Political Ontologies of Music: Rethinking the Relationship between Music and Politics in the Twenty-first Century

Project Information

ONTOMUSIC

Grant agreement ID: 101027828

DOI

10.3030/101027828

Project closed

EC signature date 24 March 2021

Start date 1 April 2021

End date 31 March 2024

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Total cost

€ 265 606,08

EU contribution

€ 265 606,08

Coordinated by

UNIVERSITAET BERN
Switzerland

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ONTOMUSIC (Political Ontologies of Music: Rethinking the Relationship between Music and Politics in the Twenty-first Century)

Reporting period: 2023-04-01 to 2024-03-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

ONTOMUSIC provided an innovative and interdisciplinary theoretical framework to analyse the political and ethical dimensions of contemporary art music in the twenty-first century. It explored the relationship between composers’ ontological assumptions, political thought and ethical concerns. Ontological assumptions were defined as personal or collective assertions about the nature and means of music, which reveal our beliefs on what music is as well as what music can do or accomplish. ONTOMUSIC argued that integrating composers’ ontological assumptions into the exploration of their political or ethical commitments makes possible the study of a broader range of living composers and their views about ethical issues such as social justice, human rights and the environment.

ONTOMUSIC examined composers’ ontological assumptions in relation to four key approaches to music, ethics and politics:
1. The politics of musical material: compositional techniques, musical gestures and political metaphors
2. Sound activism: musical practices and environmental concerns
3. Music and political identities: cosmopolitanism and political engagements with the past
4. Ecological approaches: sound, music technology and the politics of musical interactions

This research project was rooted in an interdisciplinary approach to music and performance practices, which sought to bridge historical musicology, ethnomusicology, music theory and philosophy. The three main research objectives were: 1) to understand how composers’ ontological assumptions shape the political possibilities of their music within a specific symbolic and social order; 2) to examine how composers have embedded their ethical concerns in specific compositional processes, performance settings and musical works; 3) to produce new sources and record first-hand views from composers, in particular women composers, where they develop their ontological assumptions connected to their ethical and political concerns. ONTOMUSIC advanced our understanding of how composers engage critically with the major ethical and political challenges facing our societies.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The experienced researcher achieved interdisciplinary training-through-research at the Schulich School of Music of McGill University and the University of Bern. He developed his teaching, mentoring and supervision skills, and consolidated his international research profile with proven capacity to work across disciplines. ONTOMUSIC explored new formats of research outputs, challenging conventional practices and methods in music research. These include edited collections, research articles, review articles, opinion pieces, interviews, and sound works – a sound documentary and an album with the experimental music collective Mad Song.

Secondments:
1. University of Bern, Institute of Musicology, from 1 April to 30 June 2021
2. Ircam (Unité mixte de recherche Sciences et technologies de la musique et du son, Paris), Équipe Analyse des pratiques musicales, from 15 September to 15 October 2021

The results show how composers have embedded their ethical concerns – such as human rights, environmental issues and social justice – in specific compositional processes, performance settings and musical works. They suggest answers to the main research questions of the project: How do composers make their ethical concerns audible through their compositional and performance practices? Which concepts, discourses and imaginaries do they mobilise when talking about the relationships between music, ethics and politics? How can music create new ways of making sense of the common world?

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

ONTOMUSIC research advanced knowledge in music research on the importance of composers’ ontological assumptions in the understanding of the political possibilities of their compositional practices and musical works. The project produced new first-hand sources and testimonies by an internationally diverse sample of composers in which they develop their ontological assumptions connected to their ethical and political concerns. Furthermore, the project developed new approaches to explore, for example, how composers address violations of human rights such as femicides, enforced disappearances and human trafficking through their musical practices and works. Going beyond theoretical approaches to music and politics which focus on ideologies, works and institutions, the results contributed to the development of new research avenues on the relationship between music, ethics and politics.

ONTOMUSIC