A Musician from Elsewhere in Quest of Knowledge: Past and Present in Armas Launis’ Ideas on the North African Musical Traditions

In 1910, composer, musicologist and writer Armas Launis (Hämeenlinna, Finland 1884–Nice 1959) was the first Finn to have defended a doctoral dissertation within the discipline of Musicology. Already quite experienced in field work among rural populations when he settled in Algiers in the 1920s, he...

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Main Author: Helena TYRVÄINEN
Format: Article
Language:Arabic
Published: Center of Research in Social and Cultural Anthropology (CRASC) 2023-12-01
Series:Turath
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Online Access:https://journals.crasc.dz/index.php/turath/article/view/18
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author Helena TYRVÄINEN
author_facet Helena TYRVÄINEN
author_sort Helena TYRVÄINEN
collection DOAJ
description In 1910, composer, musicologist and writer Armas Launis (Hämeenlinna, Finland 1884–Nice 1959) was the first Finn to have defended a doctoral dissertation within the discipline of Musicology. Already quite experienced in field work among rural populations when he settled in Algiers in the 1920s, he enhanced his knowledge about local music traditions not only through personal observation and by interviewing local musicians (Yafil, Mahieddine) and other residents, but also from scholarly writings and other literary sources. I investigate how impulses from earlier thought and Launis’s practical experiences shaped his ideas on Maghrebi music. As my source, I use his travel book from 1927, Murjaanien maassa (In the land of the Moors), his first extensive interpretation of the cultures of the Maghreb, as well as his university lecture from 1928, Piirteitä maurilais-arabialaisesta musiikista (Traits of the Arabo-Moorish music). The idea of the ongoing presence of ancientness in modern times holds a central place in Launis’s thinking about North African music. When claiming that the evolution of the North African musical traditions had ended, he did not necessarily lean on western ideas only. Launis never proposed a scientific interpretation of the music traditions of the Maghreb area. However, his position extends to his subsequent output as an opera composer.
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spelling doaj-art-e0fa23cc79fc4f9cbe5490b35dc51c742025-08-20T03:50:11ZaraCenter of Research in Social and Cultural Anthropology (CRASC)Turath2830-98632992-06982023-12-0112A Musician from Elsewhere in Quest of Knowledge: Past and Present in Armas Launis’ Ideas on the North African Musical TraditionsHelena TYRVÄINEN0University of Helsinki, Finland In 1910, composer, musicologist and writer Armas Launis (Hämeenlinna, Finland 1884–Nice 1959) was the first Finn to have defended a doctoral dissertation within the discipline of Musicology. Already quite experienced in field work among rural populations when he settled in Algiers in the 1920s, he enhanced his knowledge about local music traditions not only through personal observation and by interviewing local musicians (Yafil, Mahieddine) and other residents, but also from scholarly writings and other literary sources. I investigate how impulses from earlier thought and Launis’s practical experiences shaped his ideas on Maghrebi music. As my source, I use his travel book from 1927, Murjaanien maassa (In the land of the Moors), his first extensive interpretation of the cultures of the Maghreb, as well as his university lecture from 1928, Piirteitä maurilais-arabialaisesta musiikista (Traits of the Arabo-Moorish music). The idea of the ongoing presence of ancientness in modern times holds a central place in Launis’s thinking about North African music. When claiming that the evolution of the North African musical traditions had ended, he did not necessarily lean on western ideas only. Launis never proposed a scientific interpretation of the music traditions of the Maghreb area. However, his position extends to his subsequent output as an opera composer. https://journals.crasc.dz/index.php/turath/article/view/18Global Music HistoryFinland–AlgeriaArmas LaunisMahieddine BachetarziJules Rouanet
spellingShingle Helena TYRVÄINEN
A Musician from Elsewhere in Quest of Knowledge: Past and Present in Armas Launis’ Ideas on the North African Musical Traditions
Turath
Global Music History
Finland–Algeria
Armas Launis
Mahieddine Bachetarzi
Jules Rouanet
title A Musician from Elsewhere in Quest of Knowledge: Past and Present in Armas Launis’ Ideas on the North African Musical Traditions
title_full A Musician from Elsewhere in Quest of Knowledge: Past and Present in Armas Launis’ Ideas on the North African Musical Traditions
title_fullStr A Musician from Elsewhere in Quest of Knowledge: Past and Present in Armas Launis’ Ideas on the North African Musical Traditions
title_full_unstemmed A Musician from Elsewhere in Quest of Knowledge: Past and Present in Armas Launis’ Ideas on the North African Musical Traditions
title_short A Musician from Elsewhere in Quest of Knowledge: Past and Present in Armas Launis’ Ideas on the North African Musical Traditions
title_sort musician from elsewhere in quest of knowledge past and present in armas launis ideas on the north african musical traditions
topic Global Music History
Finland–Algeria
Armas Launis
Mahieddine Bachetarzi
Jules Rouanet
url https://journals.crasc.dz/index.php/turath/article/view/18
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