Mainstreaming American Musical Multiculturalism

By Anne K. Rasmussen

At the dawn of the twenty-first century we find ourselves in Marshall McLuhan's proverbial "global village." The music of the world informs American television jingles, kids' cartoons, and news programs, and "world beat" infuses pop music with badly needed energy while at the same time providing it with seductive symbols for better marketing. Yet how do we conceive of American music? How do we teach it?

     I argue for a revision of definitions and orientation in American music curricula. As an advocate of diversity, I posit that musical multiculturalism is really nothing new and should be moved from the margins of American music back into the mainstream.