Popular Music and Disability

This dissertation is divided into two main areas. The first of these explores Jandek-related discourse and contextualizes the project. Also discussed is the interconnectivity that runs through the project through the self-citation of various lyrical, visual, and musical themes. The second main component of this dissertation explores one of these musical themes in detail: the guitar riffs heard in the "European Jewel" song-set and the transmigration/migration of the riff material used in the song to other non-"European Jewel" tracks. Jandek is often described in related discourse as an "outsider musician." A significant point of discussion in the first area of this dissertation is the outsider music genre as it relates to Jandek. In part, this dissertation responds to an article by Martin James and Mitzi Waltz which was printed in the periodical Popular Music where it was suggested that the marketing of a musician as an outsider risks diminishing the "innate qualities" of the so-called outsider musicians' works. 1 While the outsider label is in itself problematic-this is discussed at length in Chapter Two-the analysis which comprises the second half of this dissertation delves into selfcitation and thematic interconnection as innate qualities within the project. Explored at length in this dissertation are the guitar riffs of the Jandek song "European Jewel," the closing track appearing on the artist's debut album, Ready for the House (1978). The riffs are heard 37 times over the course of five different versions of the song. Elements of the riffs also appear in tracks that are not labeled as "European Jewel" variants. A larger structural form in which the song-set is situated has been observed. When heard outside of the "European Jewel" song-set the riffs appear in fragmented form. Continued use of the "European Jewel" riff To Richard, for bringing me outside v Acknowledgements A doctoral undertaking involves an ensemble of players who advise, ask challenging questions of, and in other myriad ways prepare the candidate. I consider myself honoured and grateful to have had such a team. Individually, I would like to thank Dr. Rob Bowman for his early interest in my offbeat topic, for the boundless enthusiasm he expresses while teaching, and for his patience with me despite my many stumbling drafts. I thank Dr. Irene Markoff for sharing her passion and expertise in the area of tunings, temperaments, and transposition, and for her attention to detail. Many thanks as well go to Prof. Rob van der Bliek for his frank, straightshooting critiques of my work, Dr. Darcey Callison for his valuable input an as outside eye, and Dr. George Plasketes who saw me through my debut and accepted the blazon use of adjectives. I would like to express my gratitude to York University who made my dissertation possible. Special thanks go to the director of the Graduate Program of Music Prof. Michael Coghlan for his candid counsel. And many thanks go to the indispensible Tere Tilban-Rios for her steady navigation through the process. This dissertation comes as a result of the loving support of my family, in particular my husband Richard for his unwavering encouragement, his helpfulness concerning guitar-playing logistics and terminology, and for tuning me in to the weird and woolly world of outsider music. Many thanks also go to my daughter Cypress for her encouragement and daily inspiration. I am

Listening in the nineteenth-century city was regulated by mapping techniques that were specific to that context. Sound mapping did not consist only on locating sounds on a two-dimensional representation of physical space. It also relied on the use inscriptions, laws and discourse to make reality conform to a certain mental map, in which acoustic territories were delimited by concerns and anxieties with the support of economic and political power. Sound mapping technologies were at the service of those who control the narrative of how maps – broadly understood – were meant to be read. Sound control in the nineteenth century city was not subordinated to the supposed prevalence of the visual, but was rather dependent on psychological and legal mechanisms developed in reaction to smell and, related to this, in response to fears of contagion. These sentiments translated into experiments of social segregation such as the planned expansion of Madrid (1860). The appropriation and control of acoustic territories in the city was driven by an interest in protecting lifestyles and class interests. The contingency of the “sound” and “noise” categories made the distinction between them subject to a process of negotiation through which social and moral orthodoxies were established, and marginal groups were controlled or excluded.