Music Production as a Tool of Research, and Impact
Lucy Durán2011, Ethnomusicology Forum
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Abstract
This paper addresses the importance of non-written output by ethnomusicologists who (like myself) may straddle the worlds of academia and the music industry. It argues that the recording studio is the “new field” and that music production based on ethical collaboration and in-depth knowledge is significant as practice-based research, and research-based practice. I take the example of my albums featuring two outstanding Malian musicians, Toumani Diabaté and Bassekou Kouyaté, whose solo careers I launched, arguing that these albums have had far more impact on the artists themselves, and contributed to the production of knowledge about the musical culture around them, than any number of written publications. The paper was presented at a one-day British Forum for Ethnomusicology conference entitled The Impact of Ethnomusicology held in London in 2010.
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