Middle-Class Musicians? Beyond Music, Identity, and the 'Poverty Equation' in Brazil

Marc A. Hertzman, Columbia University. This lecture explores the colonial and nineteenth-century origins of Brazil's poverty equation and its subsequent evolution. Part of the equation's power derives from the fact that it has not just been imposed from outside or above, but also embraced and deployed by Africandescendant musicians. Examining its multiple sources and uses provides a new way to think about music and an alternative to the traditional histories of Brazil's middle class, a sector often understood in narrow racial and occupational terms. Cosponsored by the Department of History, Department of Afroamerican and African Studies (DAAS).