Theodore Levin (ethnomusicologist)
Encyclopedia
Theodore Levin is currently professor of music at Dartmouth College
in New Hampshire
. He is an ethnomusicologist, earning his undergraduate degree at Amherst College
and obtaining his Ph.D. from Princeton University
. Levin has focused his research on the people of Central Asia, including a recent research trip to the Altai Mountains to study Tuvan
forms of music. Dr. Levin began studying Central Asian forms of music in 1974. Since then, he has written 2 books, including 100,000 Fools of God: Musical Travels in Central Asia (published by Indiana University Press in 1999). He chronicled his journey to Tuva in his most recent book, Where Rivers and Mountains Sing (published by Indiana University Press in 2006).
Where Rivers and Mountains Sing- This is Levin's second book that takes the reader once again on a journey through Central Asia. Levin begins the novel by chronicling his experiences with a Tuvan throat-singing group. He vividly explains and details the Tuvan people's ideas about nature and animals, and how their music reproduces the sounds and actions of those animals. The idea of tradition is also brought up frequently, especially in the case of the throat singers. The world is embracing them, and Levin details the effects of the popularity on the performers and the traditions.
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
in New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
. He is an ethnomusicologist, earning his undergraduate degree at Amherst College
Amherst College
Amherst College is a private liberal arts college located in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Amherst is an exclusively undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 1,744 students in the fall of 2009...
and obtaining his Ph.D. from Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
. Levin has focused his research on the people of Central Asia, including a recent research trip to the Altai Mountains to study Tuvan
Tuvan
Tuvan can refer to:*Of or pertaining to Tuva*The Tuvans*The Tuvan language*Tuvan Syndrome, a fictional Star Trek malady that afflicts Vulcans, Romulans and Rigellians....
forms of music. Dr. Levin began studying Central Asian forms of music in 1974. Since then, he has written 2 books, including 100,000 Fools of God: Musical Travels in Central Asia (published by Indiana University Press in 1999). He chronicled his journey to Tuva in his most recent book, Where Rivers and Mountains Sing (published by Indiana University Press in 2006).
Books
100,000 Fools of God: Musical Travels in Central Asia- Levin's first book, this chronicles his return to Central Asia. Levin records information about the peasants; such as the stories they kept alive through music, the actual music itself, how they dealt with Soviet rule, and even the shaman healers that use music to heal the sick. This book has a wealth of information pertaining to Central Asia folk customs and the evolving post-soviet culture.Where Rivers and Mountains Sing- This is Levin's second book that takes the reader once again on a journey through Central Asia. Levin begins the novel by chronicling his experiences with a Tuvan throat-singing group. He vividly explains and details the Tuvan people's ideas about nature and animals, and how their music reproduces the sounds and actions of those animals. The idea of tradition is also brought up frequently, especially in the case of the throat singers. The world is embracing them, and Levin details the effects of the popularity on the performers and the traditions.
Literature
- Theodore Levin: The Hundred Thousand Fools of God, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Indiana (USA), 1999, ISBN 0-253-21310-X
- Theodore Levin (with Valentina Süzükei): Where Rivers and Mountains Sing: Sound, Music and Nomadism in Tuva and Beyond, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Indiana (USA), 2006, ISBN 0-253-34715-7