| NECSEM 2001 Chapter Report |
| Annual Meeting- Smith College, March 31, 2001 |
| The annual meeting of the Northeast Chapter of the Society for Ethnomusicology
took place in Sage Hall at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts
on Saturday, March 31, 2001. Scheduled activities included three paper
sessions, a keynote address by Gage Averill, the business meeting, and
an evening concert of South Indian music.
Three papers were presented in the first session, including “Exploring the Northampton Area Folk Scene” by Shana Smulyan (Smith College), “Pro Tools on the Periphery: Digital Audio, the Internet and Musical Empowerment in Rio de Janeiro” by Frederick Moehn (New York University), and “Orientalist Rock” by Gordon Thompson (Skidmore College). The second session began with a special treat—David McAllester (Wesleyan University) and his presentation “Post Modern Musings.” The session also included the papers “Shooby Taylor and the World of ‘Bad Music’,” delivered by Andy McGraw (Wesleyan University/Bard College) and “Mento and Jamaican Calypso: Tourism, Repertory and Power,” by Daniel Neely (New York University). The Student Concerns Committee held its meeting during the lunch break that followed. The afternoon paper session featured three presentations: “Korvai: Flexible Form in Karnatak Drumming,” by David Nelson (Wesleyan University), “The Kidung Jemaat: A Christian Hymnal in a Non-Christian World” by Birgit Berg (Smith College), and “Art for Hire: The Creative Identity of the Supporting Musician” by Alan Williams (Brown University). Gage Averill (New York University) delivered the keynote address of NECSEM 2001. His presentation, entitled “ ‘Still Hazy After All These Years’: Reinterpreting the ‘Alan and Elizabeth Lomax Haitian Expedition, 1936-7,” was a stimulating and engaging finish to the day’s academic proceedings. The annual Business Meeting followed. Among the items of business was the election of the 2001-2002 slate of officers. Jerry Cadden (Boston College) was elected as President, and Lise Waxer (Trinity College) was elected as Vice-President. Lisa Lawson Burke (Framingham State) and Susan Asai (Northeastern) will continue as Secretary and Treasurer respectively. The Treasurer’s report indicated that the Chapter is financially solvent. Other items included a report by Student Representative Harriet Hurie (Wesleyan) on her attendance at the national Student Concerns meeting at the SEM conference, and the election of Birgit Berg (Smith) as the new Student Representative. After discussion, Boston College was selected as the location for the 2002 NECSEM meeting. NECSEM 2001 attendees were invited to attend a concert of South Indian music featuring David Reck, vina, and David Nelson, mridangam, taking place that evening at the Karuna Center for Yoga and Healing Arts in Northampton. Lisa Lawson Burke |