Books and Book Chapters by University of Dayton Faculty
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Description
Can you change the world through song? This appealing idea has long been the professed aim of singers who are part of choruses affiliated with the Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses (GALA). Theses choruses first emerged in the 1970s, and grew out of a very American tradition of (often gender-segregated) choral singing that explicitly presents itself as a community-based activity. By taking a close look at these choruses and their mission, Heather MacLachlan unpacks the fascinating historical and cultural dynamics behind groups that seek to change society for the better by encouraging acceptance of LGBT-identified people and promoting diversity more generally. She characterizes their mission as “integrationist rather than liberationist” and zeroes in on the inherent tension between GALA’s progressive social goals and the fact that the music most often performed by GALA groups is deeply rooted in a fairly narrowly conceived tradition of art music that identifies as white, Euro-centric, and middle class--and that much of the membership identifies as white and middle class as well.
Pundits often wax eloquent about the power of music, asserting that it can, in some positive way, change the world. Such statements often rest on an unexamined claim that music can and does foster social justice. Singing Out: GALA Choruses and Social Change tackles the premise underlying such claims, analyzing groups of amateur singers who are explicitly committed to an agenda of social justice.
ISBN
978-0-472-13218-8 (hardcover) and 978-0-472-12724-5 (ebook)
Publication Date
2020
Publisher
University of Michigan Press
City
Ann Arbor, MI
Keywords
music, choir, choral music, LGBT, gay, lesbian, transgender, social justice, social change, White, middle class, diversity, homophobia, gay culture, mission, social movement, ethnomusicology, coming out, disidentification, queer, performance practice, community, homonormativity
Disciplines
Ethnomusicology | Music Performance | Music Theory
Recommended Citation
MacLachlan, Heather, "Singing Out: GALA Choruses and Social Change" (2020). Books and Book Chapters by University of Dayton Faculty. 86.
https://ecommons.udayton.edu/books/86
Comments
The table of contents and introduction are provided with the permission of the publisher. To read the entire volume, use the purchase link or visit an academic library.