The path to trade unionism: musical work in Chile (1893-1940)

Karmy Bolton, Eileen Andrea (2019) The path to trade unionism: musical work in Chile (1893-1940). PhD thesis, University of Glasgow.

Abstract

The relationship between music as art and music as work has been a perennial issue in musicians’ working lives. It has provoked longstanding debates not just in academia but also in musicians’ practice and their organisations. Little is known, however, about the social history of musicians’ organisations, particularly outside the Anglophone world. This thesis addresses this issue by reading a broad range of documents written by musicians who worked in music in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in Valparaíso, Chile. I call them working-musicians, in contrast to those who made music for the sake of it without expecting payment in exchange. These working-musicians gathered in collective organisations that
followed the model of the labour movement, such as mutual aid societies and
trade unions. Behind the creation and functioning of these organisations lie
complex and variegated decisions that the musicians made themselves. Analysing their discussions and processes of decision making embedded in the wider context of postcolonial Chile sheds light on how these working-musicians and their organisations coped with the changes in the ebullient music industries of the port city of Valparaíso and the rising labour movement. Through case studies and document analysis, this thesis brings together perspectives from labour history, Latin American studies and musicology, and contributes to conversations on the study of musical labour. Overall, it tells a part of the social history of Chilean music from a labour perspective.

• Item Type: Thesis (PhD)
• Qualification Level: Doctoral
• Keywords: musical labour, musicians' unions, labour movement, mutual aid societies, Chile, Valparaiso, academic musicians, art and labour, archival documents, case studies, document analysis.
• Subjects: F History United States, Canada, Latin America > F1201 Latin America (General); M Music and Books on Music > M Music; M Music and Books on Music > ML Literature of music
• Colleges/Schools: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Culture and Creative Arts > Music
• Supervisor's Name: Moreda Rodriguez, Dr. Eva, Williamson, Dr. John and Cloonan, Professor Martin
• Date of Award: 2019
• Depositing User: Eileen Karmy
• Unique ID: glathesis:2019-75178
• Copyright: Copyright of this thesis is held by the author.
• Date Deposited: 20 Nov 2019 08:41
• Last Modified: 12 Dec 2019 08:27
• Thesis DOI: 10.5525/gla.thesis.75178
• URI: https://theses.gla.ac.uk/id/eprint/75178