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Filmmaking as Musical Ethnography

Author(s): John Baily
Source: The World of Music, Vol. 31, No. 3, Film and Video in Ethnomusicology (1989), pp. 3-20
Published by: VWB - Verlag fr Wissenschaft und Bildung
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John Baily
Filmmaking as Musical Ethnography

Themotion constitutes
picture a uniqueandperhapsthemostimportant
form availabletotheethnomusicologist.
ofdocumentation
Hood1971:2691
films
Bypublishing aboutthem,
andwriting we canshareaspectsoffield
- at a newlevelofcommuni-
- bothitsdataand interpretation
experience
cation. Feld1976:315s

1. Introduction

The factthatethnomusicologistslargelyIgnoredthe implicationsof Hood's

fiatis partlyexplained byfactorsHood himselfidentified:lack ofqualifiedper-
sonneland theexpense ofworkingwith16mmfilm,at thattimethemostreadily
available visual mediumfordocumentarywork.Theymayhave been putoffby
the rathergrandtechnicallevelHood took forgranted,such as advocatingthe
use oftwo or threecameras simultaneously- "I suppose one camera is better
thannone at all"(Feld 1976:282).3 Perhaps moreimportant has been theconfu-
sion and lack of understandingabout the natureoffilmcommunication- mat-
tersdiscussed by Feld (1976) - and the lack ofacademic respectability conse-
quentlyaffordedthe "ethnomusicologist-filmmaker" by otherethnomusicolo-
gists. Inanthropology thisproblemhas to some extentbeen overcomewiththe
developmentof the sub-disciplineof visual anthropology,where the value of
filmmaking is taken forgrantedand is not at issue. However,an unfortunate
side-effectofthishas been the marginalization offilmmaking withinanthropol-
ogy (Hughes-Freeland1989). Incontrast,one would wishto see the use offilm
in ethnomusicologybecome a matterof centralconcern to ethnomusicolo-
gists.
Documentaryfilmmaking has depended verymuch on technicalinnovation.
The inventionof the lightweight portablesynchronized16mm camera/sound
recordingsystem(typically Eclaircamera and Nagra tape recorder)inthe late
1950s was a greatbreakthrough, allowingthe recordingofan actualityinboth
visual image and sound whichresultedinthe directcinema and cinma vrit
documentarymovements.This was thetypeofequipmentwhichHood used in

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the late 1960s to shoot atumpan. Later, silent 8mm and Super 8mm film
became available to ethnomusicologists,and then Super 8mm withsound
recorded on a magneticstripalong the side of the film,whichdid not readily
allow forediting.The advent ofvideo has changed the situationradically.With
the ever greateraccessibilityof lightand cheap video equipmentthe basic
resources formakingaudio-visual documents became available to most eth-
nomusicologists.Butthoughvideo was widelyused as a researchtool- forcol-
lectingcertainkindsof data - ethnomusicologistshave been reluctantto take
the nextstep of presentingthe resultsof research intermsofthe "filmdocu-
ment."4Feld's "new levelofcommunication"remainedlargelyunexplored.
The object of this paper is to encourage the use of the new technologyfor
filmmaking by ethnomusicologists.The characteristicsof a particularstyleof
documentaryfilmmaking are discussed, myown experience in applyingthis
to
style ethnomusicology described and some observationsabout film-
briefly,
making as musical ethnographyput forward.

1.1 The Uses ofMotionPicturesin Ethnomusicology

threegeneral areas for

Beforegettingdown to details itis usefulto identify
the use of motionpictureswithinethnomusicology:

1.1.1 Pure Research

The use offilmor video as a researchtool is unproblematicintermsoflegiti-

macy,thoughtheremaywellbe technicalproblemswithcamera angles, light-
ing, microphonepositioning,etc. Kubik has outlinedfourtypes of research
carriedout withfilm(Baily1988:194-5), viz.

MotionalTranscription

The researcherstartswitha specificresearch problemand filmis used as a

means to collect the data appropriateto the solutionofthatproblem.

The EthnographicNotebook

Filmis used to recordongoingevents,mosttypicallyritualsand ceremonies;

these informationallyrichaudio-visualdocuments can be replayedat one's lei-

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sure,assistingthefieldworker
inovercominghumanlimitations oftakinginand
storinginformationincomplex and often"highenergy"situations.

Intra-Cultural
Field Feedback

The filmis screened back to the people ofthe originalcommunityinorderto

elicitfurther
data about actions and events thattook place duringthe periodof
observationand filming.

Experimentsin Perception
Inter-Cultural

The footageis shownto membersofothersocieties to investigateaspects of

cross-culturalperceptionand interpretation.

1.1.2 Demonstration/Teaching

Sequences offilmor video are oftenused as illustrativematerialsinlectures,

colloquia, seminars,and conference presentations.Itis often an advantage to
show such materials,the visual image contains so much information forthe
humanobserver.Notwithstanding Feld's remarkthat "a thousand words can
not onlyequal but greatlysurpass the information level of the stillor moving
1
image"(Feld 976:300), we derivea veryprecise kindofknowledgethroughthe
visualsystemand visualinformation has a certaincompellingpersuasiveness.

1.1.3 MakingAudio-Visual "Texts"

Thereare a varietyoftextmodels fromwhichto choose, fromthe illustrated

"lecture"deliveredbythe usuallynever-seennarrator, to thetypeof"observa-
tionaldocumentary"whichis conceived ofas a workofcinematicart.Letus call
such texts"documentaryfilms."The two extremesofthe continuumofethno-
musicologicaldocumentaryfilmderivefromdifferent backgrounds.
(a) Comingfromthe directionofethnography, documentaryfilmis regardedas
an extensionofthe use offilmfordemonstrationpurposes inlectures,collo-
quia, seminarsand conferenceproceedings. This kindofdocumentaryfilm
is oftenlikean illustratedlecturedeliveredby an invisibleand unidentified
narrator.Itis insome ways equivalentto a book or article,a scholarlyexe-
gesis withaudio-visualillustrationsand an obviouslydidactic intent.Itpur-
ports to contain all the information
you would expect ina scholarlydiscus-

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 Sion and is couched intermsthatletyou knowitis the workofan "expert."
This typemightbe best labelled the "educationalfilm."
(b) Coming fromthe directionof filmmaking, where documentaryfilmis com-
monlyregarded as "thecreativetreatmentof actuality,"inGrierson'scele-
bratedphrase.5Fromthisperspectiveethnographicfilmis partofthedocu-
mentaryfilmtradition,stretchingback to the timeof Flaherty's"Nanook of
the North,"and carrieswithitall the politicalcommitmentand beliefinthe
power offilmto change thingsthatmanydocumentaryfilmmakers brought
to theirwork.Ethnomusicologistscannot affordto ignorethatdocumentary
filmhas its historyand phases of developmentas a creativeform,some of
themdirectlylinkedto technologicaldevelopments(such as the inventionof
the synchronisedportablecamera/audiorecorderunit,mentionedabove).
Whiletheeducationalfilmhas itsuses, itis unsatisfactory
fora varietyofrea-
sons, some ofwhichare mentionedbelow. Itis thesecond approach thatI want
to examine here.

1.2 StudyingEthnographicFilmmaking

The "text-model"forthe documentaryfilmunderdiscussion comes fromthe

NationalFilmand TelevisionSchool (NFTS) intheUK,one oftheleadingnation-
al filmschools inthe world,well knownforitsconcern withdocumentaryfilm-
makingin general,and foranthropologicalor ethnographicfilmin particular.
The directoroftheschool is ColinYoung,formerly ChairmanoftheDepartment
of Theatre Artsat UCLA, who moved to the NFTS in 1971. In the late 1960s
UCLA pioneered a new style of 16mm ethnographic filmmakingin its
EthnographicFilm Program,which was transplantedto the UK withColin
Young and further developed there.6We maycall thisthe "NFTS ethnographic
filmstyle,"because thatis how itis oftenreferred to inthe UK,withoutimplying
thatthisstyleis exclusiveto the NFTS. From1984-86 1heldan anthropological
filmmaking fellowshipat the School.7This is thestyleI learnedto workinduring
mytrainingas an ethnographicfilmmaker underthe tutelageof Herb DiGioia,
Head of the DocumentaryDepartment,an alumnus of the old UCLA Ethno-
graphicFilmProgram.The NFTS is notspecificallyconcerned withdocument-
aryfilmsabout music (thoughone such would be MarkBrice's "Sacred Harp
Singers"8).The two 16mm documentaryfilmsI directedand edited duringmy
training,"Amir:An AfghanRefugee Musician's Life in Peshawar, Pakistan"
(Baily1985, 1989a) and "Lessons fromGuiam: Asian Music inBradford"(Baily

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AmirMohammad JohnBaily
(harmonium), andWaliJanduring
(rubab), theshooting
of"Amir"
in
1985
Peshawar,

1986, 1989b) can be regardedas experimentsinapplyingthe NFTS document-

aryfilmstyleto ethnomusicologicalsubjects.

2. Some Characteristics of the NFTS Style

The NFTS does not consider thereto be a clear distinctionbetween fiction

filmand non-fiction film;some of the principlesforthisstyleof documentary
filmmaking have been adopted fromthe fictionfilm.In partthisis because the
apparentobjectivity ofdocumentaryfilmis an illusion,so that
and truthfulness
muchofwhatgoes intocreatinga documentaryfilmis the same as fora work
offiction.Moreover,when one is lookingfor"good cinema" one naturally turns
to thearea inwhichmostdiscoveries have been made: fictionfilm.Likewise,in
thedomainofwriting we are concerned with"good writing" perse, notwiththe
fiction/non-fiction
dichotomy.

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 The main characteristicsof the NFTS style can be outlinedundertwelve
headings. Althoughthese general principleshave been developed primarily
withrespect to 16mmfilmmaking, theyare also applicable to workwithvideo.
At the moment16mm filmstillhas certainadvantages in termsof qualityof
forediting,especiallysound editing.Muchof
visual image and greaterflexibility
whatwe see on televisiontoday shot and edited in 16mm.9
is

2. 1 NarrativeForm

Cinema is essentiallya narrativeform,a way of "tellinga story."Narrativeis

the basic featureofthefictionfilmbuthas an important roleto playintheethno-
graphic documentaryfilm,too. However,this does not mean thatthe docu-
mentaryfilmhas to have a dramaticplot.
The detailsofourfilmsmustbe a substitutefordramatic and thefilm's
tension,
forartificial
mustbe a substitute
authenticity excitement
(Young1975:74).

There are manyways to tell a story,and many kindsof stories to be told.

Documentaryfilmnarrativemay be characterisedby a sense of gradual dis-
covery and revelation.Such filmsrelyon a formof cinematicengagement in
whichwe are caught up inthe worldcreated bythefilm,absorbed and gripped
inwhichtheprotago-
byit.Oftenthereis a slow build-upto a "momentoftruth,"
nistreveals somethingotherwisenormallykeptwell hidden,usuallyan area of
personal vulnerabilityor deep conviction.

2.2 PortraitFilm

The portraitfilmprovides a particularly successful cinematicapproach in

documentaryfilmmaking. Inconcentratingon one ortwocentralcharactersitis
obviouslyclose to the approach of the fictionfilm,which is, above anything
else, about people. The portraitfilmfollowsthe same person inmanydifferent
situations,allows the audience to buildup an acquaintanceshipand creates an
empathy.The question of casting becomes cruciallyimportant.This means
choosing an appropriateperson/peopleas protagonist(s)who willcome over
wellon film.

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2.3 Not Scripted- Filmas a Mode of Inquiry

A greatdeal offlexibility
is essential so thatthe filmmakercan deal withthe
unexpected. One should not go out witha shootingscript,a shopping listof
shots,orwithveryrigidideas about thefilmto be made. On theotherhand,one
should certainlyhave some ideas, and itmay be helpfulto writeone or more
imaginedscenarios. The makingofthefilmis a mode ofethnographicinquiryin
its own right,and as new information is gatheredthe directionof the inquiry
changes. When filmmaking serves as a medium of discoverythere must be
constantreviewingofwhathas been shot.The filmmaker sees howthematerial
fitsthe scenario and how it mightsuggest modificationsor even a new sce-
nario,whichmay be radicallydifferent fromthatpreviouslyenvisaged. There
should be constantquestioningofthe natureand progressofthe enterprise.

2.4 Access and ParticipantObservation

The way thatthe NFTS considers documentaryfilmmakers should approach

theirworkhas manypoints in common withethnographicfieldwork, through
thatessential but obtuse and ill-definedmethodologyknownas "participant
observation."The great problemis gainingaccess to the people you wantto
make thefilmabout and establishinga relationshipwhereyou can filmthe kind
ofscenes you need butwithoutbeingexploitative.Filmmakersoftenseem very
insensitiveto the interestsofthe people theymake theirfilmsabout: too often
the mottoseems to be "Shot to kill!"One of Flaherty'sbest pieces of advice
was thatone should "knowwhennotto film"(Dufaux1986:33). Itis important to
minimisethe extentof intrusionand the numberof people in the filmcrew
should be keptto a minimum. You need onlytwo persons to handlethe equip-
ment:one to operate the 16mm camera, anotherto operate the Nagra. This is
the "shortcrew," which causes minimalphysical disruptionof the actuality
being recorded.Two people take up less roomthan eight(the usual crew for
televisiondocumentaries),and are less likelyto forma competingsocial
British
group.

2.5 Role of theDirector

Inthepurelyobservationalstyleofshootingtheroleofthefilm'sdirector,who
willusuallybe eitherthe camera or tape recorderoperator,is to directthese
visual and sound recordingunits ratherthan the action. However, although

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ideallyone should filmthingsas theyhappen, withoutprovokingor inanyway
controllingthem,in myexperience this ideal is oftenverydifficultto achieve.
Onlycertainsocieties or situationsare conducive to the success ofthe obser-
vational approach. Expensive filmequipment is not usuallyavailable forthe
extended period needed foroccasional shootingover the course of a year of
ethnomusicologicalfieldwork.Familiarity withthe subject willsuggest typesof
scene to be sought out,whichmay be passivelyawaited or moreactivelypro-
voked. Anyforwardplanning,such as arrangingto filminsomeone's house, is
likelyto arouse certainexpectations on the partof both filmmakers (who will
feel frustratedifnothingis shot) and actors (who may be mentallypreparing
themselvesto be filmed).Thus the directorinevitably exertssome controlover
the actualityrecorded.

2.6 Being Unobtrusive

The extentto whichshootingbecomes a dynamicinteractionbetween film-

makers and actors depends verymuch on the type of subject being shot. In
crowded, "highenergy"events,such as festivalsor publicspectacles, thefilm-
makerswilloftenbe ignored;too muchelse is happening.Inintimatedomestic
situationsthe activitiesof the filmmakersmay be the most interesting things
going on. It is helpfulto avoid procedures whichannounce too obviously that
shooting is about to commence, such as on or
switching lights, using a clap-
perboard. For16mmworkthe NFTS has developed the use ofthe "bloop box,"
a device strapped to the sound recordistwhichsimultaneouslylightsup and
lays a tone on the sound tape when a switchis pressed at the startor end ofa
shot,withthe camera directedtowards it.These signals are used laterinsyn-
chronizingthe image and sound inthe cuttingroom.

2. 7 Reflectionson theFilmmakingProcess

Manyfilmsmade inthe NFTS stylecould be described as "reflexive

observa-
tionalfilms:"
. . . characterised
bythepresenceofthefilm-makerora surrogateonthescreen,the
use offirst and thefrank
personnarration, admission thatthisis a film.
Theform
resembles a kindofethnography,inwhichtheethnographer defineshisobserva-
tionsas occurring within
a spatialandtemporalframework andadmitshiscultural

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 ofhisinteractions
biasesandthenature withthegroupbeingobserved(Breitrose
1986:47).
The filmmaker is not pretendingto be the proverbial"flyon the wall," but
rather, as Breitrose(ibid.)puts it"theflyinthe soup . . . visibleforall to notice."
Filmmakershave a veryreal presence and effecton theactualityrecorded,and
thatfactmustbe takenintoaccount, oftenbyexposing thefilmmaking process
itself.Itmay help the audience to knowthe role and status ofthe filmmaker in
relationto the society inquestion, so we can decide whatto believe and what
notto believe. The filmwillusuallypresentthe pointof view of the filmmaker,
and to thatextentwilltryto avoid so-called "privilegedcamera positions"and
featsof humanlyimpossibleobservation(MacDougall 1982).

2.8 Sequence Shooting

The NFTS filmstyleemphasises the importanceofthe "sequence shot,"the

long continuousshot wherethe hand-heldcamera explores different aspects
of the scene inturn(Zemp 1988a:397-8). The sequence shot's spatial conti-
guityand temporalcontinuity providea kindof evidence whichis lackingin a
highly edited sequence. So faras possible the NFTS styleadvocates the use of
uncutsequence shots inthe finaledited film.The hand-heldcamera is used in
an active process of interactionwith surroundingactuality,it explores the
scene ratheras the human observerwould (thoughthe analogy between the
humaneye and the camera "eye" should not be carriedtoo far).Itis forthese
reasons that we avoid the tripodand the so-called "locked off"(completely
immobile)camera position(Feld & Williams1975:25-8). The sequence shot is
clearlyessential forfilmingmusical performance,wherewe wantto see, as far
as possible, complete and uninterrupted sequences of performance,just as
when recordingmusic we want complete performances.Video, withits 60 or
120 minutetapes and extremelylow runningcost promisesto revolutionize the
of
practice sequence shooting.

2.9 Reorderingof Time

Filmeditingis a bigtopic and detailed discussion is outside the scope ofthis

article.However,one importantpoint about editingshould be made at this
stage: itis legitimateto manipulatetime,to use shots inan orderwhichis differ-
ent fromthat in whichtheyare shot. In this way it is possible to constructa

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seeminglycoherentsequence ofactions fromshots made underquitedifferent
conditions.This treatmentof time is anathema to those who thinkthat film
should be used simplyto make an "ethnographicrecord"and differentiates
the
documentaryfilmfrom"pureresearchfootage."10Inresponse,theethnograph-
ic filmmakerpointsoutthatinwriting anthropologywe are notobligedto follow
the orderinwhichthedata were collected. Some furtheraspects offilmediting
are mentionedbelow.

2.10 Use of Voice-OverCommentary

Voice-overcommentary,or narration, mustbe used judiciously.Whilevoice-

overmaybe necessary to providecrucialinformation itmustbe used sparingly,
and theauthority orone is
and "rightto speak" ofthe narratormustbe clarified,
indanger ofcreatingan illustratedlectureon film,whichis notthe object ofthe
NFTS exercise. One should avoid a situationwherean impersonaland authori-
tativevoice tellsthe audience what is reallyhappening,whichmay be at odds
withwhatitsees. Ifnarrationhas to be employeditis best to use thevoice ofthe
filmmaker,speaking inthefirstperson as a participantintheactionpresented.

2.11 Search forNativeExplanationsand Conversations

One should use "native" explanations as far as possible: get the people
themselvesto explain,a strategythataccords witha principaltenetofanthro-
pology, which is to reveal the social constructionof reality.Conversationis
as second best, thoughitcan be editedto
seen as the ideal, and the interview
cut out muchorall ofthequestioner,so itdoes notseem likean interview. Mac-
Dougall's filmswiththeTurkanapeople of northern Kenyaare called "Turkana
Conversations,"a pointwhose significanceis discussed byYoung (1982:5-6).

2. 12 Subtitling

There are good reasons to avoid dubbingthe dialogue into,say, English.So

much information is contained inthe sound of the voice, the way people talk;
even withoutunderstandingthe language one derivesa greatdeal of informa-
tionfromparalinguisticfeatures.This mayseem obvious today,but initstime
the use ofsubtitlingwas a greatinnovationofthe UCLA EthnographicFilmPro-
gram (Young 1982:5). Itallowed the people to speak forthemselves,a radical
change of approach and of power relations.

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3. The Status of Filmas Ethnography

Up to thispointwe have discussed the characteristicsofa documentaryfilm

stylewhich has sometimes been applied to ethnographicsubjects, although
usuallyby people who are trainedas filmmakersratherthan as anthropolo-
gists.11How can thisstylerelateto and serve the interestsof ethnomusicolo-
gists?
This is nottheplace to go intogreatdetailconcerningmyown experiences in
applyingthese principlesto ethnomusicologicalfilmmaking at the NFTS. The
process offilmmaking - shootingand editing- for"Amir"and "Lessons from
Gulam"is discussed intwo lengthystudyguides (Baily1989a, b).121certainlydo
not argue thatthis is the onlykindof ethnomusicologicaldocumentaryworth
serious consideration,butthereis no doubt thatitis veryeffectiveinshowing
music incontext;indealingwiththe livesofmusic makersand withthe ethno-
graphyof musical performance.Itis not so good forcommunicatingmusical
analysis.
Of mytwo NFTS films,"Lessons fromGulam" is in some ways the more
"ethnomusicological,'"containingmoretechnicalinformation about the music
itself,conveyed largelythrough verbalisationsby the participants.In "Amir,"
whichis much concerned withthe plightof refugees,thereis littletalkabout
music as such, and musical performanceis treatedratheras the professional
occupation thatAmirand his associates happen to follow.Nevertheless,the
filmis richwithinformation about Afghanmusic. "Amir"was in manyways a
much easier filmto shoot and edit than "Lessons fromGulam." The filmsare
reviewedbyZemp (1988b).
Besides givingbackground information, the study guides provideshot by
shot analyses ofbothfilms.Theydescribe the decisions made inshootingand
editing,and explainwhyone alternativewas selected overanother.Veryoften
this involvedchoosing between conflicting ethnographicand cinematiccon-
siderations.The guides thereforemake thefilmmaking process explicitand ex-
plainthe strategiesused forcoping withparticularproblems. By revealingthe
ways in whichthe filmsmay be said to knowinglymis-representthe data, in
comparisonto how the data mightbe presented inwritten form,these studies
are intendedto throwlighton filmmaking as a formof musical ethnography.
The rationaleand objective of the NFTS approach is to get away fromthe
illustratedlectures,educational documentaries,and televisionprogramswith

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which we are generallyso familiar,and to use documentaryfilmmaking as a
way of producing ethnographictext with data collected and edited in the
mediumof film(or video) ratherthan the mediumof the written/printed word
(fieldnotes and monographs).Ifthecommentary-heavy educationaldocumen-
tarycorrespondsto thelearnedarticle,whatdoes thistypeofdocumentaryfilm
correspond to? There is no precise equivalent; it is neitherthe novel northe
shortstory(whichfindtheirequivalentsinthe fictionfilm);itis a unique kindof
ethnographictext constructedthrough"the creativetreatmentof actuality,"
Feld's "new level of communication"par excellence. My experiences as an
ethnomusicologistmakingfilmsleads me to offerthe followingpreliminary
observationsabout how a filmethnographydiffers fromthe written version.

3. 1 The EditingProcess

Inwritten ethnographyitis possible to go farbeyondthedata fromwhichthe

text is composed, indeed the data themselves are frequentlyburiedbeneath
generalizationsand abstractionsand are notavailable forinspectionand evalu-
ation.Inthecase offilmethnography, on thecontrary,theethnographeris limit-
ed to the actualitywhichis recordedon celluloidand/ortape duringthe shoot.
Throughthe editingprocess thisraw materialis used to create a highlystruc-
turedcommunicationin a mannerwhichis not so verydifferent fromthe way
macro-unitsofwritten textare used to constructa conventionalethnography.
I take itforgrantedthatthefilmmaker inperson willeditthefilm,perhapsthe
most importantpart of the whole filmmaking process. This is because the
ethnomusicologist-filmmaker is the authoroftheworkand because theediting
process itselfis a formof data analysis. Decisions about what shots to select
fromthe raw footage ("the rushes"), and about preciselywhere to make the
cuts fromone shot to the next,have to be made on the basis of an intimate
familiarity withexactly what has been captured on filmor video duringthe
shoot. The searches throughthe rushes that editingrequiresoftenthrowup
previouslyunnoticedaspects of the data. Itis largelythrougheditingthatthe
ethnomusicologist-filmmaker discovers the propertiesofwhat is inthe can.
Filmeditingis a highlydeveloped formof text manipulation.Progressing
fromthe firstassembly,througha series of rough,thenfinecuts accordingto
whichthe finalformof the filmis constructed,the materialis submittedto a
The sequences of shots withinscenes are
whole series of transformations.
triedout in different
orders,and whole scenes move about withinthe frame-

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work of the film.Throughtrialand errorone discovers how the shots and
scenes can be cut together.One triesputtingthe beginningat theend, and the
end at the beginning.Certainscenes emerge as particularly dynamic;theyare
hardto get in place and are moved around a lot inthe course of editing.They
create problemsbut also suggest new avenues to explore. Whole scenes are
dropped, reinserted,dropped again. In the earlystages one is not too con-
cerned withthe precise details ofcuttingfromone shot to another,butdifficul-
ties ofthissortmayresultinshots orscenes beingeliminatedinthefinalstages
of the work. In the editingprocess one builds up a delicate web of internal
cross-references,partof the underlying structureof the film.Changes in any
one partnow have reverberations overthe whole structure.

3.2 ContextualInformation

One ofthe mainproblemsinthe constructionoffilmethnographyconcerns

contextualinformation. This is one ofthechiefareas inwhicha conflictofcine-
maticand ethnographicconsiderationsmay arise. The documentaryfilm(as
opposed to theeducationalfilmor the illustratedlecture)is nota good medium
fordevelopinga complex analysis orfordevelopingan argument."Thiskindof
filmis verygood at beingspecific- no good at all at makinggeneralisations,"as
David Hancock, a noted exponent of the NFTS style, once put it (Young
1975:74). Young (ibid. 69) further advocates that a filmshould "show rather
than tell."This is reallya differencein editorialstance, deliberatelyavoiding
whatis sensed to be an authoritarian approach.
A filmcannot containall the information thatthe ethnographerand the spe-
cialistaudience of otherethnographersconsider to be relevantinthe broader
sense withoutdiminishing the status of the filmas a film,i.e. sacrificingcine-
matic considerationsto ethnographicones. We have already discussed the
care withwhichvoice-overnarrationor commentarymustbe used. Inorderto
avoid confusionsitis oftennecessary to simplify the situationdepicted inthe
film.Simplificationis inanycase an important principleofwritten ethnography;
the authoromitsmanydetails whichconfuse the underlying pattern.The dra-
matispersonae ofthefilmmustbe introducedone byone and as clearlyas pos-
sible in orderthat the audience can rememberwho theyall are. One of the
advantages oftheportrait filmis thatbyfocusingon an individualone can avoid
too muchconfusionofthissort.13

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 Related to the problem of limitingthe amount of extraneous information
needed in a filmis the idea thatwrittentexts(likethe studyguides mentioned
above) should accompany such films.Itis certainlyliberating forthefilmmaker
when itis notnecessary to give all the relevantinformationinthefilmitself.We
need to findfurtherways of integratingfilmand writtentexts. Filmmaking
should be regardedas onlypartofthe research,and thefilmas onlypartofthe
product,to be used to communicatethe kindsofinformation thatfilmdoes well
and thatwritingdoes not. Filmand written textsshould be mutuallyilluminat-
ing; thewrittentextenhances ourunderstandingofwhatwe see, and thevisual
image makes whatwe read morecomprehensibleand meaningful.
Althoughfilmmaynotbe a good mediumformakinggeneralizations,theway
the filmis edited embodies the ethnomusicologicalanalysis.There is an argu-
mentbut itis covertand lies inthe choice ofscenes thefilmmaker selects from
the rushes, and the orderinwhichtheyare puttogether.Itis thisthinking, the
conceptual scheme "behind the which
film," I believe the
distinguishes "ethno-
musicologicalfilm"fromthe "documentaryfilmabout music" made by a film-
makerwithno special traininginor knowledgeofethnomusicology.

3.3 Reflexivity

Filmmakingraises manyofthe same questions thathave been discussed in

the lastfewyears about thestatus ofwrittenethnography(forexample,Clifford
& Marcus 1986). Some ofthese concerns were raised forethnomusicologyby
Gourlay (1978) in his critique of Merriam's vision of ethnomusicologyas
"science," and withthe ethnomusicologistas "omniscient" and "non-existent,"
knowingeverything yet not anythingbybeing presentinthefieldwork
affecting
situation.
Filmmakingraises these issues inan acute and particularlyinterestingform.
Itis clear thatin most situationsthe presence ofthe filmcrew,even ifitis only
one person (such as the solo ethnomusicologist-videooperator)changes the
situation,just as the presence oftheethnographerdoes. Hence thearguments
foradopting the "reflexiveobservationalapproach" discussed above. Field-
workshould notbe understoodas the documentationofsome externalreality,
not because thatrealitydoes notexist(clearlyitdoes), butbecause theethno-
grapheris unable to recordthatrealityobjectivelyand reduce itto communica-
ble dimensions.An ethnographyis the creationof the ethnographer,a highly
personalised, non-objective,non-scientificaccount of other people's lives.

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This is muchclearerintheshootingand theeditingofa filmthaninmore"tradi-
withitsclaimto be at
tional"modes ofdata collectionand ethnographicwriting,
least quasi-scientific,objective,and replicable.

4. Some Conclusions

Evaluationof the worthof the documentaryfilmmaking enterprisedepends

verymuchon howtheaudience forwhichfilmsare made is specified.Ifthestat-
ed purpose is fortheethnomusicblogist to address thenon-ethnomusicologist,
then ethnomusicologistsin general willprobablyapprove of filmmaking as a
formof applied ethnomusicology,somethingthat ethnomusicologycan do
well, even measured in idealisticterms such as improvingrace relationsor
promotinginternational understanding.This is also good public relationsfor
ethnomusicologyitself,showingto the widerworldthat the academic disci-
plinehas practicaluses. Zemp (1988a:422-5) has argued thata filmcan bring
differentthingsto a varietyofdifferentaudiences.14If"a fundamentalpurpose
of an anthropologicalcommunicationis to make scientific/humanistic state-
mentsabout culture"15 therecan be littledoubt as to the usefulnessoffilmfor
thispurpose.
It is when the argumentthat documentaryfilmsare a legitimateformof
musicalethnography worthyofthe same kindofserious considerationgivento
moreconventionaland traditional formsofscholarshipis putforwardthatdiffi-
cultiesare encountered.I knowof no way to provethe value offilmmaking as
musical ethnographyexcept throughthe resultsachieved by ethnomusicolo-
gists who have taken documentaryfilmmaking seriously.This is whythe pio-
neering filmwork of Hugo Zemp is so important forethnomusicologyas a
whole.16Othersneed to be persuaded ofthe need to followhis lead. The ideal
ethnomusicologicalfilmmaybe one inwhichfilmis used as an integralpartof
a broad research methodology,and in which research footage is integrated
intothe filmcomponent of a finalproductthatmightincludewrittentext,film
and audio examples. We are now at thepointofbeingable to realisesuch ambi-
do justice to Hood's visionofthe motionpictureas the most
tions,and finally
important formof documentationavailable to the ethnomusicologist.

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Notes
1 Hood updated hisdiscussion inthesecond edition of"The Ethnomusicologist" butthis remains a key statement
oftheroleoffilm inethnomusicology (Hood 1971).
2 Feld's1976article discusses many crucial issues concerning filmandethnomusicology andremains highly rele-
vant.What Ihave tosayisnot always inaccord with Feld'sviews. Inparticular,theapproach Iadvocate borrows
more from fiction film than Feld would seem todeem acceptable. Hisarticle alsoprovides a very useful biblio-
graphy.Many oftheideas expressed inthepresent articlecanbefound inInternationalJournal for FilmandTele-
visionSchools 2(2)[1986] .
3 Onthecontrary, there aremany situations inwhich onecamera isbetterthan two orthree. For a discussion ofthe
useoftwo cameras inethnomusicological films cf.Zemp 1988a:398-401 .
4 Certainconfusions arise with theuseoftheterms "film"and"video" anditisnecessary tostate clearly how they
areusedinthecontext ofthis article.Thus thenoun "film"canmean (a)a stripofcelluloidwith a moving image
chemicallyetched onto it,(b)a type ofedited document which normally conforms tosome notion ofhow a docu-
ment should bestructured, with a beginning andanendandembodying other formal conventions. "Video" de-
scribesthemedium ofelectronic image making, butwhen itisusedtoproduce a document likethat justde-
scribedforfilm itwillbecalled "film" rather than "video."Byanalogy, theterm "film making" willbeusedtode-
scribetheactivity ofmaking such a filmproduct, even ifthemedium usedisvideo.
5 Griersonisregarded asthefather ofBritish social documentary film.Hewasthefirst tousetheterm documen-
taryabout filminEnglish. Hisideas andtheories hada profound impact onthehistory ofthedocumentary asa
filmgenre.
6 Thehistory ofthis documentary movement deserves atleast anarticle ofitsown. TheEthnographic FilmPro-
gram atUCLA wasestablished in1967-8 with a grantfrom theFord Foundation forthepurchase offilm equip-
ment. Anthropological input came from Walter Goldschmidt andPaulHockings, amongst others. Thefirst film
produced bytheProgram, which drew many ofthestylisticcharacteristics together was"The Village,"filmed in
theDinglepeninsular inIreland. Amongst theleading ethnographic filmmakers tocome outoftheProgram were
David andJudith MacDougall, James Blue, David Hancock andHerb DiGioia.Allofthese filmmakers laterused
theeditingfacilitiesoftheNFTS intheearly 1970s.Cf.Young 1982.
7 TheLeverhulme Film Training Fellowship Scheme wasestablished in1984, when theRoyal Anthropological
Institute
invited applications for twotraining fellowships for anthropologists inthemaking ofanthropological
tenable
films, attheNational Film andTelevision School, Beaconsfield (justtothe west ofLondon). Theaim ofthe
scheme, made possible bya grant from theLeverhulme Trust, wastotrain anthropologistswith anaptitude for
visualanthropology, intheuseoffilm, andtoenable them tomake atleast onedocumentary filmduring their
year'swork. Theintention ofthescheme wastostimulate thetertiary education sector toprovide and
facilities
financeforfilming ofthis kind. Thescheme ran forthreeyears; thefirst
two successful candidates were accepted
fora second year oftraining, while inthethird year twonew fellows were selected.
8 Cf.Bendix 1987for a review.
9 Itisimportanttonote that while excellent Video 8camcorders withdigitalstereo sound arenow available forless
than US$2000, editing equipment inthis and.1/2" formats israther limitedinediting This
versatility. isnodoubt
onereason why ethnomusicologists havebeendiscouraged from editing their video research footage. For
example, thisequipment doesnotallow for thecomplete separation ofsound andimage that filmediting often
requires.Video inserts cannot bemade without cuttingthesound track atthesame time.Itistherefore recom-
mended toshoot inVideo 8andtotransfer image andsound to3/4" video tapefor editing.
10Cf.Baily1988:1 95for a discussion ofthis point.
11Itisthisfactwhich made theLeverhulme Film TrainingScheme sospecial, foritwasanattempt tobridge the
dichotomy between filmmakers andanthropologists, andtoallow anthropologists tobecome makers oftheir
own films.
12Thefilms (invideo) andstudy guides canbeobtained inEurope (PAL format) from theRoyal Anthropological
50Fitzroy
Institute, Street, London W1 P 5HS,andintheUSA(NTSC format)from Documentary Educational
Resources, 101Morse Street, Watertown, MA02172.
13This wasespecially important when onecould assume that anaudience would probably seea film onlyonce.
Video playback haschanged allthat andthefilm textcannow beexamined andre-examined inasmuch detail
asthewritten text.

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14Cf.alsoBaily
1988:197.
15Adapted from
Ruby1982:122.
16Zemp's four
inter-relatedJzli'
films aremodels
oftheMuotatal" theuseoffilm
for inethnomusicology.
They
show how anethnomusicological
analysis ina series
canbepresented offilms: outtheissues
setting as per-
ceivedbyinformants andYodelling"),
("Yootzing giving ofthesonic
ananalysis phenomenonusinganinnovative
film
animation inwhich
technique time-pitch aredrawn
graphs asthesong issung("Head Chest
Voice, Voice"),
andshowing themusic
makingwehavebeenlearning
aboutinthecontextofa wedding("TheWeddingof
Susanna andJosef")
andduring activities
pastoralist Thelast
("Glattalp"). twoarevery
much inthedocumentary
oftheNFTS,
style whosetenets
Zemp well.
understands

References
John
Baily,
1985 Amir: AnAfghan RefugeeMusician's inPeshawar,
Life 16mm
Pakistan. film, 52minutes.
colour,
Produced bytheRoyal andtheNational
Institute
Anthropological Film School.
andTelevision
1986 Lessons from Guiam: AsianMusic inBradford.16mm film, 52minutes.
colour, Producedbythe
RoyalAnthropological andtheNational
Institute Film School.
andTelevision
1988 Reportonthe7th ICTM Colloquium"Methods andTechniquesofFilm inEthno-
andVideorecording
musicologicalResearch."Yearbook for Music
Traditional 20:1
93-8.
1989a The Making ofAmir. Boston:DocumentaryEducationalResources.
1989b TheMaking ofLessons fromGulam. Boston: DocumentaryEducational
Resources.
John
Bendix,
1987 Review of"Sacred HarpSingers,"produced anddirectedbyMark BriceandChris Ethno-
Petry.
musicology31(3):525-6.
Breitrose,
Henry
1986 "TheStructuresandFunctions ofDocumentaryFilm."TheInternational
Journal
forFilmandTelevi-
sionSchools 2(1):43-56.
&George
James
Clifford, E.Marcus (eds.)
1986 Writing Culture: ThePoeticsandPoliticsofEthnography. LosAngeles: ofCalifornia
University
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Georges
1986 "TheDocumentary asanInstrumentofKnowledge." Journal
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sionSchools 2(1):32-3.
Steve
Feld,
1976 "Ethnomusicology andVisualCommunication."Ethnomusicology20(2):293-325.
Steve
Feld, Williams
&Caroli
1975 "Towards a Researchable Film Studies
Language." intheAnthropologyofVisualCommunication
2(1):25-32.
Kenneth
Gourlay,
1978 "Towards a Reassessment oftheEthnomusicologist's RoleinResearch." Ethnomusicology
):1-35.
22(1
Hood,Mantle
1971 TheEthnomusicologist.New York:McGraw-Hill.
Felicia
Hughes-Freeland,
1989 "Visual
Anthropology attheZagreb ICAES."Anthropology 5(1):25-6.
Today
David
MacDougall,
1982 Camera
"Unprivileged Style."
Royal Institute
Anthropological News 50:8-10.
Ruby,Jay
1982 "Ethnography astrompe : Film
l'oeil andAnthropology."InACrackintheMirror.Reflexive
Perspec-
inAnthropology.
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 Colin
Young,
1975 "Observational
Cinema."InPrinciples
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65-80.
Hague,
1982 Conversations."
"MacDougali Royal Institute
Anthropological News50:5-8.
Zemp,
Hugo
1988a "Filmina
Music
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Films."
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Yearbook
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20:257-60.

John Baily
Filmen als eine Technik musikalischer Ethnographie
(Kurzfassung)

Erlutert
werden einleitend
dieverschiedenenkeitbeimFilmen, berlegungenzumProduk-
Anwendungen vonFilm undVideoindermusik- tionsproze,Aufnahmesequenzenen, Umstruk-
ethnologischenForschung und im Anschlu turierung derZeit,Gebrauch vonunterlegter
darandieCharakteristika
einesFilm-Stils,
deran Sprache,SuchenachKommentaren durchEin-
der NationalenFilmund Fernseh-Schule in heimische
undnachGesprchen mitihnenund
Grobritannien
entwickelt
wurde, anderderAu- Untertitelung. wirdderStellenwert
Schlielich
torsichderHerstellung
zweier musikethnologi-desFilms
alseiner Form Tex-
ethnographischen
scherFilmewidmete.DieserStilwird
unterzwlf teserrtert. desAutors
DieHauptintention istes,
Gesichtspunktendiskutiert:Erzhlform,Por- EthnomusikologenzueigenenFilm-undVideo-
Filmen
traitfilm, alsUntersuchungstechnik,Her- Produktionenals einerTechnik
musikalischer
angehensweiseund teilnehmende Beob- Ethnographiezuermutigen.
achtung,Rolledes Regisseurs,Unaufdringlich-

John Baily
Le cinma au service de l'ethnographie musicale
(rsum)
Aprsunbref commentaire surlesdiffrentes dumetteur enscne,ladiscrtion,
rflexions
sur
ducinma
utilisations etde lavidodansla re- le processus dufilm,
de ralisation letournage
cherche ethnomusicologique, nousexaminonsdes squences,la rorganisation du temps,
danscetarticlelescaractristiques
d'unstyle de lavoixoffpourlescommentaires,
ci- l'emploi la
nmatographique misaupoint au Royaume-Unirecherche donnes
d'explications surplace,par
parleNational FilmandTelevisionSchool.Nous les autochtones, etde contactsavecces der-
l'avonsappliqu pourla ralisation
de deuxdo- niers, Cetarticle
le sous-titrage. se conclutsur
cumentaires ethnomusicologiques. Le styleci- unexamen dustatutdufilm entantquedocu-
nmatographique est examinsous douze mentethnographique. L'intention
gnralede
aspects:laforme leportrait,
narrative, laralisa- l'auteurest d'encouragerles ethnomusicolo-
tionde filmsentantquemoyen d'investigation,gues recouriraucinmaet lavidopourleurs
le rle travaux
l'accset l'observation-participation, d'ethnographiemusicale.

20

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