Music, intentions, and double insularity : the politics of musical participation and music-making in a small Gozitan village

Abstract

The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate the range of intentions that both musicians and audience members experience when participating at various musical events held on a village located on a double insular island. Such intentions can be both musical and extra-musical, including the acquisition of practical musical knowledge as well as the attainment of prestige and recognition in a small village community. The research takes place at the Gozitan village of Xaghra, a village with a population of 4, 886 people. The work presents intriguing yet overlapping worlds of folk music making, wind bands, church music and pop and rock music. In terms of methodology this dissertation relied mainly on ethnography and therefore it includes fieldwork and interviews.