PERMANENT SEMINAR ON HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL STUDIES IN MUSIC
The Permanent Seminar of the research group Historical and Cultural Studies in Music of INET-md intends to be a forum where all its members (integrated and collaborators), as well as other invited researchers from the academic, cultural and artistic circles, may present their work and discuss ongoing projects and research.
2023-05-16 | 18:00 | FCSH (Colégio Almada Negreiros) | Floor 0 | Room SA
Free access in person and online (ZOOM link below)
SAFEGUARD, ORGANIZATION AND DISSEMINATION OF MUSICAL HERITAGE
The implementation of the Center for Musical Documentation in the city of São Jose Dos Campos: a brief history and its current challenges
The Paraíba Valley contains rich musical documentation that reflects the Brazilian musical practices of the urban centers of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. São José dos Campos, located in the aforementioned valley and historically known for having been a center for various sanitoria has the unique reputation of having temporarily hosted itinerant musicians of many different genres (sacred music, woodwind bands, chamber music, choro, cinema orchestras, salon pianists, string orchestras, et al.) that passed through the city during the 20th century. Countless musicians have left a plethora of musical documents within the city limits, reflecting their own trajectories as well as the then current artistic-musical trends of other regions of the country. It is within this context that the archives of José Antônio da Cunha (1932) and maestro Benjamin Silva Araújo (1902 – 1985) are recognized. Together they exemplify the diversity of musical documentation, and the difficulty in its collection and preservation, since institutions (at the municipal, state and federal levels) rarely do both. This presentation chronicles the initiatives coordinated by Raquel Aranha and the challenges faced since 2017 for the implementation (with the collaboration of both the public and private cultural institutions of the city) of measures to safeguard the musical heritage of São Jose dos Campos. It also outlines the progress achieved thus far on the development of the Center Project of Musical Documentation in a new joint action with the AFAC (Association for the Promotion of Art and Culture) and the Parque Vicentina Aranha, where the archives will be housed (in the Marina Crespi Pavilion - a recently restored structure in the park). Logistically, the archives will be able to be visited by the public via temporary exhibitions and their sorting and restoration will continue as part of post doctoral work, under the supervision of Paulo Castagna (Arts Institute of Unesp - SP).
Mapping the Portuguese Musical Heritage
The Portuguese historical musical heritage in the custody of Portuguese memory institutions is a material testimony of the musical creation and practices over time. Its preservation, knowledge and study is essential for the construction of a cultural identity. Any musicologist, historian or performer interested in studying, contextualizing and valuing past repertoires needs access to musical sources. Unfortunately, in Portugal, most of this heritage is often ignored by the holding instituions, in many cases it is not made available and is not even treated. So its existence is unknown, even to the specialized public, such as performers and musicologists. Identifying, locating and describing this historic musical heritage, allowing its knowledge, is an essential step for the development of musicological research and the creation of new repertoires for current performers. This presentation aims to establish a methodology for mapping the existing Portuguese musical heritage in national memory institutions, such as libraries, archives, museums, churches, archives of concert halls, etc., where a complete survey, aiming at its knowledge and safeguard, has never been realized.
