The Cultural Politics of Issei Identity and Music Making in California, 1893–1941

Bibliographic Data

ID19167804
AuthorsSusan Miyo Asai (corresponding author)
Year2016
Volume10
Issue3
Pages304-330
Publication date2016-08-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of the Society for American Music (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1752-1963 • E-ISSN: 1752-1971
PublisherCambridge University Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1017/s1752196316000225
OpenAlexW2507492790
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited22

Considering the aesthetic and social value of music making among Issei , first generation Japanese in California, opens a line of inquiry into how this immigrant population negotiated their cultural and political identities in a nation that racially marginalized them. As an integral aspect of Japanese culture, music was a medium through which Issei leaders chose to claim a cultural space in the United States. Their efforts to establish themselves within the social fabric of mainstream American society reveal the social and political forces that prevented their acceptance and assimilation. Issei responded by showcasing traditional Japanese music to educate white Americans about their revered heritage, singing songs for comfort and familiarity, and encouraging their children to perform Western music as an acculturative strategy. Caught between two nations, Issei emerged with alternative identities that ultimately failed due to the racist ideology governing American citizenship

Acculturation · Aesthetics · Art · Citizenship · Cultural identity · Ethnic group · Ideology · Immigration · Mainstream · Political science · Politics · Population · Social science · Sociology · Anthropology · Asian American and Pacific Histories · Gender Studies · Japanese History and Culture · Law · Migration, Ethnicity, and Economy

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Open DOISci-HubOpen Access