Modern music didn’t develop along a single path—and it certainly wasn’t confined to Europe and the United States. Herman Hudde’s recent publications trace the rich exchange of ideas across the Americas, uncovering overlooked histories and offering fresh perspectives on how Latin American musicians and thinkers have transformed the musical landscape.
Hudde’s article “Modern Latin American Art Music at the Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood (1941–46),” examines an untold chapter of modern art music during the “Good Neighbor Era” which illustrates the diversity of trends and aesthetics found in Latin American art music. The article examines the ways in which modern art music is not restricted to the Euro-American context.
By examining the work of composer/conductor Max Lifchitz, music director of North/South Consonance concert series, the article “Max Lifchitz: A Transmodern Composer in American Music?” introduces Enrique Dussel’s transmodern theory of modernity, which represents a Latin American interpretation of modernity and illustrates how Latin American composers have produced intercultural works of music and non-canonical spaces as a result of their agency and creativity.
Leornard Bernstein, the renowned composer and conductor, not only admired Latin American music, but also deeply incorporated it into his compositional style and language. The book chapter “Latin America” examines Bernstein’s diverse connections with Latin American music, which served as a means for him to express social and political commentary.
The Oxford Bibliographies on Celia Cruz and Carlos Santana have been published with the intention of promoting and facilitating research about these Latin American artists and music whose work has had a significant impact on current popular music.
