Loss, memory and nostalgia in popular song :thematic aspects and theoretical approaches

Abstract

The aim of this thesis is to study the ways loss is reflected in popular music and in the discourse surrounding popular music. The project attempts to create a dialogue between theorists of loss and memory working in various disciplines and those working in and around popular music (musicians, critics, academics). It also recognises the vital role of loss in revolution (and vice versa) and attends to revolutionary moments, or events, not least the `event' of rock 'n' roll. It proceeds from the idea that, while creativity is a crucial aspect of the production and reception (or receptive production) of popular music, creativity often takes the form of a response, or set of responses, to loss. While rooted in popular music studies, the project reflects a desire to look outside the Anglophone tradition and includes case studies of a few music genres - Portuguese fado, Cuban nueva trova, Chilean nueva canciön - that exist in a place between popular music studies and ethnomusicology. It also studies three areas more familiar to Anglophone popular music studies: rock 'n' roll, black protest music in America and punk/post-punk in Britain. Methodologically, the thesis draws on popular music studies, philosophy and cultural theory in an attempt to suggest ways that these disciplines can inform each other.