Search Results (57)

This paper explores the harmonious integration of Confucian moral values and officially sanctioned love-themed lyrics in music education across Mainland China. It addresses the main research question: What role do officially approved school songs, which embody themes of love related to three key relationships—(1) family and home, (2) teachers and friends, and (3) the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) and the Chinese nation—play in promoting the virtue of love through singing within Mainland China’s music education? By analyzing two sets of officially approved music textbooks for primary school students, consisting of a total of 24 volumes, this study reveals how love-themed lyrics serve as a medium for propagating political ideology while reinforcing traditional Confucian values among the younger generation. The research illustrates how love, as a fundamental virtue, is expressed and reinforced through these songs, highlighting their significance in fostering emotional and ethical development. The findings underscore the role of music education in cultivating a sense of community and national identity, as well as the interconnectedness of personal and collective values in shaping students’ moral frameworks. Full article

Romeo and Juliet remains one of the most frequently performed plays of Shakespeare in Korea, one reason for which is obvious: the feud between the Capulets and Montagues resonates with the continuing division of Korea into North and South. Indeed, many productions of the play in South Korea since the Korean War (1950–53) have made direct and indirect allusions to the political reality of division. Nothing defines Korea so much as division and the desire to overcome that division. With this context in mind, my essay will examine four representative but unique productions of the play from the War period to the twenty-first century: a women’s musical theater adaptation during the War that was a popular success; a production by the Mokwha Repertory Theatre from the early 2000s that alludes directly to the state of division into North and South, and which has toured the globe; a 2009 musical theater version by the National Changgeuk Company of Korea that emphasizes regional rivalries; and a 2022 production that sets the play in the DMZ. However, while exploring the depiction of division in these productions, I will focus in particular on how marriage is understood in relation to national division and the possibility of reconciliation. I will argue that the productions bring attention to the intersection of the social and political practices that sustain division. Full article

Amidst rapid societal changes and increasing urbanization, human connectivity with nature has declined, exacerbating public health concerns. This study assesses the efficacy of Shinrin-yoku, or ‘forest bathing’, in Wuyishan National Park as a simple and effective method to counteract the adverse health effects of contemporary lifestyles. Employing repeated-measures analysis of variance, forty-one participants were observed over three days across eight distinct forest settings. Techniques included eye-tracking for visual attention and soundscape perception assessments via questionnaires. Physiological responses were gauged through heart rate variability and skin conductance, while psychological evaluations utilized the Profile of Mood States (POMS) and Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). Findings revealed that (1) natural soundscapes—especially birdsong, flowing water, wind, and bamboo raft sounds—and visual elements, such as distant mountains, streams, trees, Danxia landforms, tea gardens, and bamboo views, play pivotal roles in regulating heart rate variability, reducing arousal, and enhancing stress adaptation. Additionally, cultural landscapes, such as classical music and ancient structures, bolster parasympathetic activity. (2) Natural and cultural auditory stimuli, including flowing water and classical music, coupled with visual features, such as Danxia landforms, streams, distant mountains, lawns, and guide signs, effectively induce positive mood states, regulate mood disturbances, and enhance psychological well-being across diverse forest settings. These findings underscore the significant health benefits of immersive natural experiences and advocate for integrating forest-based wellness programs into public health strategies, offering compelling evidence for enriching life quality through nature engagement. Full article

This study focuses on 1209 national and provincial intangible cultural heritage items and 1234 traditional Chinese villages within the Dongting Lake Basin. Using kernel density analysis, centroid models, coupling models, and quantitative spatial–structural models, the present research analyzes the spatial–structural characteristics and formation mechanisms of intangible cultural heritage and traditional villages to provide scientific support for their preservation, inheritance, and effective utilization. The results revealed the following: (1) Intangible cultural heritage and traditional villages in the Dongting Lake Basin exhibit a very concentrated spatial distribution, with similar spatial–structural characteristics. (2) High spatial coupling of intangible cultural heritage and traditional villages is observable in the sub-basins of Dongting Lake, such as the Yuanjiang, Zishui, and Lishui basins, whereas the Xiangjiang Basin and Dongting Lake area present relatively lower levels of spatial coupling. In terms of the categories of intangible cultural heritage, four of them—cultural heritage, folk literature, traditional music, traditional dance, and traditional drama—have the smallest deviation distance and index values from traditional villages. The coupling degree was higher than 0.70, and there were some differences in the coupling degree between the other six categories of intangible cultural heritage and traditional villages. (3) The spatial–structural characteristics of intangible cultural heritage and traditional villages in the Dongting Lake Basin emerged from the combined effects of multiple factors, including internal connections between the two, as well as external factors such as the natural environment, socio-economic conditions, and cultural policies, all of which play crucial roles in the formation processes of these characteristics. Full article

For over a century, Hong Kong Christians have sung Chinese hymns in an “out-of-tone” manner. Lyrics in traditional hymnals were translated or written to be sung in Mandarin, the national language, but most locals speak Cantonese, another Sinitic and tonal language. Singing goes “out-of-tone” when Mandarin hymns are sung in Cantonese, which often causes meaning distortions. Why did Hong Kong Christians accept this practice? How did they move from singing “out-of-tone” to creating contextualized Cantonese contemporary worship songs? What does this process reveal about the evolution of Chinese Christianity? From a Hong Kong-centered perspective, this article reconstructs the city’s hymnological development. I consider the creation of national Mandarin hymnals during Republican China as producing a nationalistic Mainland-centric and Mandarin-centric Chinese Christianity. Being on the periphery, Hong Kong Christians did not have the resources to develop their own hymns and thus continued to worship “out-of-tone”. With the decline of the old Chinese Christian center of Shanghai, the growth of Cantonese culture and Hongkonger identity, and the influence of Western pop and Christian music, local Christians began to create Cantonese contemporary worship songs. This hymnological contextualization reflects and contributes to not only the decolonization but, more importantly, the decentralization of Chinese Christianity. Full article

Rapid technological advances in recent decades have led researchers to refine the accuracy of their studies. In the field of acoustics, the impact of new devices is noticeable, especially in the investigations of cultural heritage buildings. The selection of a seat in theatres and concert halls has always been a concern, since the live experience of artistic performance depends on the quality of hearing and sight view. This paper deals with the elaboration of 360° acoustic maps made in the National Theatre of Zagreb, one of the opera theatres investigated with the Sipario project. The analysis of the main acoustic parameters has been carried out, starting with site measurements describing the acoustic response at various representative points of the main hall by covering the audience area. In addition, acoustic maps have been created for some selected positions based on a 3-degree-of-freedom (3dof) technique that allows a panoramic visualization of the impulse responses (IRs). This methodology completes the determination of early and late reflections that contribute to the acoustic quality of a place. In addition to the interest of experts in acoustics, this methodology can also be adopted by music lovers who can find a reasonable explanation for seat selection when booking their tickets. Full article

In 1926, a New York Times article described the cultural and ethnic flows in south Brazil as a “Melting Pot”. The report predicted that German Brazilians, tied to their ethnoracial origin, would soon be Brazilianized. The study of congregational song practices offers insight into the relationship between migration, race, culture, and ethnicity. Moreover, investigating Brazilian Lutheran singing practices helps us understand how the New York Times’ prediction unfolded on the ground. This paper examines the Brazilian Lutheran hymnal Livro de Canto, published in 2017, and displays how Brazil’s ethnoracial diversity is manifested and negotiated in the Lutheran context, both musically and theologically. By interviewing members of the hymnal committee and investigating how they dealt with Brazil’s ethnoraciality in the context of the hymnal compilation, this paper demonstrates ways denominations and churchgoers negotiate theological, cultural, musical, and ethnoracial identities through congregational singing. More importantly, it showcases how Brazilian Lutheran church music practices inform broader social conversations around racism, nationalism, Blackness, and Brazilianness. Full article

This work reports the study of metal fragments from Roman pipes excavated from the archaeological site of Pompeii and currently preserved in the deposits of the National Archaeological Museum of Naples (MANN). The Roman pipe, called the tibia, is a reed wind musical instrument similar to the Greek aulos. It can be made of wood, bone, and/or metal. Materials consisting of metal Cu-based alloys were excavated from archaeological burial environments. This research aims to identify the composition of the alloys, characterize the corrosion patinas, and identify any ancient surface treatments on the fragments. Non-invasive and micro-invasive techniques were used to achieve this aim, i.e., optical microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, attenuated total reflectance Fourier-transform infrared spectrophotometry, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive spectrometry. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of the materials and manufacturing techniques used for these instruments, as well as the degradation processes occurring over the centuries. Full article

Les Six and their mentors stirred a debatement of French nationalist music in the early 20th century. However, this movement faced serious criticism and mockery from various quarters and eventually fell apart amid challenges. This critical review explores the ethnosymbolic dynamics within the nationalism music movement of Les Six, and drawing upon ethnomusicological perspectives, the study examines how their compositions reflected and resonated with French national identity and cultural heritage. By analyzing primary sources, scholarly literature, and musical compositions, this article meticulously uncovers the chain reactions generated in the process of constructing national identity and cultural identity within this movement by examining the French societal backdrop, musical traditions, as well as the relationships and attitudes among relevant figures in this movement. The conclusions highlight the multifaceted nature of ethnosymbolism in their work, shedding light on the complexities of national identity construction through music. Full article

This article discusses Tzvi Avni’s Second Piano Sonata, Epitaph, a sonic commentary on one of the inner tales in Rabbi Nachman’s “The Seven Beggars”. Written between 1974 and 1979, Epitaph not only marks the composer’s act of translation (from words into music and from a textual tale into a wordless and semantically unmarked piano sonata) but also his very turn to ethnographic sources that defied their negative function in a national territorial culture that vilified otherness while separating art from ethnography. Avni’s turn to Rabbi Nachman was part of a bigger shift that saw composers’ dialectical returns to Jewish histories and cultures that were previously repressed from a national culture which dehistoricized the Diaspora to the point of rendering the times and cultures of diasporic Jews a single temporality—ahistorical, contextless, and outside the teleological time of Zionism. With the (re)introduction of diasporic temporalities, non-redemptive poetics became an affordance in the music of Avni or Andre Hajdu (who is also discussed here) while steadily muting the territorial tropes that constituted Hebrew culture. Full article

In the area of dental healthcare services, where patients and professionals deal with multiple auditory stimuli, this cross-sectional study reports on the various dynamics of sound preferences, noise obstacles, and the profound impact of music on anxiety reduction within dental office settings. The sample comprises 134 dental patients, primarily females (56.7%), with varying age groups, education levels, and therapy durations in the university clinics of the Department of Dentistry, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, and four private dental offices at the metropolitan area of Athens, Greece. Notably, 92.5% of the participants reported no hearing loss, and 56.7% exhibited some level of noise sensitivity. This study reveals a moderate to good perceived health status (M = 3.84, SD = 0.95) among participants, with low perceived noise disturbance in university dental clinics. Preferences for instrumental music, foreign pop, and classical music are prominent during waiting times. Potential irritations include impersonal treatment (44%) and staff behavior (41.8%). Correlations and predictors indicate associations between age, gender, educational status, music preferences, and noise disturbances. Findings aim to optimize eco-soundscapes in dental offices, contributing to enhanced patient well-being. The research underscores the potential of music interventions to alleviate dental anxiety and improve the overall dental experience and quality care. Full article

In 1996, Helen Lee dubbed the departure of second-generation Asian Americans from the non-English-speaking immigrant churches that they were raised in as the “silent exodus”. This nationwide phenomenon was taking place largely because first-generation churches failed to provide the second generation with culturally relevant care that would enrich their ethnic, national, and spiritual identities. Glory, the church of focus in this study, was founded by and is home to many silent exiles. In hopes of being an enriching church for second-generation Asian Americans, pastoral staff and leaders have created spaces within Glory for racial identity and faith to be in conversation with one another. However, in regard to the music of the church, they were stumped on what could be done to make it uniquely and proudly Asian American. This conundrum inspired a key question in this study: What is distinct about the way that Asian Americans worship God through music? This study argues that the worship music at Glory Church is distinctly Asian American not by what is sonically perceived, but rather by what is physically performed and collectively experienced. The Korean-English, or Konglish, term nunchi bwa-ing (눈치 봐-ing) is utilized as a keyword to describes Christian musicking in a multilingual setting and foregrounds the Korean/Asian American worshiping body. This study concludes by looking forward and arguing that Asian Americans ought to amplify their worship music to the larger Contemporary Worship Music scene as it has the potential to be a powerful site of intergenerational healing. Full article

This article offers a description and critical reflection upon two recent exhibits on display at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC): Spirit in the Dark: Religion in Black Music, Activism, and Popular Culture and Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures. The article explores the interplay of mutually reinforcing themes of faith, freedom, and futurity that emerge when examining the exhibits together. This article also demonstrates the public significance of the curation of religion and culture in museums and other cultural spaces beyond the academy and religious institutions. It further shows how religion becomes a site of critical meditation upon and creative manifestation or materialization of Black futures. As such, this article contributes to more expansive discourses on the interplay between Black studies and the study of religion. Full article

The image of the Apsara, a celestial dancer in Cambodian myth, is closely associated with Cambodian cultural preservation practices like Cambodian classical dance. The Apsara, its aesthetic features and its association with Cambodian cultural preservation have taken on new meaning in Cambodia’s diasporic communities. In the diaspora, Apsara aesthetics have come to symbolize Cambodian heritage, history and identity, becoming a major feature of performances by Cambodian diasporic artists. However, orientalist expectations of Asian performers in the diaspora, paired with both the forgotten history of colonial intervention in Cambodian arts and state-sanctioned initiatives towards Cambodian nationalism, contributes to orientalist (and thus racialized) expectations of Cambodian diasporic performance. Mixed-race artists fail to fit neatly into the dominant narratives of Cambodian performance and have been marginalized by the Cambodian diasporic community’s dominant conceptions of performance that are rooted in cultural preservation. As people that sit outside of the aestheticized markers of Cambodian-ness, mixed-race artists often struggle to have their work and their subjectivities recognized by their communities. To circumvent questions of their racial legibility, mixed-race Cambodian American artists construct performances that are strategically padded with markers of Khmer identity by engaging with Apsara aesthetics. This article will explore how three different SoCal-based artists have negotiated their Cambodian American identity and cultural politics through performance and/or performance related materials (ads, images, etc.). I will be using examples from the work of music artist and violinist Chrysanthe Tan, theater practitioner Kalean Ung, and autoethnographic engagement with my own creative projects to show how examining the work of multi-racial Cambodian American performing artists can bring forth the complex dynamics of Cambodian diasporic cultural politics and belonging. Full article

The Nature Park “Rusanda” (NPR) is a designated area under the second category of national protection. Situated in the Vojvodina Province, in the northern region of Serbia, its accessibility to a substantial number of international visitors is enhanced by its proximity to Romania and Hungary. Lake Rusanda and the salt marsh habitats render this region a sanctuary for rare avian species. This ecological significance has led to the NPR being designated as an IBA area—an Important Bird and Biodiversity Area by Birdlife. Beyond its natural attributes, the NPR stands out for its diverse cultural heritage, stemming from the local population residing in its immediate vicinity. A notable characteristic is the diverse ethnic makeup, contributing to a wide array of cultures, traditional attire, original folk music, customs, and cuisine, collectively forming a distinctive cultural heritage unique to this part of Vojvodina. To assess the status of sustainable tourism and its impact on the satisfaction of both residents and tourists within the NPR, the Prism of Sustainability model (PoS) is employed. In the quantitative approach, a survey questionnaire was utilized as a research tool, with a total of 840 participants included through a randomized sampling technique. Regression analysis of the study’s results indicates that sustainable tourism exerts a significant influence on the contentment of local people and tourists in the NPR. Given the presence of diverse ecological and societal elements, in addition to the existence of rare flora and fauna species, the central thrust in tourism development should focus on preserving and involving local residents in the planning and progress of tourism initiatives. The primary types of tourism that are poised for success in the NPR encompass ecotourism, wellness and spa tourism, nature-based tourism, birdwatching, scientific research tourism, and excursions. Full article