World Music, Politics and Social Change: Papers from the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (Music and Society Series)

Drawing upon a variety of academic disciplines, this selection of essays from the International Association for the Study of Popular Music examines the social and musical forces that lie behind the sales labels of popular music. The book asks - "How does popular music change?", "What is the impact of First world capital on Third World musical performers?" and, "Is 'world music' enriched or impoverished by its new global context?". The answers offered by some of these essays are optimistic, challenging entrenched ideas about music tradition and progress - however, the authors of others of these essays also reveal the commercial and political struggles that underpin much music-making.