On Record: Audio Recording, Mediation, and Citizenship in Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador's musical media and audio recording industry have a rich history, with professional musicians, community songwriters, local institutions, and politicians contributing to a diverse body of work that challenges the notion of recorded music as a cultural commodity. On Record explores how recording projects have served as sonic signatures, forms of protest, homage, or parody of the foibles of those in power, shaped by events such as resettlement, residential schools, the cod moratorium, technological change, and disasters. It also examines the widespread response to a unique annual challenge to make an audio recording, reflecting the vibrant, socially engaged, and resilient nature of communities that value both professional standards and the creative potential of every citizen.

Format: Hardback
Publication date: 12 May 2021
Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press

Newfoundland and Labrador's musical media and audio recording industry have a rich and complex history, with professional musicians, community songwriters, local institutions, and politicians contributing to a diverse body of work that challenges the notion of recorded music as a cultural commodity and enhances the province's tradition of cultural activism. Drawing on contemporary testimony and over fifty years of interviews, On Record explores how recording projects have served as sonic signatures, forms of protest, homage, or parody of the foibles of those in power. Beverley Diamond examines how audio recording in Newfoundland and Labrador has been shaped by events such as resettlement, residential schools, the cod moratorium, technological change, and disasters. Mathias Kom's chapter examines the widespread response to a unique annual challenge to make an audio recording, spanning both commercial and community-oriented initiatives. This book reflects the vibrant, socially engaged, and resilient nature of communities that value both the highest professional standards and the creative potential of every citizen. Encompassing music from both settler and Indigenous communities, On Record redefines the culture of a province that has often been associated with traditional music, demonstrating that recording goes beyond the creation of a commodity and responds to the present and constructs of public memory.

Dimension: 235 x 159 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780228006541