Soundscapes – Ethnographic & Documentary Projects by Students at Amherst College

Mariachi Mexico Antiguo: Nuevas Fronteras (2018)

November 29, 2018 kisenegger20@amherst.edu

Mariachi Mexico Antiguo sees themselves as having a responsibility to share their culture and promote a culture of appreciation for mariachi music while inspiring future generations of mariachi musicians to build upon their legacy in the Connecticut River Valley.

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Larry Larry (2018)

November 29, 2018 kisenegger20@amherst.edu

Larry is truly an engineer and influencer of sound in the Pioneer Valley and throughout Massachusetts.

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There’s a Method to the Madness: Change Ringing in Northampton (2018)

November 29, 2018 Asha

The Smith College Change Ringing group based out of the Mendenhall Tower at Smith College is incredibly enthusiastic about the sounds created by bells and sharing that joy with others.

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Soundtracks: Roller Derby in the Valley (2018)

November 29, 2018 Asha

Pioneer Valley Roller Derby is a member-run and -organized flat-track roller derby league in Florence, MA.

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Sonic Routes (2018)

November 29, 2018 Asha

Transportation is one of the central functions of music. When we listen to music, we’re transported into a new soundscape shaped by myriad, swirling frequencies, harmonies, and colors of instruments, voices, and sounds.

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Grandfather’s Medicine: Intertribal Powwow Music in Western Massachusetts (2017)

April 27, 2017 Cesar Centeno

Grandfather’s Medicine explores the history of the group and the enduring presence of Native American powwow music in Western Massachusetts.

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It Takes More Than Two: Argentine Tango in the Pioneer Valley (2017)

April 27, 2017 Gilbert Wermeling

Argentine tango, as it is performed and danced today, was developed in the middle of the twentieth century in Buenos Aires, Argentina and Montevideo, Uruguay. Today, it is danced all over the world, and the Pioneer Valley is no exception.

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Calling All Horns: French Horn Playing in the Pioneer Valley (2017)

April 27, 2017 Patrick Williams

There has long been a thriving community of horn players in the Pioneer Valley, especially in Belchertown and Amherst, where a supportive cohort of horn players is long established.

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Building Klez-munity: The Diverse Klezmer Music Scene in the Pioneer Valley (2017)

April 27, 2017 Bingyao Liu

Building Klez-munity focuses on three musicians who are deeply involved in the klezmer music scene around the valley and the bands they work with.

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Ask a Punk: An Incomplete Portrait of Western Mass DIY (2017)

April 27, 2017 Brian Zayatz

Western Mass DIY (Do-It-Yourself concert organizing) has been notable for decades, yet still somehow manages to keep itself somewhat hidden in plain sight.

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