Overview

Living in the Merry Ghetto reframes how people use music to build resistance. Author Trever Hagen addresses the social context of illegal music-making in Czechoslovakia during state socialism. He tells the story of a group of rock'n'roll musicians who went underground after 1968, building a parallel world from where they could flourish: the Merry Ghetto. The book examines the case of the Czech Underground and the politics of their music and their way of life, paying close attention to the development of the ensemble The Plastic People of the Universe. Taking in multiple political transitions from the 1940s-2000s, the story focuses on non-official cultural practices such as listening to foreign radio broadcasts, seeking out copied cassette tapes, listening to banned LPs, growing long hair, attending clandestine concerts, smuggling albums via diplomats, recording in home-studios and being thrown in prison for any of these activities. Drawing on ethnographic interviews with Undergrounders, archival research and participant observation, Hagen shows how these practices shaped consciousness, informed bodies and promoted collective action, all of which contributed to an Underground identity.

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9780190263867

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This is a classic study of why music and memory matter. Trever Hagen takes us well beyond the Czech underground music scene to reveal the power of music to evoke emotions and inspire collective action. -- Ronald Eyerman, Professor of Sociology, Yale University Dr Hagen's work show us how music exists not just for our enjoyment, but for a greater understanding of ourselves and for creating strength and identity in times when freedom is not a given. -- Justin Vernon, Bon Iver

This is a classic study of why music and memory matter. Trever Hagen takes us well beyond the Czech underground music scene to reveal the power of music to evoke emotions and inspire collective action. -- Ronald Eyerman, Professor of Sociology, Yale University Dr Hagen's work show us how music exists not just for our enjoyment, but for a greater understanding of ourselves and for creating strength and identity in times when freedom is not a given. -- Justin Vernon, Bon Iver

Author Information

Trever Hagen is a trumpeter, writer and researcher. His interests lie in extended technique, noise, improvisation, movement, memory studies, music therapy and acoustic ecology. Hagen is a former Fulbright Scholar, Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellow, and Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Fellow.

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