Call For Papers: Crossings: A Counter-Disciplinary Journal

Special Issue: The Power of Music (2005)

Deadline: October 20th, 2004

What is the power (potential) of music? The proliferation of music and
musical cultures on a global scale remains relatively unexplored in
theoretical debates about and within Post-structuralism. While there is
an extensive and growing literature on the power of the image in the
post-war era, there is no similarly oriented literature concerning the
power of sound, voice, and music. Why? This *exclusion* is all the more
remarkable when we consider the unparalleled rise of new and unique
forms of music in the post-war era, not to mention the importance that
music has come to play in our everyday lives. Music is everywhere, and
proliferating wildly in its pragmatic, political, and existential
contexts. What is this growing love for music, and how is it connected
to other things that we love—to unique ways of thinking and living,
styles, subcultures, and desires? What are the stakes for thinking and
doing music in the post-war era? And what of the efforts to contain
this power (potential), both pragmatically (e.g. censorship, the
spectacle), and with historicisizing, mediated, narratives (e.g.
"Behind the Music"). What could it mean, in contrast, to think music
"historically" (in Benjamin's or Foucault's sense)? In short, what can
the power of music do as an unrealized and unknown potential? How is it
*always and already* affecting us? And how is it that the radical
immanence (and intimacy) of music so often resists our attempts to
theorize and give expression to it? *Crossings* seeks articles that
*enter into composition with* the unknown potential of music in the
post-war era. The editors are particularly interested in theoretical
perspectives that make connections with specific styles and forms of
music. In particular, we encourage engagements with so-called "lost,"
neglected, or marginalized music(s) of the past (for example, the
recent re-discovery of late 60's garage, psychedelic, and sunshine pop
music). Moreover, we encourage scholars with knowledge of, and
connections to, specific music cultures to write immanently: that is,
*from within* those cultures.

Possible topics include, but are not limited to:

—Political Economy of Post-war Music(s) —Indie Music Culture —Karaoke
—Turntablism —Hip-Hop —Rap
—Psychedelic —Silence —Minimalism —Experimental Music —Lounge —Exotica
—Emo —Punk
—Children's music —Lost Music(s) —Bluegrass —Music and the Spectacle
(Media) —Music and Affect
—Walls of Sound —Noise —Music and Everyday Life —Bollywood —Walter
Benjamin —Radio
—Deleuze and Guattari —(Post) Modern Opera —Electronic Music —Rhythm
—New Wave —Disco
—Politics of Music —Rock N' Roll —Voice —Globalization and World Music
—Air Guitar —Heavy Metal
—Soul —Funk —Reggae —Technologies of Sound —Ambient —Remixing —Jazz —
Listening – Mash-Ups

Submissions should be in MSWord or WordPerfect format, double-spaced,
and conform to the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, endnote
citation format. Hard copy manuscripts should be submitted in duplicate
and should be accompanied by a disk version (IBM compatible 3 1/2"
disk). Manuscripts will not be returned unless accompanied by a
self-addressed, stamped envelope. A style sheet is available in Adobe
Acrobat format on-line at: http://crossings.binghamton.edu/style.pdf.

Additional information can be found at: http://crossings.binghamton.edu

Send all manuscripts and inquiries by October 20, 2004 to:
Robert C. Thomas, xings_at_binghamton.edu

Or,

Crossings
Department of English
P.O. Box 6000
Binghamton University
Binghamton, New York 13902-6000

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Received on Tue Jul 20 2004 - 01:11:31 EDT