Music and Borders
Students created blog posts about songs that discuss the difficulties that people face when adapting to life in America. For example, the songs “Somos Mas Americanos” and “Prayer of the Refugee” are about Latinos/immigrants who face discrimination from the citizens and the government of the United States. “Border Song” and “La Jaula de Oro” talk about the cultural differences and the shock felt by those living a new life on the other side of the border. Music for these people is a way to translate their struggles of adaptation and discrimination, because sometimes it might be their only way to be heard. These songs are a kind of cultural border and the themes that we’ve discussed in class all semester. View the blog posts here.
Group memebers: Michael Vallee
Using a visual presentation, students explore music and border spaces including Latino hip hop, Mariachi, poetry, gender roles, politics, Chinese American music and bringing musical instruments across physical borders. View the presentation here.
Group members: Maranda Avina, Dillon Pietrangelo, and Steven Tsui-Zhou