Ethnomusicology Forum

Ethnomusicology Forum
Title	Ethnomusicology Forum
Discipline	Ethnomusicology
Language	English
Abbreviation	EMF
Publisher	Routledge
Country	United Kingdom
History	1992–present
Frequency	Quarterly
Issn	1741-1645

Ethnomusicology Forum Ethnomusicology Forum is a peer-reviewed scholarly journal that publishes research in ethnomusicology and related fields such as musicology, anthropology, folklore, cultural studies, and performance studies. Established in the early 1990s, it provides a venue for scholarship that intersects with topics connected to Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, and Oceania while engaging with institutions like the British Museum, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, and Goldsmiths, University of London.

History

The journal launched in 1992 amid debates involving scholars tied to Society for Ethnomusicology, International Council for Traditional Music, British Forum for Ethnomusicology, Royal Anthropological Institute, and research centers at SOAS University of London, University of California, Los Angeles, University of Washington, University of California, Berkeley, and Indiana University Bloomington. Early editorial boards drew on networks connected to figures associated with Alan Lomax, Bruno Nettl, Merriam, John Blacking, Mantle Hood, and institutions like Smithsonian Institution and British Library. Over time editorial leadership included scholars affiliated with King's College London, University of Manchester, University of Chicago, Cornell University, and Yale University.

Scope and Discipline

The journal covers ethnographic studies, theoretical essays, and methodological reflections influenced by traditions linked to Pierre Bourdieu, Clifford Geertz, Michel Foucault, Stuart Hall, and Edward Said. It embraces musical practices across regions such as West Africa, East Asia, South Asia, Caribbean, Andes, Amazon Basin, Pacific Islands, and Middle East. Interdisciplinary intersections appear with scholarship tied to postcolonial studies, gender studies, diaspora studies, media studies, and urban studies as practiced by colleagues from University of Toronto, McGill University, Australian National University, National University of Singapore, and Humboldt University of Berlin.

Publication and Editorial Practices

Published quarterly by Routledge as part of Taylor & Francis Group, the journal follows peer-review procedures common to outlets like Ethnomusicology Review, Journal of the American Musicological Society, Popular Music, Music & Letters, and Current Musicology. Editorial teams have included scholars from University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University, Duke University, University of Sydney, and University of Cape Town. Special issues have been guest-edited in collaboration with centers such as Center for Black Music Research, Global Music Centre, Humanities Research Centre, Institute of Ethnomusicology (CNRS), and Max Planck Institute for the History of Science.

Notable Articles and Contributions

Noteworthy articles have engaged with topics associated with figures and events like Fela Kuti, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Ravi Shankar, Buena Vista Social Club, Miriam Makeba, Cesária Évora, Béla Bartók, Leopold Mozart, Carlo Gesualdo, and Ennio Morricone. Contributions have addressed methodologies linked to fieldwork strategies used by Franz Boas, Bronisław Malinowski, Zora Neale Hurston, Paul Simon (musician), and Alan Lomax collections at Library of Congress. The journal has published influential essays that reference projects tied to World Music Expo (WOMEX), Glastonbury Festival, Carnival of Venice, Rio Carnival, Notting Hill Carnival, Midem, SXSW, and archives like British Library Sound Archive and Smithsonian Folkways.

Conferences and Community Engagement

The editorial network organizes panels and roundtables at gatherings hosted by Society for Ethnomusicology, International Council for Traditional Music (ICTM), WOMEX, British Forum for Ethnomusicology, European Association of Social Anthropologists, American Anthropological Association, Association for Cultural Studies, and universities such as Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard University, Columbia University, University of California, Berkeley, and University of Michigan. Collaborations have linked the journal with festivals and NGOs including UNESCO, British Council, European Commission, Africa Centre (Cape Town), and Asia-Europe Foundation for public symposia, workshops, and digital seminars.

Reception and Impact

The journal is cited alongside publications like Ethnomusicology, Journal of the Royal Musical Association, Popular Music and Society, Music Perception, and Cultural Anthropology in literature reviews and citation indexes managed by Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. Its influence is evident in curricula at institutions including Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, Royal Academy of Music, Conservatoire de Paris, Juilliard School, Berklee College of Music, and in policymaking discussions within UNESCO programs on intangible cultural heritage and music education initiatives in regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe.

Category:Ethnomusicology journals Category:Musicology