Aesthetics and values as core determinants of musical identity formation

Abstract

The development of learning systems is of particular interest to the music educator and the ethnomusicologist. Furthermore, a society's construction of a world of musical sound is learnt by cultural insiders who identify with it, thereby contributing to their broader sense of cultural identity. This article looks at ways in which such musical worlds are constructed cognitively through social negotiation. This construction involves aesthetic choices, which in turn are derived from value systems that develop within the cultural environment. As environments change with time, so too do value systems and aesthetics, thus indicating a dynamic system of thinking, choosing, discarding and creating. The primary goal of this research endeavour is to develop a theory that can guide arts education and research, a theory which emerged from data extracted from ethnographic field work since 1993, informal surveys, reflective analysis and a broad literature review. The existing literature on societal music cognition and aesthetics in sub-Saharan Africa indicates general approaches and systems, although few pursue the actual construction of individual and social systems of thinking. Hence, based loosely on cognitive theory and ethnomusicology practice, the essay discusses a way in which indigenous sub-Saharan societies developed a system of musical aesthetics that instructed the youth in basic societal values, including encoded systems of knowledge which underlie the actual transmission of musical practice and dance. It then goes on to investigate tensions between musical traditions of the past and contemporary popular culture. Knowing as we do that traditional values are placed under severe stress in urban, modern or post-colonial environments, the intention is to explore whether popular culture contradicts or draws on earlier traditions. While focusing mainly on indigenous informal forms of learning (folklore), the essay addresses some of the value changes that lead to changes in musical aesthetics.


Journal of Musical Arts in Africa Vol. 2 2005: pp. 1-22