Since the first Tanglewood Symposium sponsored by the Music Educators National Conference (MENC) in 1967, music teachers across the United States and Canada have worked to include a range of music in their classrooms. At this event, speaker Juliet Hess will explore the possibility of coloniality that emerges through such inclusion. Hess will problematize the practice of including multiple musics in the classrooms and conclude with ideas for an ethical approach to so-called “world music” pedagogy rooted in the framework of anti-colonialism.
The event, hosted by the Department of Music, will take place from 4 to 5 p.m. Oct. 6, at Harkness Chapel.
About the speaker
Juliet Hess is an associate professor of music education at Michigan State University, having previously taught elementary and middle school music outside of Toronto. Her book, Music Education for Social Change: Constructing an Activist Music Education, explores the intersection of activism, critical pedagogy, and music education. Her second book, Trauma and Resilience in Music Education: Haunted Melodies, is an edited volume co-edited with Deborah Bradley. The volume acknowledges the ubiquity of trauma in our society and its long-term deleterious effects while examining the singular ways music can serve as a support for those who struggle. Hess received her PhD in sociology of education from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto. Her research interests include anti-oppression education, trauma-informed pedagogy, activism in music and music education, music education for social justice, disability and Mad studies, and the question of ethics in world music study.