International Archives and National Music Competitions: The Preservation of an “Endangered” Musical Heritage in the Saharawi Refugee Camps (Southwest Algeria)
The preservation of cultural practices within the framework of the UNESCO ICH lists has been tied to the protection of cultural diversity, intercultural dialogue and community identity. Moreover, it is inextricably linked to questions of national identity, especially given that submissions are made...
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| Опубликовано в: : | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/transposition, |
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| Главный автор: | |
| Формат: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Язык: | Anglais |
| Опубликовано: |
Transposition
2019
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| Предметы: | |
| Online-ссылка: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:transposition_3513 |
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| record_format |
openedition |
| collection |
OpenEdition Journal |
| language |
Anglais |
| format |
Article ou chapitre numérique |
| building |
0/Bibliothèque numérique/ 1/Bibliothèque numérique/OpenEdition Journals/ |
| topic |
sauvegarde archive patrimoine musical menacé Sahara occidental musique sahraouie preservation archive endangered musical heritage Western Sahara Saharawi music |
| spellingShingle |
sauvegarde archive patrimoine musical menacé Sahara occidental musique sahraouie preservation archive endangered musical heritage Western Sahara Saharawi music Ruano Posada, Violeta International Archives and National Music Competitions: The Preservation of an “Endangered” Musical Heritage in the Saharawi Refugee Camps (Southwest Algeria) |
| description |
The preservation of cultural practices within the framework of the UNESCO ICH lists has been tied to the protection of cultural diversity, intercultural dialogue and community identity. Moreover, it is inextricably linked to questions of national identity, especially given that submissions are made on an (internationally recognised) nation-state basis. This becomes problematic in the case of long-standing unrecognised states, such as the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). The protracted refugee status of the Saharawi people—based in refugee camps in the south-western Algerian desert since Morocco occupied their homeland Western Sahara in 1975—is a major obstacle in their struggle for independence. Their recent history of war, occupation, exile and cultural appropriation has threatened the survival of Saharawi musical and poetic practices, as well as restricting their access to international bodies that could provide cultural safeguarding assistance.To address this situation, the Saharawi cultural authorities have collaborated with international organisations (e.g. the Autonomous University of Madrid and the British Library) to create archives of Saharawi poetry and music. In addition, every year they organise large festivals to showcase traditional culture, featuring musical competitions especially aimed at youth. To prepare for these competitions, young people—who have gradually become less aware of the Saharawi Bedouin way of life before exile—are assisted by national musicians and encouraged to research their own traditional music by establishing dialogues with the elders. So far, these measures have had significant short-term impact on the local population, engaging the youth in anecdotal research on their traditional culture; however, due to the Saharawi government’s chronic lack of resources, it has been impossible both to sustain such measures in the long term and to achieve international recognition.Focusing on two case studies—1) the British Library preservation project “Portraits of Saharawi Music” and 2) a music competition during the Saharawi national celebrations in February 2014—this article explores the efforts of the SADR to safeguard their musical heritage using a mix of material (recorded archives) and non-material (oral transmission) strategies. It also analyses the ways in which socio-political interests such as the reinforcement of a self-built national identity have encouraged the need to keep particular styles (e.g. traditional/national music) alive under the label of intangible heritage preservation. |
| author |
Ruano Posada, Violeta |
| author_facet |
Ruano Posada, Violeta |
| author_sort |
Ruano Posada, Violeta |
| title |
International Archives and National Music Competitions: The Preservation of an “Endangered” Musical Heritage in the Saharawi Refugee Camps (Southwest Algeria) |
| title_short |
International Archives and National Music Competitions: The Preservation of an “Endangered” Musical Heritage in the Saharawi Refugee Camps (Southwest Algeria) |
| title_full |
International Archives and National Music Competitions: The Preservation of an “Endangered” Musical Heritage in the Saharawi Refugee Camps (Southwest Algeria) |
| title_fullStr |
International Archives and National Music Competitions: The Preservation of an “Endangered” Musical Heritage in the Saharawi Refugee Camps (Southwest Algeria) |
| title_full_unstemmed |
International Archives and National Music Competitions: The Preservation of an “Endangered” Musical Heritage in the Saharawi Refugee Camps (Southwest Algeria) |
| title_sort |
international archives and national music competitions: the preservation of an “endangered” musical heritage in the saharawi refugee camps (southwest algeria) |
| publisher |
Transposition |
| publishDate |
2019 |
| container_title |
URI:https://journals.openedition.org/transposition |
| url |
https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://doi.org/10.4000/transposition.3513 https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://journals.openedition.org/transposition/3513 |
| _version_ |
1877294183254851584 |
| spelling |
openedition-oai:revues.org:transposition_3513 https://doi.org/10.4000/transposition.3513 urn:doi:10.4000/transposition.3513 en https://journals.openedition.org/transposition/3513 2019-11-04T01:00:00Z info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article info:eu-repo/semantics/article urn:handle:20.500.13089/lmcg https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ International Archives and National Music Competitions: The Preservation of an “Endangered” Musical Heritage in the Saharawi Refugee Camps (Southwest Algeria) Transposition Éditions de l’EHESS info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/2110-6134 URI:https://journals.openedition.org/transposition Ruano Posada, Violeta sauvegarde archive patrimoine musical menacé Sahara occidental musique sahraouie preservation archive endangered musical heritage Western Sahara Saharawi music The preservation of cultural practices within the framework of the UNESCO ICH lists has been tied to the protection of cultural diversity, intercultural dialogue and community identity. Moreover, it is inextricably linked to questions of national identity, especially given that submissions are made on an (internationally recognised) nation-state basis. This becomes problematic in the case of long-standing unrecognised states, such as the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). The protracted refugee status of the Saharawi people—based in refugee camps in the south-western Algerian desert since Morocco occupied their homeland Western Sahara in 1975—is a major obstacle in their struggle for independence. Their recent history of war, occupation, exile and cultural appropriation has threatened the survival of Saharawi musical and poetic practices, as well as restricting their access to international bodies that could provide cultural safeguarding assistance.To address this situation, the Saharawi cultural authorities have collaborated with international organisations (e.g. the Autonomous University of Madrid and the British Library) to create archives of Saharawi poetry and music. In addition, every year they organise large festivals to showcase traditional culture, featuring musical competitions especially aimed at youth. To prepare for these competitions, young people—who have gradually become less aware of the Saharawi Bedouin way of life before exile—are assisted by national musicians and encouraged to research their own traditional music by establishing dialogues with the elders. So far, these measures have had significant short-term impact on the local population, engaging the youth in anecdotal research on their traditional culture; however, due to the Saharawi government’s chronic lack of resources, it has been impossible both to sustain such measures in the long term and to achieve international recognition.Focusing on two case studies—1) the British Library preservation project “Portraits of Saharawi Music” and 2) a music competition during the Saharawi national celebrations in February 2014—this article explores the efforts of the SADR to safeguard their musical heritage using a mix of material (recorded archives) and non-material (oral transmission) strategies. It also analyses the ways in which socio-political interests such as the reinforcement of a self-built national identity have encouraged the need to keep particular styles (e.g. traditional/national music) alive under the label of intangible heritage preservation. La préservation de pratiques culturelles dans le cadre des listes du Patrimoine Culturel Immatériel (PCI) de l’UNESCO est liée à la protection de la diversité culturelle, du dialogue interculturel et de l’identité des communautés. En outre, elle est inextricablement liée aux questions de culture nationale, étant donné que les candidatures sont soumises au niveau des États-nation (ceux qui sont reconnus internationalement). Cela devient problématique dans le cas des États non reconnus depuis longtemps, tels que la République arabe sahraouie démocratique (RASD). Le statut prolongé de réfugié du peuple sahraoui - basé dans des camps de réfugiés dans le désert du sud-ouest algérien depuis l’occupation par le Maroc de leur territoire du Sahara occidental en 1975 - constitue un obstacle majeur dans la lutte pour l’indépendance. Leur histoire récente faite de guerre, d’occupation, d’exil et d’appropriation culturelle menace la survie des pratiques musicales et poétiques sahraouies, tout en limitant leur accès aux organismes internationaux susceptibles de soutenir la sauvegarde de leur culture.Pour remédier à cette situation, les autorités culturelles sahraouies ont collaboré avec des organisations internationales (par exemple l’Université autonome de Madrid et la British Library) afin de créer des archives de poésie et de musique sahraouies. Chaque année, elles organisent d’importants festivals afin de valoriser la culture traditionnelle, avec des concours de musique destinés en particulier à la jeunesse. Pour se préparer à ces compétitions, les jeunes – qui se sont peu à peu éloignés du mode de vie des bédouins sahraouis d’avant l’exil – sont aidés par des musiciens nationaux et encouragés à faire des recherches sur leur propre musique traditionnelle en établissant un dialogue avec les aînés. Jusqu’à présent, ces mesures ont eu, à court terme, un impact significatif sur la population locale, en engageant les jeunes à recueillir des témoignages sur leur culture traditionnelle. Cependant, le manque chronique de ressources du gouvernement sahraoui a rendu impossible à la fois le maintien de ces mesures sur le long terme, et l’obtention d’une reconnaissance internationale.Cet article se concentre sur deux études de cas : 1) le projet de sauvegarde « Portraits de la musique sahraouie » de la British Library et 2) un concours de musique organisé lors des célébrations nationales sahraouies en février 2014. Il revient sur les efforts engagés par la RASD pour sauvegarder son patrimoine musical, fondés sur un mélange de ressources matérielles (archives enregistrées) et non matérielles (transmission orale). Il analyse également la manière dont des intérêts sociopolitiques, tels que le renforcement d’une culture nationale auto-construite, ont encouragé la préservation de styles particuliers (par exemple, la musique traditionnelle / nationale) au titre de la sauvegarde du patrimoine immatériel. |