The doctoral project examines the role of non-European actors in the dissemination of European art music between 1830 and 1920, using the example of musicians from Cuba. These musicians are understood as ‘musical brokers’ who mediated between different musical lives in the Atlantic region and were not only driven by musical but also by social and political circumstances. The work thus deliberately contrasts existing research perspectives, which tend to either declare these actors to be national musicians ‘avant la lettre’ or marginalize them as mere recipients of European art music. The aim is to ‘provincialize’ the musical landscape of Europe and in this way to open up new perspectives on the history of cultural globalization.
Taking cues from global microhistory, the living and working conditions of selected Cuban musicians who were active in Cuba as well as in Europe will be explored. In this way, it is not only possible to examine the conditions and opportunities for professional music careers but also to gain insights into the driving forces of a transatlantic musical world in the 19th century. In this context, the project takes into consideration the influence of economization, professionalization, racism, emancipation, decolonization, and nationalism on the processes of cultural globalization.