Published: Oct. 21, 2020 By

CLAEMCLAEM

The American Music Research Centerand the Department of Musicologywill host Rutgers University musicology professor,, on Monday, Oct 26 at 1 pm (MST) for his presentation, “Americanism as Musical Strategy: From Pan Americanism to Latin Americanism.” Dr. Herrera’s research reveals the transformational work of graduates from the(CLAEM, 1962–1971) who reconfigured pan-national discourses of Latin Americanism into a united, regional community that strategically positioned itself in the classical music tradition.

CLAEMGraduates of CLAEM spent two years with composers from different Central and South American countries comparing information from classical music with what was being done in neighboring countries. Herrera noted, “This simple condition, being able to spend time together knowing each other personally and musically, marked a significant difference in the creation of regional networks.”

“CLAEM was a place forthe exchange of ideas, materials, and the creation of friendships andsolidarity networks, much like many other meeting places for classicalcomposers during the twentieth century—the Darmstadt Summer Courses or theWarsaw Autumn and Donaueschingen Festivals, for example,“ disclosed Dr. Herrera. “However, unlike them,the extended two-year duration of the study program at CLAEM created aunique situation for profound exchange among some of the most talentedcomposers of thewhole region. The friendships generatedand the multi-national character of CLAEM facilitated the adoption of aregional identity for a ‘Latin American avant-garde’ in an art world that waslargely European and U.S.-centric.”

Eduardo HerreraHerrera (pictured left) met with many of the composers he writes about and shared that he, “spent time with them and got to understand how they made sense of what it meant to be an avant-garde composer during that decade.” He added, “I learned more from them than I could from any archive.” Herrera also credits the Di Tella Institute atin Argentina, thein New York, and thein Germany as sources for his research.

Herrera’s talk is part of the Musicology & Music Theory Colloquium series at CU «Ƶ’s College of Music, a series of presentations to faculty, students, and the community that features leading national and international researchers in music theory andethnomusicology.

Dr. Herrera recently published(Oxford University Press, 2020)and is currently working on two more book projects,Sounding Fandom: Chanting, Masculinity, and Violence in Argentine Soccer StadiumsandSoccer Sounds: Transnational Stories of the Beautiful Game.