Thursday, May 29, 20146:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Humanities Building
Room A51
UCLA
The Program on Central Asia presents a film screening and panel discussion of The Silk Road of Pop, a 2012 documentary directed by Sameer Farooq. Organized by the UCLA Central Asia Workshop.
The Central Asian music scene is alive and roaring. A documentary about rap crews, rockstars, and their fans in the northwest of China.
On the distant northwest edge of China lies Xinjiang, a vast region of snow-capped mountains, barren deserts and gritty market cities. Here, along the ancient Silk Road, music is one of the hottest commodities: it is vibrant, infectious, and far-reaching, permeating every corner of the province. Yet, around the music lies a troubling reality. Engaged in an identity tug-of-war, the region's main population, the Uyghur Muslims, are gradually watching their populations dwindle as they are engulfed by a predominant Han Chinese settlement. One of the very few documentaries to come out of Xinjiang, The Silk Road of Pop captures the challenges of a minority group in China and the explosive music scene which results.
The film screening will be followed by a panel discussion with with three ethnomusicologists who study Central Asian music and culture: Dr. Münir Beken (UCLA), Dr. Brigita Sebald (UCLA), and Dr. Charlotte D'Evelyn (CalArts).
The
Central Asia Workshop is an interdisciplinary discussion group sponsored by the UCLA Program on Central Asia. The goal of the workshop is to encourage graduate student research on Central Asia by creating a space where students and interested faculty can discuss research, theory and ideas with others who have experience or interest in the region.
BonnieRichard
international.ucla.edu/asia/centralasia
brichard@ucla.edu
Sponsor(s): Asia Pacific Center, Program on Central Asia