Possible Contributions of Ethnomusicology to the Social History of Carnival

Reflections on Potentials, Limits, and Contradictions of a Disciplinary Field

Abstract

The present article aims to highlight possible contributions arising from the accumulations of ethnomusicology to Brazilian historiography related to music and popular festivals, with a special focus on the social history of Carnival from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. Additionally, it opens up a more essayistic space for reflection on the issue of alterity (a foundational element of the ethnomusicological disciplinary field), its limits, and contradictions. The article points, in contrast, to other horizons made possible by the emergence of new social and political subjects as researchers in this field.