In this highly praised and seminal work, Alan Merriam demonstrates that music is a social behavior—one worthy and available to study through the methods of anthropology. In it, he convincingly argues that ethnomusicology, by definition, cannot separate the sound-analysis of music from its cultural context of people thinking, acting, and creating.

The study begins with a review of the various approaches in ethnomusicology. He then suggests a useful and simple research model: ideas about music lead to behavior related to music and this behavior results in musical sound. He explains many aspects and outcomes of this model, and the methods and techniques he suggests are useful to anyone doing field work. Further chapters provide a cross-cultural round-up of concepts about music, physical and verbal behavior related to music, the role of the musician, and the learning and composing of music.

The Anthropology of Music illuminates much of interest to musicologists but to social scientists in general as well.

"For the broad perspective it provides of man as music-maker, as also for the lucid résumé of past and present appraoches to this subject which it presents, Merriam's new book should, I think, be treated as essential reading both within the social sciences and the humanities." - Man

"With great thoroughness, Merriam has pointed out to anthropologists how much they can contribute to our general knowledge of music as human experience." - American Anthropologist

Contents:

Preface

PART ONE: ETHNOMUSICOLOGY

Chapter I      The Study of Ethnomusicology
Chapter II     Toward a Theory for Ethnomusicology
Chapter III    Method and Technique

PART TWO: CONCEPTS AND BEHAVIOR

Chapter IV     Concepts
Chapter V      Synesthesia and Intersense Modalities
Chapter VI     Physical and Verbal Behavior
Chapter VII    Social Behavior: The Musician
Chapter VIII   Learning
Chapter IX     The Process of Composition

PART THREE: PROBLEMS AND RESULTS

Chapter X     The Study of Song Texts
Chapter XI    Uses and Functions
Chapter XII   Music as Symbolic Behavior
Chapter XIII  Aesthetics and the Interrelationship of the Arts
Chapter XIV  Music and Culture History
Chapter XV   Music and Cultural Dynamics

References Cited

Index