Ecomusic and the Sounds of Climate Change (ONLINE)
Taught by Kristy Barbacane
Kristy Barbacane received her Ph.D. in Historical Musicology from Columbia University and has taught at Barnard College and Fordham and Columbia Universities. Her research interests include nineteenth-century France, music in Algeria and its diaspora, and the relationship between colonialism and music. Kristy spends her spare time playing flute, running in Central Park, and searching for the best patisserie in the city.
Can music and sound advocate for ecological and environmental stewardship? What does sounding nature and soundscape tell us about our changing planet?
This class will investigate how music and sound studies can change the way we think about our environment and be used as a tool for advocacy. Examples include installations that exhibit the sounds of melting glaciers to prompt discussion on global warming, the ecological costs vs. benefits of charity concerts such as Live Earth, songs and sounds of the Appalachian coal mining debate, and the role and value of silence.
