The Musicality of Salsa Dancers: An Ethnographic Study

 by janice mahinka

This work, a dissertation as partial fulfillment for a Ph.D. in ethnomusicology at The Graduate Center, CUNY, analyzes the musical knowledge and aesthetics acquired by dancers who hone close listening skills through corporeal means. Dancers’ engage their musicality through kinesthetic entrainment, interpretation of musical convention(s) such as hypermeter, microtiming of rhythms and other patterns, as well as “flow” and “feel.” The project utilizes in-depth feedback interviews with participants of the New York City salsa/mambo scene to contribute an analytical foundation of improvising and aesthetics within the conventions of this popular dance music.

The main text of the work will be forthcoming through your local library’s electronic dissertation database. The videos on this site are meant to elucidate the analyses in the text. All video and text are for academic use. Downloading of the videos or other copying, still or moving, is forbidden, as per you-damn-well-know better ethics, i.e., IRB said so, and it’s not nice to steal. Any questions, concerns, or comments can be directed to me: jmahinka@gmail.com

All material, including intellectual, is copyrighted by © janice mahinka 2017. Not to be reprinted or used in any manner without written permission of the author.