Turning the Tune

Adam Kaul is the author of several articles about traditional music, tourism, and the economics of musical performance in Ireland, where he has conducted extensive fieldwork. He was an Honorary Research Associate with the Department of Anthropology at the University of Durham from 2005-2008, and is currently an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, where he contributed to the establishment of the college's Anthropology Program.

• Chapter 1. Introduction Conceptual Orientation Conceptual Organization Doolin PART I: REMEMBERED HISTORY Chapter 2. The Old Days Ethnography, History and Memory Subsistence and Seasonality Argonauts of the Eastern Atlantic Seasonality Tourism in Clare in 1859 (On the Origins of a New Species) Traditional Irish Music of the "Old Days" The Ceili and the Crossroads Dance The Country House Dance The Dance Halls and The Ceili Bands Early Collections and Early Sessions Conclusions Chapter 3. The Revival A Changing Economy The Folk Revival Internal Changes in Irish Music The Revival Arrives Turning the Tune Conclusions PART II: MOVING IN AND MOVING THROUGH Chapter 4. The Celtic Tiger Celtic Tourism Mass Tourists Coach Tours "Travelers", Working Tourists, and Visitors Conclusions Chapter 5. Locals and Blow-ins Locals Blow-ins Negotiations of Belonging Conclusions PART III: CHANGE AND CONTINUITY Chapter 6. Consolidation and Globalization Traditional Music of the Celtic Tiger Doolin's Celtic Music Industry Bands and Sessions, Performing and Playing Paying to Play Conclusions Chapter 7. Adoption and Approriation Appropriation Adoption Complementary Discourses Phenomenology of the Session Premeditated Spontaneity Music as a Conversation Perfect Embodiment and Good Craic Conclusions Chapter 8. Conclusions History, Globalization, and Tourism Appropriation, Tradition, and Cosmopolitanism The Trope of Authenticity Credibility One's Relationship to the Locale One's Epistemological Relationship to the Music Immediate Context Seasonality The Interaction of Personalities Good Man, Yourself Bibliography Index

"Kaul's book offers original insights in a very well-crafted and engaging ethnography. Few studies manage to discuss both an art form and its socio-cultural context, and Kaul does so successfully without compromising the breadth of his discussion. The prevalence of participants' voices and Kaul's commitment to allowing ethnography to write theory have resulted in a polyphonic, evocative account. Beyond anthropologists, ethnomusicologists, and scholars of Irish and tourism studies, this book is important to all of us researching art forms in their contemporary globalized, commoditized context." * JRAI " - a compelling and fascinating study of social change in a particular music practice, making it a useful resource for scholars and students of music and performance. It also makes a valuable contribution to anthropological studies of tourism and globalisation, especially in the way it complicates current orthodoxy about inevitable contestation around issues of ownership and appropriation with regard to identity politics in the global era." * Australian Anthropological Society "Sensibly, Kaul lets ethnography form the core of his book. Almost all the theory that is involved arises from his ethnographic analysis, not vice versa. He let locals comment on his manuscript and provides generous quotes from his fieldwork interviews...The outcome? A performative account of craic that both academics and the locals of Doolin can readily believe in." * Times Higher Education "Turning the Tune casts a revealing eye on the impact of tourism and the influx of musicians from outside Ireland on traditional (in every sense of the word) approaches to the making and meaning of Irish folk music...a thoroughly researched and revealing snapshot of Doolin's thriving musical life." * Songlines Magazine "An engaging read, Kaul's account of the changing face of Doolin will interest readers with an interest in Irish traditional music--especially those who play it--as well as students of tourism and cultural anthropology." * Book News "A book of rich description and penetrating insight, Turning the Tune pulls the reader into a complex world of music making and social interaction in an Irish coastal village. Through a compelling reflexive voice, Kaul gives us a vivid sense of present experience and remembered pasts in Doolin, County Clare...This beautifully written book will provide music to the ears of all who take an interest in Ireland, tourism, music and social change." * Tamara Kohn, University of Melbourne "Adam Kaul has provided his readers with a detailed, admirable account of musical life [in] Doolin, County Clare, arguably the most visible context for Irish instrumental music-making in the world. The immediacy of this narrative not only brings the reader into the inner circle of Doolin's sessions, but also clarifies, enlarges, and engages the context in ways that may surprise the reader." * Sean Williams, Evergreen State College "[This book] addresses some important issues in music study - the commodity, professionalization, the affective content of musical 'identities' - with a keen anthropological eye and a subtle reflexivity. The description of sessions is often excellent - many have tried, few quite so successfully!" * Martin Stokes, Oxford University