our field, as well as the breadth of perspectives we have been able to embrace. The true nature of a dis- cipline is reflected in the kinds of discussion and controversy nurtured over

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378 Ethnomusicology, Spring/Summer 1985

time. "Revelations" in a field such as ours come when a scholar is able to ad- dress an issue in such a way that new questions and methods are generated, or when patterns of undergirding inquiry are exposed for our consideration.

The essays included in The Study of Ethnomusicology do not open many new doors for us, but they do argue relationships in our attitudes towards our data and our role as scientists that can fuel many future discus- sions. Bruno Nettl has made his mark as one of the most prolific writers in the field of ethnomusicology. His past essays have spanned considerations of music therapy, linguistics, research methodology, historical reconstruc- tion, urbanization, improvisation, and musical style areas. These contribu- tions have been rooted in research among the Arapaho, Blackfoot, and Amish, as well as in data on the classical traditions of Persia and India.

A particular style of inquiry has arisen from this wealth of Nettleriana. Though this style covers vast theoretical premises, it offers few conclusions and guidelines for future comparative research. Yet even in his inconclu- siveness, Nettl has always offered keen insights into the problems of the Field as well as problems in the field.

His latest book of issues and concepts draws on many ideas found in earlier publications. Twenty-nine mini-essays are presented against a back- drop of theoretical and ethnographic resources distilled from several disci- plines and points-of-view. The four main divisions of the book are: "ethno- musicology as the study of comparative music systems, as the study of music in [sic] culture, as the result of field research, and as the comprehen- sive study of all sorts of music and musical phenomena" (p. 358). These four chapters are subdivided into twenty-seven ambiguous subheadings that often forsake clarity for cleverness. Thus, "Das Volk dichtet" is really a dis- cussion of sources of data; "Music Hath Charms" outlines an approach to functionalism that includes psychological variables, but ignores cognition and the ramifications of music as a biological or physiological variable; and "I Never Heard a Horse Sing" is about the study of "folk music"-an entity that is unexplained, yet set apart from "tribal music" and the music of "complex" cultures. The lack of definition of many of the terms and con- cepts used is disappointing in a time when the vanguard of the field is urging us to clarify our metalanguage and create sharper analytic categories of cross-cultural applicability. The section entitled "Divine Inspiration and Tonal Gymnastics" addresses the sources and processes of composition, but again neglects the literature on long- and short-term memory, task laterali- zation, and brain frequency coding. The myriad musical ways of our species are illustrated through many clearly paraphrased ethnographic examples. But after prolonged discussion of the "issue," Nettl tells us that:

Clearly, an understanding of the nature of musical creation is a major issue in the world of music, a problem that is largely unresolved. Ethnomusicology can bring to its solution some insight into the way musical creativity is perceived in the cul- ture of the world, into vast differences and what is held in common (p. 35).

This work is also an historical document that threads ideas through the

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Book Reviews 379

eye of time and ideological development. Though the author neglects the impact of Marxism, phenomenology, communication theory, and psycho- acoustics on ethnomusicology, he does acknowledge the significant con- tributions of women (as both observers and the observed) to the field. Yet the issue of the music of women (treated under "Vive la Difference") is ob- scured by the assertion that, "Nowhere has there been found a rigid separa- tion of repertoires, and everywhere do people hear and seem to understand the music of the opposite sex" (p. 339). One is tempted to counter with the many documented examples of bull-roarer and flute cultures from Oceania to the Amazon, where men and women's repertoires are perceived as mutually exclusive, secret, and separatist by the communities that perform them.

These observations are raised in view of what a work of this scope could do. In fact, the work is confused by its attempt to do two things at once: a) (reading from the Prelude forward) to present a comprehensive overview of the history, problems, and interrelationships in the field of eth- nomusicology; b) (reading from the Postlude backwards) to assume and present twenty-odd "emic" concepts in ethnomusicology as paradigms of development within the field. In summarizing his attempt, Nettl states:

The comprehensive history of ethnomusicology remains to be written, and when this is done, my groups of examples of paradigms will be corrected and surely greatly expanded. But even those I present demonstrate that the history is not sim- ply a sequence of events, one discovery or one monograph leading to the next, but that it has a structure, sometimes of stress and consolidation, diverse activity alter- nating with concerted effort (p. 360).

The paradigmatic notion referred to by Nettl is drawn from Thomas Kuhn's The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1970), which dominates the Postlude but is not mentioned in the book until page 356. One cannot help but wonder how this book could be enriched by working backwards and truly clarifying and defining the deep structures and surface paradigms that have molded our field during this century.

Having used the texts by Merriam, Hood, Sachs, Kuhn, and Blacking as required reading in graduate ethnomusicology courses, I decided to use this new contribution by Bruno Nettl as the main stimulant for discussion in a recent seminar. I found that the book works quite well for students with minimal training in the field who seek a guideline for understanding the new world of literature available through the ethnomusicological enterprise. Musicologists and anthropologists reading ethnomusicological materials for the first time were quite content with this work. On the other hand, gradu- ate students with considerable training in ethnomusicology were often frustrated by the lack of exploration of deeper assumptions and procedures affecting the field. When surrounded by ample discussion time, this book has proven to work better than any of its predecessors as a springboard for intellectual growth.

The Study of Ethnomusicology is a serious and worthy contribution

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380 Ethnomusicology, Spring/Summer 1985 380 Ethnomusicology, Spring/Summer 1985

which, despite its shortcomings, will prove of long-term relevance to the dis- cipline. Perhaps even more significantly, this work exhibits an approach to research that respects the human subjects and teachers of our craft. Throughout the work, Nettl imbues his observations with a humane spark, that is often moving, thus bringing us to a posture of reflection and contem- plation-two attitudes that have often been neglected in earlier volumes of this genre.

University of Maryland Carol E. Robertson College Park

References Blacking, John

1973 How Musical Is Man? Seattle: University of Washington Press. Hood, Mantle

1971 The Ethnomusicologist. New York: McGraw-Hill. Kuhn, Thomas S.

1970 The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. 2nd ed., enlarged. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Merriam, Alan P. 1964 The Anthropology of Music. Evanston II: Northwestern University Press.

Sachs, Curt 1930 Vergleichende Musikwissenschaft-Musik der Fremdkulturen. Heidelberg: Quelle

und Meyer. 1962 The Wellsprings of Music. The Hague: M. Nijhoff.

Silbermann, Alphons 1963 The Sociology of Music. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

Brooks, Tilford. America's Black Musical Heritage. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, Inc. 1984. xvi, 336 p., music, texts, appendices, bibliog- raphy, discography, index. $21.95.

This book is intended as a comprehensive survey of all aspects of black music in the United States. It provides a wealth of synthesized materials drawn from research over the last quarter century by scholars of black music and is elucidated here by Tilford Brooks' own personal research. Unlike similar works, the author's overall concern seems to lie in how to present a neglected aspect of American music, the black musical heritage, to a less receptive but majority American population. A brief summary of the chapter contents will reveal the other basic concerns of this book.

Brooks' introduction, a valuable essay in itself, focuses on ideology and an arguable curriculum issue, "Why Study Black Music?" He reflects on the historical racial attitudes of black and white Americans and their

which, despite its shortcomings, will prove of long-term relevance to the dis- cipline. Perhaps even more significantly, this work exhibits an approach to research that respects the human subjects and teachers of our craft. Throughout the work, Nettl imbues his observations with a humane spark, that is often moving, thus bringing us to a posture of reflection and contem- plation-two attitudes that have often been neglected in earlier volumes of this genre.

University of Maryland Carol E. Robertson College Park

References Blacking, John

1973 How Musical Is Man? Seattle: University of Washington Press. Hood, Mantle

1971 The Ethnomusicologist. New York: McGraw-Hill. Kuhn, Thomas S.

1970 The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. 2nd ed., enlarged. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Merriam, Alan P. 1964 The Anthropology of Music. Evanston II: Northwestern University Press.

Sachs, Curt 1930 Vergleichende Musikwissenschaft-Musik der Fremdkulturen. Heidelberg: Quelle

und Meyer. 1962 The Wellsprings of Music. The Hague: M. Nijhoff.

Silbermann, Alphons 1963 The Sociology of Music. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

Brooks, Tilford. America's Black Musical Heritage. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, Inc. 1984. xvi, 336 p., music, texts, appendices, bibliog- raphy, discography, index. $21.95.

This book is intended as a comprehensive survey of all aspects of black music in the United States. It provides a wealth of synthesized materials drawn from research over the last quarter century by scholars of black music and is elucidated here by Tilford Brooks' own personal research. Unlike similar works, the author's overall concern seems to lie in how to present a neglected aspect of American music, the black musical heritage, to a less receptive but majority American population. A brief summary of the chapter contents will reveal the other basic concerns of this book.

Brooks' introduction, a valuable essay in itself, focuses on ideology and an arguable curriculum issue, "Why Study Black Music?" He reflects on the historical racial attitudes of black and white Americans and their

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