A Postcolonial Curriculum Investigation in the Course “Instrument – Acoustic Guitar” of the Federal University of Bahia

Abstract

Regardless of the field, the establishment of a curriculum is intrinsically connected with discussions that incorporate struggles from broader social contexts. A scrutinizing analysis of a music course’s curriculum can disclose complex power structures that interfere with the social perception not only of the courses’ direct stakeholders but also with the perception of general members of society. In this context, the current article has as its main aim to reflect on possible connections between the establishment of the curriculum of an influential higher education music institution and the general social perception toward different types of musical knowledge. Influenced by a postcolonial perspective and focused on Salvador, a Brazilian northeastern city, this investigation has three specific aims to support the general purpose: 1) to review the literature which discusses the connections between social struggles and curriculum development; 2) to contextualize the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) in the Salvador city by presenting their main characteristics that are related to the presented discussion; and 3) to examine the curriculum of the course “Instrument – Acoustic Guitar” offered at UFBA. Supported by the aforementioned aims, this inquiry employs the “Qualitative Document Analysis” methodology to analyze academically relevant sources that can support and foster the proposed reflections. Likewise, this paper intends to contribute to the ongoing scientific debate about the impact of social structures in the curricula of higher education music courses and to stimulate conscious and active participation of higher education organizations in the promotion of fairer societies.