Biography
Alexandra Urbano is a doctoral candidate at FCSH Nova LISBOA of Musical Sciences-Ethnomusicology, supervised by Professora São José Côrte-Real. She is currently researching psychedelic trance and studying terminological aspects to understand relation between audible characteristics of melodic and rhythmic samples of psychedelic trance and fandom dynamics, involving fan behaviour in different parts of the world through a collaborative ethnography developed in festivals in India, Israel, Brazil, Mexico, USA, Europe, South Africa and Australia, where she performs as a Psytrance DJ and producer. Choosing to embark on this research, for being scientifically innovative within the transnational academic and social framework.
From 2019-2021 Alexandra gained an internship from the Department of Communication Studies at California State University, Northridge (CSUN) - USA, with her co-advisor Professor Bernardo Attias, with whom Alexandra has worked assiduously in the organisation of the annual conference Curated Sound: DJ Culture on the edge. She has also contributed to the project "DJ Culture as Curation". At present this project is also co-supervised by Prof Hillegonda Rietveld, in which Alexandra is collaborating as a Visiting Scholar Research in the context of the Sonic Research Group at London South Bank University to support an investigation of psytrance in a technocultural context.Alexandra received her master degree from the FCSH Nova LISBOA of Musical Sciences-Ethnomusicology about the use of music in the Portuguese Colonial War in Cabinda, Angola (1970-74). She also has a degree in piano and music therapy, domains in which she maintains activity.
Doctoral Project
Title
Breaks and uplifts in (light and dark) psytrance: DJs’ and ravers’ views around me worldwide from 2018 to 2023
Advisors
Abstract
Like the rest, psytrance festivals broke down during COVID-19. My research proposal, looking for breaks and up-lifts in psytrance festivals’ dancefloors around the globe from DJ’s and fans perspectives, took on a new meaning: the notion of break & up-lift expanded inexorably. After a moment of despair, in which my DJ activity slowed down, the research focused on my reflection about the slowing down process: which of my DJ tasks changed and how, which festivals resisted the pandemic, and which psytrance music, and particularly sound, characteristics emerge during this time (2019-2022) The goal of finishing the thesis on time, to fulfil the grant program of the Foundation for Science and Technology at NOVA FCSH, remained. In theoretical terms, centred on psytrance festivals’ DJ performance, auto-ethnography, uncertain environment, and live stream experiences became the key words. The collaboration with Bernardo Attias in the organization of The DJ as Curator conference at the California State University of Northridge and with Hillegonda Rietveld from London South Bank University regarding female DJs in London, brought light and direct local experience to the international scope of my research. For this thesis I consider five main DJ tasks, expressed in performances during the pandemics in twenty-five psytrance festivals in five continental regions. The main output turned out to be what I name as the five main sound bites from the pandemics Break to the psytrance festivals phenomenon: characteristics and geo references in psytrance performance, underground vs commercial, sound profile: electronic and acoustic, melodies, voices, remixes, psychedelic and/or Tribal rhythms.
Keywords: Break, DJ, Raver, Covid-19, Live Streams, Uplift, Psytrance, Music Production, Autoethnograhy, Etnography, Good Vibes, Stage, Dancefloor.
Funding: Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (PD/BD/150370/2019)
