https://t.co/1YkONAv0SK — Smithsonian Magazine (@SmithsonianMag) July 28, 2020Anecdotal evidenceThe original theory of “Black Beethoven” first appeared in the popular press in the early 20th century. For some scholars, Beethoven’s music itself, its rhythmic complexity — specifically its syncopation — points towards his hidden ethnicity, as it suggests a knowledge of West African musical practices. Beethoven was Black because his music “sounds” Black; in other words, notwithstanding the unlikeliness of his familiarity with African music or that syncopation was commonplace in European music at that time. Pursuing the idea that “Beethoven was Black” both whitewashes and blackwashes music history, as African American studies scholar Nicholas Rinehart has observed. If the genealogical or phenotypical pursuit of “Black Beethoven” leads to a dead end, it nonetheless emphasizes the importance of past and ongoing work by Black scholars to research and document the history of music and race.

Source: The North Africa Journal July 30, 2020 14:15 UTC