The American Music Research Center (AMRC) has named Associate Professor of Ethnomusicology Austin Okigbo as its interim director for the 2023-鈥�24 academic year. Okigbo, also an affiliate faculty member in the Center for African & African American Studies, global health and ethnic studies, is no stranger to the AMRC.听
鈥淚鈥檝e been involved in the AMRC for as long as I鈥檝e been at the College of Music,鈥� Okigbo says. In the past鈥攁s an AMRC Faculty Affiliate and Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI) on the AMRC鈥檚 Soundscapes of the People grant鈥攈e has participated in outreach activities and research opportunities, and he continues to serve on the AMRC Advisory Board as well as the editorial committee for the AMRC journal, Americas: A Hemispheric Music Journal.
This year, Okigbo has stepped in to lead the AMRC鈥檚 events and research projects while is underway. Susan Thomas, the AMRC鈥檚 former director, is now with the Butler School of Music in Austin, Texas; she continues her involvement in the Soundscapes of the People project as a faculty affiliate.
鈥淢y goal at this point in time is to make sure that the center maintains the things we are doing,鈥� Okigbo says. 鈥淚 want to make sure the programming that we have in place is well executed.鈥澨�
Coming up in October, the AMRC will host a pair of concerts titled 鈥淪ong of Pueblo.鈥� These concerts highlight the AMRC鈥檚 Soundscapes of the People study that鈥檚 documenting the history of Pueblo, Colorado, by researching its musical past and collecting oral testimonies.
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