April 23 - 27, 2007. Music and Ritual. Music as Ritual
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Teaching Personnel
Prof. Dr. Lorenz Welker - Ludwig Maximilians Universitaet
Music and Ritual - Music as Ritual
Music is strongly linked to ritual, not only in Western civilization but all over the world and from its first appearance onwards. Music is an essential part of religious rites, is to be found in rites of transition and has its obvious and central place in medical and paramedical rituals such as shamanic healing processes and in the treatment of obsession.
Although musicology has been aware of music’s essential role in ritual, research has concentrated mainly on religious rituals in the past (see for instance the contributions to voluminous publication by M. Honegger, Ch. Meyer and P. Prevost, La musique et le rite sacré et profane, 2 vols, Strasbourg 1986).
On the other hand, refences to music can be found in numerous studies on rituals from ethnogical, sociological and cultural points of view, from the seminal works by Victor Turner (The Ritual Process, 1969) and Mary Douglas (Natural Symbols, 1970) to more recent studies such as Hans-Georg Soeffner’s Die Ordnung der Rituale, Frankfurt 1992, and the articles collected by Andrea Belliger and David J. Krieger, Ritualtheorien, Wiesbaden 1998. A starting point for the seminar is Artur Simon’s magisterial contribution on African rituals of obsession Musik in afrikanischen Besessenheitsriten in: Artur Simon, Musik in Afrika, Berlin 1983.
The particular importance of music in ritual might be due to the fact, that music itself is a ritualized means of commucation, especially in contrast to ordinary speech and spontaneous vocal utterances. Musical behaviour is easily described in terms of ritualization in ethological perspective, as given by Eibl-Eibesfeldt (‚Ritual and Ritualization from a Biological Perspective’, in: M. von Cranach et al. eds, Human Ethology – Claims and Limits of a New Discipline, Cambridge 1979). These include simplification as well as exaggeration of ‚natural’ behaviour, emphasis on certain elements, repetition, and stability in intensity and speed.
The particular importance of music in ritual might be due to the fact, that music itself is a ritualized means of commucation, especially in contrast to ordinary speech and spontaneous vocal utterances. Musical behaviour is easily described in terms of ritualization in ethological perspective, as given by Eibl-Eibesfeldt (‚Ritual and Ritualization from a Biological Perspective’, in: M. von Cranach et al. eds, Human Ethology – Claims and Limits of a New Discipline, Cambridge 1979). These include simplification as well as exaggeration of ‚natural’ behaviour, emphasis on certain elements, repetition, and stability in intensity and speed.
- theories of rituals in ethnology, ethology and further disciplines
- music and ritual: the role, appearance and production of music in rituals
- music and ritual: the function of function in ritual – examples from religious and healing rites
- music as ritual: ritualized and spontaneous forms of human vocalisation and other kinds of sound production in evolutionary perspective
- music as ritual: acoustic communication of emotions in prosody and melody, musical effects on mood and consciousness.
The goals of the seminar are to acquire familiarity with current theories of rituals and approaches to music’s role in ritual, to develop an distinct personal point of view within the current discussion, and to learn methods and strategies for an interdisciplinary dialogue between the social and natural sciences and the humanities.
- music and ritual: the role, appearance and production of music in rituals
- music and ritual: the function of function in ritual – examples from religious and healing rites
- music as ritual: ritualized and spontaneous forms of human vocalisation and other kinds of sound production in evolutionary perspective
- music as ritual: acoustic communication of emotions in prosody and melody, musical effects on mood and consciousness.
The goals of the seminar are to acquire familiarity with current theories of rituals and approaches to music’s role in ritual, to develop an distinct personal point of view within the current discussion, and to learn methods and strategies for an interdisciplinary dialogue between the social and natural sciences and the humanities.
Contact
Chiara Bianchini - LMU Seminars Coordinator
Tel. +39 041 2719511
Fax. + 39 041 2719510
Chiara Bianchini - LMU Seminars Coordinator
Tel. +39 041 2719511
Fax. + 39 041 2719510
