Film Music in ’minor’ National Cinemas

Taking its cue from Deleuze’s definition of minor cinema as one which engages in a creative act of becoming, this collection explores the multifarious ways that music has been used in the cinemas of various countries in Australasia, Africa, Latin America and even in Europe that have hitherto received little attention. The authors consider such film music with a focus on the role it has played creating, problematizing, and sometimes contesting, the nation.

Film Music in ’Minor’ National Cinemas addresses the relationships between film music and the national cinemas beyond Hollywood and the European countries that comprise most of the literature in the field. Broad in scope, it includes chapters that analyze the contribution of specific composers and songwriters to their national cinemas, and the way music works in films dealing with national narratives or issues; the role of music in the shaping of national stars and specific use of genres; audience reception of films on national music traditions; and the use of music in emerging digital video industries.

Germán Gil-Curiel is Research Affiliate at University College Cork, Republic of Ireland, where he also teaches Latin American Music. An accomplished classical guitarist, his main research and teaching interests are on the relationship between music, film and literature. He is the author of A Comparative Approach: The Early European Supernatural Tale: Five Variations on a Theme (2011), and has published multiple book chapters and articles about music in film.