With the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and the crisis following to the increasing number of deaths, forced closures, exclusions and lockdowns, and the social, emotional economic aftermaths; the reemergence of the biopolitical argument is hardly surprising. In his last lecture “Society Must Be Defended,” (1975-1976), French philosopher Michel Foucault refers to biopolitical governmentality, which determines the differential exposure of human beings to health and social risks. According to Faucault’s historicized view of modernity, citizens are not subjects of law, but a biological entity to be controlled by means of epidemiological (biostatistical) surveillance. The emergence of biopolitics paved the way for fragmenting the biological continuum, in order to create hierarchies between different groups and, thus, differences in the way in which the latter were exposed to the risk of death. Racism became the “condition of acceptability” of such a differential exposure of lives in a society in which power is mainly exercised to protect the biological life of the population and enhance its productive capacity.

INET-md | NOVA FCSH

http://www.inetmd.pt/index.php/calls/14764-call-for-proposals-independence-and-digital-technologies-music-making-in-the-21st-century-beyond-anglo-america

The idea of independence in music making has been the subject of academic research and discussion ever since the establishment of popular music studies as well as in intersecting areas of knowledge such as ethnomusicology and the sociology of music.  Most studies on independence in the 20th century address the possibilities for musicians and other agents within the sphere of music making, distribution and mediation to operate and reach an audience outside the oligopoly of the big music corporations. The last twenty years have seen important changes in the power balance between those forms of music making and the big companies due to the effects of digitalization and disintermediation in the music production cycle.  These opened new possibilities for artists and micro-labels to release music by bypassing the distribution chain provided by big companies. However, we also see the rise of new forms of corporate distribution and funding, such as through streaming platforms and brand sponsorship. These changes raise important questions about the shifting notions of independence and what it means in these new contexts. Many of these changes and what they meant have been scrutinized, especially in the contexts of the UK and the US. This book seeks contributions on independent music making outside of the UK and US in relation to the impact of digitalization on music related practices in the 21st century.