The Arts

Hidden musicality in Chinese Xiangsheng: a response to the call for interdisciplinary research in studying speech and song

F. R. S. Lawson

Discover how music cognition research can embrace interdisciplinarity through a fascinating exploration of Chinese Xiangsheng, a unique form of musical comedy. Conducted by Francesca R. Sborgi Lawson, this study reveals the intricate relationship between speech and song through innovative methodological approaches using a compelling case study performance.

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~3 min • Beginner • English

Index

Abstract

Recent scholarship in music cognition calls for increased interdisciplinarity and expansion beyond Western European music. This paper responds by focusing on Xiangsheng (Chinese crosstalk), a comedic performance genre that reveals an intriguing relationship between speech and song. The paper argues that tools from conversational analysis, communicative musicality, empirical research on music–language relationships, and performative mutuality in ethnomusicology all converge on musicality—an underlying human capacity enabling verbal and musical communication—as a common foundation for both speech and song. Musicality is apparent in how Xiangsheng actors relate to each other and to audiences across spoken and musical modalities. By judiciously combining methodologies, the study demonstrates how interdisciplinary approaches to musicality can yield insights relevant across disciplines.

Publisher

Humanities & Social Sciences Communications

Published On

Jul 08, 2020

Authors

Francesca R. Sborgi Lawson

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