The Ortel Band Soundscape: Establishing Community Boundaries

The aim of this thesis is to examine the consequences of the process of establishing the boundaries of the of the Ortel band soundscape, or else the Ortel community, as negotiated by actors both inside and outside the community and to place this negotiation into the context of endeavours to legitimise the community's values in the public space, economic aspects, political engagement, attitudes to radicalism and the experience of cultural anxiety and marginalisation of members of the community. I examine the topic through the prism of ethnomusicology and social and cultural anthropology where music lies at the centre of my interest. I define music as a social object, a human activity, an expressive culture and a fundamental element for establishing (and reading) music communities. I observe the dynamism and hetero-local nature of music communities through the concept of soundscapes. When describing the community, I focus on the permeable and fluid contours of the community's boundaries as negotiated by actors both inside and outside the community, when such boundaries require an image the enemy outside. The research is founded on ethnographic methodology. The primary source of data is field research in the form of participant observation at concerts performed by the band, semi-structured interviews..