Seminar: Problems in Performance Studies (515-0-22)

Topic

Listening: Methods & Issues

Instructors

Shayna Mei Silverstein
shayna.silverstein@northwestern.edu

Meeting Info

Wirtz 225 Instruct Black Box 2: Tues 2:00PM - 4:50PM

Overview of class

Acoustic experiences are integral to the (trans)formation of modern subjectivity. This course brings critical discourses on listening, vibration, and sound studies into conversation with performance studies by engaging with critical and phenomenological perspectives on sound, embodiment, and society. We address how listening practices shape identity formation by discussing historical and contemporary studies in sound arts, popular music, and aural traditions, among others. Course readings draw from the fields of sound studies, philosophy, musicology and ethnomusicology, performance studies, and media studies, including texts by Ihde, Nancy, Sterne, Eidsheim, Kheshti, Labelle, Robinson, Daughtry, Boon, Kapchan, and Holmes. Listening materials range from soundmaps, podcasts, and other popular expressions to sound installations and performance events by artists such as Francisco Lopez, Christine Sun Kim, and Lawrence Abu Hamdan that challenge issues of representation and power. Finally, we will craft our own listening practices through weekly prompts that amplify our work as researchers, artists, and listeners.