Theme issue on music and arts in conflict transformation.  A longer version of this article is published in Music and Conflict, eds.
John Morgan O'Connell and Salwa el Shawan Castelo-Branco, University of Illinois Press.This article  provides a brief sketch of how scholars may be actively involved in
conflict transformation efforts using music or the arts beyond their purely artistic
connotations. Here I will explore the ways in which music has been employed in
some ethnomusicological projects based on my personal experiences, which can
hopefully stimulate debate and provide some ideas for other scholars in different
branches of humanities and social sciences

Pettan, Svanibor

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Music and Arts in Action | Volume 2 | Issue 2Applied Ethnomusicology: Bridging Research and Action1SVANIBOR PETTANFaculty of  Arts | University of  Ljubljana| Slovenia*THE ACTIVIST RESEARCHERThis article  provides a brief  sketch of  how scholars may be actively involved in conflict transformation efforts using music or the arts beyond their purely artistic connotations. Here I will  explore the ways in which music has been employed in some  ethnomusicological  projects  based  on  my  personal  experiences,  which  can hopefully  stimulate debate and provide some ideas for other scholars in different branches of  humanities and social sciences.I would argue that scholars should at least occasionally break away from a position of contemplative self-sufficiency, the so-called ivory tower of  academia, and efficiently employ their knowledge and understanding of  music in the broadest sense for the betterment of  humanity. In ethnomusicology, such pragmatic involvements represent a growing field commonly known as “applied ethnomusicology”. The two projects presented  here,  the  project  Azra and  the  project  Kosovo  Roma,  employ  several concepts derived from applied scholarship. These ideas draw on a relevant theoretical precedent  in  the  field  of  anthropology,  where  concepts  such  as  adjustment,  administration,  action,  and  advocacy  are  particularly  pertinent  (see  Spradley  and McCurdy 2000). They are also informed by practices in applied ethnomusicology,  such as developing new performance frames, feeding back musical models to the communities  that  created  them,  providing  communities  with  access  to  strategic models and techniques, and developing structural solutions to broad problems (see Sheehy 1992). Both projects are related, although in different ways, to the succession of  wars that erupted in the territories of  what was Yugoslavia. One of  the projects was conceptualized far from the war-torn territories, in Norway, while the other was meant to take place in  the former Yugoslav province of  Kosovo.  In both cases, music was treated as a powerful tool, able to empower minority groups and at the  same time to enlighten majority groups.1 A longer version of this article is published in the forthcoming book Music and Conflict eds. John  Morgan  O'Connell  and  Salwa  el  Shawan  Castelo  Branco,  University  of  Illinois  Press. Reprinted with permission.*Filozofska fakulteta, Aškerčeva 2, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia© Music and Arts in Action/Svanibor Pettan 2010 | ISSN: 1754-7105 | Page 90http://musicandartsinaction.net/index.php/maia/article/view/ethnomusicologyMusic and Arts in Action | Volume 2 | Issue 2My  personal  experience  as  a  researcher  made  me  sensitive  to  the  destinies  of individual communities in ethnically mixed regions during the war. In particular, my study of  the musical traditions of  Croats and Serbs in the Banija/Banovina region of  central  Croatia  during  the  1980s  was  especially  poignant.  I  remembered  the inhabitants of  the ethnically distinct villages as culturally related neighbors, whose senses  of  identity,  cultural  practices,  and  mutual  relations  received  appropriate attention (see Ivančan 1986;  Jambrešić 1992;  Muraj  1992).  During the war in the 1990s,  these  neighbors  were  forced  to  replace  their  musical  instruments  with weapons  and  became  mutually  confronted  victims  of  a  larger  ethno-national conflict.2My interest in applied ethnomusicology stemmed from my wish to understand the reality of  “war at home,” especially the potential of  the field to explain the war-peace continuum. Thanks to residencies in Croatia, where I was born, and Slovenia, where I live; to my principal research, which was conducted in the disputed province of Kosovo; to both professional connections and friendships in the other territories of the former Yugoslav territories; and to a broad range of  relevant educational and research  experiences  and  contacts  abroad,  I  was  able  to  internalize  a  variety  of  perspectives, shape them into projects, and check empirically the validity of  applied ethnomusicology in dealing with concrete problems. Although linked to the specific circumstances  of  the  discord  of  Yugoslavia,  these  projects,  I  hope,  will  inspire similar undertakings in applied ethnomusicology elsewhere in the world.THE AZRA PROJECTThe Azra project was a case in applied ethnomusicology that brought together two very different groups of  people: Bosnian refugees and Norwegians. In cooperation with the Norwegian scholar Kjell Skyllstad, the project was undertaken in Norway during the 1990s when eleven thousand refugees from the war-torn homeland of Bosnia and Herzegovina lived in Norway on a temporary basis. Cultural sensitivities and cultural  differences  often  contributed to  misunderstandings  on several  levels both within and between the two communities. The project had two objectives: to strengthen Bosnian cultural identity among the refugees; and to stimulate mutually beneficial cross-cultural communication between Bosnians and Norwegians. It also sought to help the refugees achieve some of  their social and cultural needs while  residents in Norway and to prepare them for their eventual return to a multiethnic  Bosnia and Herzegovina. In this project research was done into the cultural identity and the musical activities  of  Bosnian  refugees  in  Norway;  educational  initiatives  were  organised  for  both Norwegians (through classes at the University of  Oslo on “Music in Exile”, etc.) and Bosnians in Norway (by organizing special lectures in refugee centers on relevant musical topics such as “Music and War on the Territories of  Former Yugoslavia”) and finally through music making within the Azra ensemble. Each of  these activities was designed to benefit the others. Data collected in the course of  research were utilized for educational and musical purposes. Education promoted research, which in turn served as a basis for music making. A performing Bosnian-Norwegian group, Azra, was put together and performed mixed Bosnian and Norwegian repertoire at the University  of  Oslo,  in refugee camps all  over Norway and in the Norwegian 2My own fieldwork resulted in a series of radio programs and two LP records featuring the musics of four villages populated by ethnic Croats and four others by ethnic Serbs.© Music and Arts in Action/Svanibor Pettan 2010 | ISSN: 1754-7105 | Page 91http://musicandartsinaction.net/index.php/maia/article/view/ethnomusicologyMusic and Arts in Action | Volume 2 | Issue 2Theater in Oslo. Azra gained public (media) attention and support  for the refugee cause and has since performed at various public gatherings, e.g. fund-raising concerts.ROMANI MUSICIANS IN KOSOVORomani musicians in Kosovo had traditionally operated as cultural mediators, living in a society that could be described as multiethnic, multireligious and, multilingual. Due to their ability and willingness to perform a wide variety of  musics, they enjoyed the status of  superior specialists and successfully served a broad range of  audiences. My  research  concerned  the  interaction  between   Romani  musicians  and  their customers, focusing in particular on the musical creativity of  this group. Such a focus sharply contrasted with that of  music folklorists, who were generally interested in the older strata of  the repertoire associated solely with the majority (in most cases their own) national group. For me, this concentration on the established ability  of  the Roma  to  cross  musical  boundaries  seemed  most  appropriate.  In  the  course  of ethnographic work, I was in a position to see and examine the ways in which the Roma brought neighbors from different backgrounds together through their flexible manipulation of  musical styles and through their skillful musicianship. My experience of  life  in a Romani family of  musicians allowed me to document several events that took place not only in domestic and communal contexts but also in  a  variety  of  venues  outside  the  Romani  community  involving  musicians  on professional  assignments.  My recordings,  using  exhibitions,  video and CD media, enabled me to compile a project dedicated to the Roma of  Kosovo. This had two principal purposes. First, in the short term, they were used to raise awareness and even  some  funds  to  support  the  physical  and  cultural  survival  of  the  Roma  in Kosovo, seriously endangered by the conflict between Kosovo Albanians and Serbs.  Second, in the long term, they were employed to recognize the legacy of  Romani musicians from Kosovo through the wide dissemination of  information and as a contribution  to  knowledge.  This  legacy  proved  to  be  a  powerful  metaphor  for coexistence and, at the same time, a suitable alternative to the ongoing inclination toward ethnic segregation.In contrast to the Azra project (which was structured and controllable), the Kosovo Roma project was a case of  advocacy in which scholars made the necessary data available  to  be  used  in  the  public  domain.  Possession  of  these  data  had unquestionable potential to assist decision makers in their attempts to improve the circumstances for the Roma and for people in Kosovo in general. Almost everyone who contributed to any of  the four parts of  the project (book and articles, picture exhibition,  CD-ROM,  video  documentary)  understood  its  importance  and humanitarian value, providing services without the expectation of  financial reward. Thanks to a favorable reception of  some of  the publications, the project has reached  a wide variety of  audiences ranging from youth clubs in the former Yugoslavia to university classrooms in America. However, the limited commercial distribution of these products has resulted in limited financial gains accruing to the Roma.CONCLUDING THOUGHTSAn increasing number of  projects  question the  ultimate goal  of  scholarship (e.g. Araujo, Laughran, Newsome, and Tan; in Pettan 2008, Sweers forthcoming); that is, they  employ  ethnomusicological  knowledge,  understanding,  and  skills  for  the improvement of  the human condition in various conflict-related circumstances. On the one hand, one can design projects by controlling the parameters of  execution © Music and Arts in Action/Svanibor Pettan 2010 | ISSN: 1754-7105 | Page 92http://musicandartsinaction.net/index.php/maia/article/view/ethnomusicologyMusic and Arts in Action | Volume 2 | Issue 2and by  evaluating  the  results,  as  in  Azra.  On the other  hand,  one  can  chose to empower others by providing relevant ethnomusicological data, tools, and methods, as in the Kosovo Roma project. As demonstrated in this brief  essay, good intentions and convincing arguments are not necessarily sufficient to achieve the full realization of  a proposed ideal. It is hoped that further work in this area will provide additional  insights with regards to what long term impact educational and performative aspects of  applied ethnomusicology have.REFERENCESAraújo, Samuel. 2008. From Neutrality to Praxis: The Shifting Politics of Ethnomusicology in the Contemporary World. Muzikološki zbornik/Musicological Annual 44/1: 13-30.Ivančan, Ivan. 1986. Narodni plesni običaji Banije i Pounja. Zagreb: Kulturno-prosvjetni sabor Hrvatske.Jambrešić, R., 1992. Etnonimska analiza banijskih rukopisnih zbirki Instituta za etnologiju i folkloristiku. Narodna umjetnost, 219-252.Loughran, Maureen. 2008. 'But what if they call the police?' Applied Ethnomusicology and Urban Activism in the United States. Muzikološki zbornik/Musicological Annual 44/1: 51-67.Muraj, A., 1992. Simboličke konotacije godišnjih običaja na Baniji. Narodna umjetnost, (29), 185-218.Newsome, Jennifer K. 2008. From Researched to Centrestage: A Case Study. Muzikološki  zbornik/Musicological Annual 44/1: 31-49.Pettan, Svanibor. 2008. Applied Ethnomusicology and Empowerment Strategies: Views from Across the Atlantic. Muzikološki zbornik/Musicological Annual 44/1: 85-99.Sheehy, D., 1992. A Few Notions about Philosophy and Strategy in Applied Ethnomusicology. Ethnomusicology, 36(3), 323-336.Spradley, J. & McCurdy, D. eds., 2000. Conformity and Conflict: Readings in Cultural Anthropology,  Instructor's Manual and Test Bank, Addison-Wesley Longman, Limited.Sweers, Britta. 2010 (forth.). Music against Fascism: Applied Ethnomusicology in Rostock, Germany. In John Morgan O'Connell and Salwa el Shawan Castelo Branco, eds., Music and  Conflict. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 193-213.Tan, Sooi Beng. 2008. Activism in Souitheast Asian Ethnomusicology: Empowering Youths to Revitalize Traditions and Bridge Cultural Barriers. Muzikološki zbornik/Musicological Annual 44/1: 69-83.ABOUT THE AUTHORSvanibor  Pettan is  professor  and  chair  of  ethnomusicology  program  at  the  University  of  Ljubljana, Slovenia.  His research and publications focus on music and minorities,  music and war,  multiculturalism,  and  applied  ethnomusicology.  He  serves  as  vice-president  of  the International  Council  for  Traditional  Music  and  chair  of  its  study  group  on  applied ethnomusicology.© Music and Arts in Action/Svanibor Pettan 2010 | ISSN: 1754-7105 | Page 93http://musicandartsinaction.net/index.php/maia/article/view/ethnomusicology

Applied ethnomusicology: bridging research and action

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