Professor Barley Norton

Barley is an ethnomusicologist and filmmaker with research interests in the music and culture of Southeast Asia.

Staff details

Position

Professor of Music

Professor Barley Norton is an ethnomusicologist and filmmaker with research interests in the music and culture of Southeast Asia. He is the director of 51吃瓜网黑料鈥� Asian Music Unit (AsMU), the convenor of the MA in Music (Ethnomusicology), and the leader of the . He has conducted extensive field research in Vietnam and his publications include a monograph on ritual music and spirit possession titled (University of Illinois Press, 2009).

As part of a Getty-funded research project on contemporary experimental performance culture in Vietnam, he made the critically acclaimed film (Documentary Educational Resources, 56 minutes, 2010). He is also co-editor of two books: (Cambridge University Press, 2013), which examines how music was integral to the profound cultural and political change that swept the globe around 1968; and (Routledge, 2018). Barley is a member of the REF 2021 Sub-panel 33: Music, Drama, Dance, Performing Arts, Film and Screen Studies (2018-21) and he served as Chair of the British Forum for Ethnomusicology from 2015 to 2018.

Areas of supervision

Christopher Hanby: Applied Ethnomusicology and the Revitalisation of the Endangered Language of Je虁rriais: A study of music, language ideology, and cultural identity in Jersey (Research funded by a CHASE studentship]
Lin Lin: Creative Realization in the Compositional Process: Exploring Hulusi Embellishing Techniques in Contemporary Flute Music
Clare Salaman: Reimagining an exotic instrument of the past in a contemporary context: The trumpet marine restored (Research funded by a CHASE Studentship)
Jasmine Hornabrook: Transnational networks, musical learning and performance in London's Tamil diaspora (Research funded by an AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Award)

Grants & awards

Barley Norton鈥檚 research has been funded by grants and scholarships from the Getty Foundation, the Arts and Humanities Research Council, the British Academy, and ASEASUK (Association for Southeast Asian Studies in the UK). In recent years, he has worked on applied international projects concerning the revival of Vietnamese music and audiovisual archiving.

This has included consultancy work on music heritage projects with the British Council, UNESCO, the Vietnam Musicology Institute, and the Vietnamese Institute for Culture and Art Studies. His co-edited volume Music and Protest in 1968 won the American Musicology Society鈥檚 2014 . His film 鈥淗anoi Eclipse: The Music of Dai Lam Linh鈥� was awarded a "Commendation - Intangible Culture Film Prize" at the Royal Anthropological Institute鈥檚 12^th International Festival of Ethnographic Film.

Journalism, radio and television

Writer for the world music magazine Songlines, including feature articles and CD reviews
Consultant, interviewee and interviewer for several BBC radio programmes including the two-part radio documentary
Featured guest on several national Vietnamese Television (VTV) shows and documentaries, including a televised debate organised by the British Council on the theme of 鈥淯rban Beats鈥� (鈥淒ap Nhip Do Thi鈥�) and the documentary 鈥淎 Westerner Loves Our Music鈥� (鈥淣guoi Tay Me Nhac Ta鈥�)

Publications and research outputs

Book

Norton, Barley. 2009. Songs for the Spirits: Music and Mediums in Modern Vietnam. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press. ISBN 9780252033995

Edited Book

Norton, Barley and Matsumoto, Naomi, eds. 2019. Music as Heritage: Historical and Ethnographic Perspectives. Abingdon: Routledge. ISBN 9781138228047
Kutschke, Beate and Norton, Barley, eds. 2013. Music and Protest in 1968. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781107007321

Edited Journal

Norton, Barley; Sendra, Estrella and Jackson, Joseph, eds. 2022. 'Musicology on Screen' Special Issue, Screenworks, 12(2). 2514-3123
Harris, Rachel and Norton, Barley, eds. 2002. Red Ritual: Ritual Music and Communism, British Journal of Ethnomusicology, . 0968-1221

Book Section

Norton, Barley. 2024. Li峄噓 ngh峄� thu岷璽 h谩t ch猫o c贸 n锚n 膽瓢峄 b岷 v峄� nh瓢 di s岷 v膬n ho谩 phi v岷璽 th峄�? M峄檛 s峄� suy t瓢 ph岷 bi峄噉 v峄� vi峄嘽 phong th谩nh v脿 t铆nh s谩ng t岷. [Should Ch猫o Music Theatre be Safeguarded as Intangible Cultural Heritage? Some Critical Reflections on Canonisation and Creativity]. In: H岷眓g Th峄� V农 and Thu Th峄� Ho脿ng, eds. B岷 v峄� v脿 ph谩t huy gi谩 tr峄� di s岷 tr矛nh di峄卬 d芒n gian v脿 ngh峄� thu岷璽 ch猫o trong x茫 h峄檌膽瓢啤ng 膽岷 [Safeguarding and Promoting the Folk Performance and Art of Ch猫o in Contemporary Society]. Hanoi: Nh脿 Xu岷 B岷 V膬n Ho谩 D芒n T峄檆, pp. 28-45. ISBN 9786047041275
Norton, Barley. 2024. Intimacy in Ethnographic Film: Listening to How to Improve the World by Nguy峄卬 Trinh Thi. In: Stephen Cottrell; Dafni Tragaki and Stephen Wilford, eds. Ethnomusicology and its Intimacies. New York: Routledge, pp. 148-162. ISBN 9781032431314
Norton, Barley. 2021. Ethnomusicology and Filmmaking. In: Stephen Cottrell, ed. Music, Dance, Anthropology. Hertfordshire: Sean Kingston Publishing, pp. 121-143. ISBN 9781912385317

Norton, Barley. 2020. "S峄� Truy峄乶 T岷 B岷眓g H矛nh Th峄ヽ Nghe Nh矛n C峄 Di S岷 V膬n Ho谩 Trong X茫 H峄檌膼瓢啤ng 膼岷" [鈥淭he Audiovisual Mediation of Cultural Heritage in Contemporary Society鈥漖. In: L芒m 膼o脿n Tr岷, ed. B岷 V峄� V脿 Ph谩t Huy Gi谩 Tr峄� Ngh峄� Thu岷璽 Xo猫 Th谩i Trong X茫 H峄檌膼瓢啤ng 膼岷 [鈥淪afeguarding and Promoting of the Art of X貌e Dance of the Tai People in Contemporary Society"]. Hanoi: Nh脿 Xu岷 B岷 Th岷� Gi峄沬, pp. 534-549. ISBN 9786047786602
Norton, Barley and Matsumoto, Naomi. 2019. Introduction: Historical and Ethnographic Perspectives on Music as Heritage. In: Barley Norton and Naomi Matsumoto, eds. Music as Heritage: Historical and Ethnographic Perspectives. London and New York: Routledge, pp. 1-17. ISBN 9781138228047
Norton, Barley. 2019. Filming Music as Heritage: The Cultural Politics of Audiovisual Representation. In: Barley Norton and Naomi Matsumoto, eds. Music as Heritage: Ethnographic and Historical Perspectives. Abingdon: Routledge, pp. 79-101. ISBN 9781138228047
Norton, Barley. 2018. Filming Music as Heritage. In: Hui Yu, ed. Ethnomusicology in Audiovisual Time. Zheijang: Zheijang University Press, pp. 78-90. ISBN 978-7-308-18210-2
Norton, Barley. 2018. Orchestrating the Nation: Court Orchestras, Nationalism and Agency in Vietnam. In: Tina K. Ramnarine, ed. Global Perspectives on Orchestras: Collective Creativity and Social Agency. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 301-323. ISBN 9780199352227
Norton, Barley. 2018. Music and Censorship in Vietnam since 1954. In: Patricia Hall, ed. The Oxford Handbook of Music Censorship. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 303-331. ISBN 9780199733163
Norton, Barley. 2017. Vietnam: Popular Music and Censorship. In: Marie Korpe, ed. Targeting the Arts. Copenhagen, Denmark: Freemuse, pp. 21-31. ISBN 9788799886814
Norton, Barley. 2014. Music Revival, Ca Tr霉 Ontologies, and Intangible Cultural Heritage in Vietnam. In: Caroline Bithell and Juniper Hill, eds. The Oxford Handbook of Music Revival. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 160-181. ISBN 9780199765034
Norton, Barley. 2013. Engendering Emotion and the Environment in Vietnamese Music and Ritual. In: Fiona Magowan and Louise Wrazen, eds. Performing Gender, Place and Emotion in Music: Global Perspectives. Rochester, New York: Rochester University Press, pp. 29-59. ISBN 9781580464642
Norton, Barley. 2013. Vietnamese Popular Song in 鈥�1968鈥�: War, Protest and Sentimentalism. In: Beate Kutschke and Barley Norton, eds. Music and Protest in 1968. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 97-118. ISBN 9781107007321
Norton, Barley. 2010. 鈥淣h芒n H峄峜脗m Nh岷 Vi峄噒?鈥� (鈥淭he Anthropology of Vietnamese Music?鈥�). In: Hy Van Luong, ed. Hi峄噉膼岷璱 v脿膼峄檔g Th谩i c峄 Truy峄乶 Th峄憂g 峄� Vi峄噒 Nam: Nh峄痭g C谩ch Ti岷縫 C岷璶 Nh芒n H峄峜 (Modernities and the Dynamics of Tradition in Vietnam: Anthropological Approaches). 2 Ho Chi Minh City: National University of Ho Chi Minh Press, pp. 623-636.
Norton, Barley and Blackburn, Philip. 2009. Vietnam: Music on the Move. In: Simon Broughton, ed. The Rough Guide to World Music: Europe and Asia. 2 London: Rough Guides, pp. 778-797. ISBN 1843538660
Norton, Barley. 2008. Ca Tru Restoration: Issues and Challenges. In: . Vietnamese Institute for Musicology, ed. Ca Tru Singing of the Viet People. Hanoi: Vietnamese Institute for Musicology, pp. 187-192. ISBN No ISBN
Norton, Barley. 2006. Effeminate鈥� Men and 鈥楬ot-Tempered鈥� Women: The Performance of Music and Gender in Vietnamese Mediumship. In: Karen Fjelstad and Hien Thi Nguyen, eds. Possessed by the Spirits: Mediumship in Contemporary Vietnamese Communities. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, pp. 55-75. ISBN 0877271410
Norton, Barley. 2004. L锚n 膽峄搉g Vi峄噒 Nam: C岷 t岷 芒m nh岷 c峄 th岷 th谩nh (Vietnamese mediumship rituals: the musical construction of the spirits). In: 膼峄ヽ Th峄媙h Ng么, ed. 膼岷 M岷玼 v脿 c谩c h矛nh th峄ヽ Shaman trong c谩c t峄檆 ng瓢峄漣峄� Vi峄噒 Nam v脿 ch芒u 脕 (The Mother Religion and Forms of Shamanism among Ethnic Groups in Vietnam and Asia). Hanoi: Social Science Publishing House, pp. 310-341.

Article

Norton, Barley. 2025. 鈥淪煤y V芒n Feigns Madness鈥�: Canonisation and Creativity in Vietnamese Music Theatre. Traditions of Music and Dance, ISSN 3033-4233
Norton, Barley. 2024. D峄� 谩n 鈥淜h铆 h岷璾 c峄 芒m thanh鈥� (ph岷 ti岷縫 theo) (The 鈥淐limate of Sound鈥� Project Continued). Nghi锚n c峄﹗ 芒m nh岷: Th么ng B谩o Khoa H峄峜 (Music Research: Scientific Journal), 73, pp. 70-76. ISSN 1859-4360
Norton, Barley. 2024. 膼么i l峄漣 gi峄沬 thi峄噓 v峄� d峄� 谩n 鈥淜h铆 h岷璾 c峄 芒m thanh: Ph谩t tri峄僴 n膬ng l峄眂 nghi锚n c峄﹗ trong ngh峄� thu岷璽膽瓢啤ng 膽岷 v脿 di s岷 v膬n h贸a trong th峄漣 k峄� bi岷縩膽峄昳 m么i tr瓢峄漬g鈥� (Introducing 鈥淭he Climate of Sound: Developing Research Capacity in the Contemporary Arts and Cultural Heritage in Times of Environmental Change鈥�. Nghi锚n c峄﹗ 芒m nh岷: Th么ng B谩o Khoa H峄峜 (Music Research: Scientific Journal), 72, pp. 118-120. ISSN 1859-4360

Norton, Barley. 2020. M锚 Th岷 Th峄漣 Vang B贸ng (The Glorious Time in M锚 Th岷 Hamlet). 2002. Directed by Vi峄噒 Linh, 108 minutes. Vietnam: H茫ng Phim Gi岷 Ph贸ng (Liberation Film Company). [Film Review]. Yearbook for Traditional Music, 52, pp. 241-245. ISSN 0740-1558
Norton, Barley. 2020. Review of the CD 'Ho岷� 脗m X瓢a' by Saigon Soul Revival, Saigon Supersound. Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 156, p. 62.
Norton, Barley. 2019. Review of the CD 'Streams' by Nguy锚n L锚 Quartet, ACT. Songlines: The World Music Magazine(147), p. 65. ISSN 2059-6782
Norton, Barley. 2019. Review of the CD 'The Art of the Vietnamese Zither: 膼脿n Tranh' by Tri Nguyen, ARC Music. Songlines: The World Music Magazine(147), p. 60. ISSN 1464-8113
Norton, Barley. 2019. Feature article 鈥淒ispatch from Vietnam鈥�. Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 144, p. 85.
Norton, Barley. 2019. Review of the CD 'Saigon Supersound, 1964-75 Volume 2', INFRACom! Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 144, p. 68.
Norton, Barley. 2018. Review of the CD 'Lao Dreaming' by Wonderfeel, Skeletone. Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 136, p. 65.
Norton, Barley. 2017. Review of the CD 'Saigon Supersound, 1965-75 Volume 1', INFRACom! Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 131, p. 59.
Norton, Barley. 2017. Review of the CDs 'Dengue Fever' by Dengue Fever and 'Escape from Dragon House' by Dengue Fever. TUK TUK Records. Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 129, p. 63.
Norton, Barley. 2016. Review of the CD 'Khmer Rouge Survivors: They Will Kill You, If You Cry', Glitterbeat Records. Songlines: The World Music Magazine(121), p. 61.
Norton, Barley. 2016. 'Music, Ethnicity and Heritage: A Comparison of Then and L锚n 膽峄搉g Rituals in Vietnam (脗m nh岷, T峄檆 ng瓢峄漣 v脿 Di S岷: So s谩nh gi峄痑 nghi l峄� Then v脿 L锚n 膽峄搉g c峄 Vi峄噒 Nam)'. Th么ng B谩o Khoa H峄峜 Vi峄噉脗m Nh岷 (Bulletin of Vietnamese Institute for Musicology), 156, pp. 22-33. ISSN 18594360
Norton, Barley. 2016. Review of "Sounding Out Heritage: Cultural Politics and the Social Practice of Quan Ho Folk Song in Northern Vietnam" by Lauren Meeker (University of Hawaii Press, 2013). Journal of Vietnamese Studies, 11(2), pp. 122-124. ISSN 1559-372X
Norton, Barley. 2015. Review of the CD 'Radio Vietnam', compiled by Mark Gergis. Sublime Frequencies. Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 109, p. 71.
Norton, Barley. 2014. Review of the CD 'The Don Cai Tai Tu: Chamber Music of the Mekong Delta', Inedit/Maison des Cultures du Monde. Songlines: The World Music Magazine(103), p. 75.
Norton, Barley. 2014. CD Review of Nostalgique Vietnam: Chansons de charme, po猫mes et pri猫res 1937-1954, Buda Musique. Songlines: The World Music Magazine(101), p. 75.
Norton, Barley. 2014. Review of the film "This is a Music! Reclaiming an Untouchable Drum" (2010, Directed by Zoe Sherinian, DVD, 74 minutes). Yearbook for Traditional Music, 46, pp. 249-250. ISSN 0740-1558
Norton, Barley. 2014. Engendering Emotion and the Environment in Vietnamese Mediumship. Vietnam Social Sciences Review, 164(6), pp. 1-16.
Norton, Barley. 2013. Music, Protest & the Vietnam War. Goldlink Magazine(40), pp. 18-20.
Norton, Barley. 2012. Review of the CD 'Saigon Rock and Soul: Vietnamese Classic Tracks 1968-1974'. SF060. Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 85, p. 81.
Norton, Barley. 2012. Review of the CD 'Tree of Dreams' by Huong Thanh. Buda Musique. Songlines: The World Music Magazine., 83, p. 88.
Norton, Barley. 2012. Review of the CD 'Song Hanh' by Onno Krijn and Ngo Hong Quang. Noon Records. Songlines: The World Music Magazine., 84, p. 94.
Norton, Barley. 2011. Review of the CD "Burma: Classical Theatre Music". VDE-Gallo. Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 74, p. 78.
Norton, Barley. 2011. Huong Thanh - Vietnam's Song Bird. Songlines, 80, p. 27.
Norton, Barley. 2010. Review of Music, National Identity and the Politics of Location: Between the Global and the Local, edited by Ian Biddle and Vanessa Knights. Ethnomusicology Forum, 19(2), pp. 268-269.
Norton, Barley. 2009. Review of the CD 'Saiyuki' by Nguyen Le, ACT 9483-2. Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 64, p. 97.
Norton, Barley. 2008. Book review of P鈥檜ngmul: South Korean Drumming and Dance by Nathan Hesselink, University of Chicago Press. World of Music, 50(1), pp. 120-121.
Norton, Barley. 2008. Review of the CD "Fragile Beauty" by Huong Thanh and Nguyen Le. ACT 94512. Songlines: The World Music Magazine., 50, p. 101.
Norton, Barley. 2008. CD Review: Huong Thanh, Cai Luong Music. Songlines: The World Music Magazine., 53, p. 77.
Norton, Barley. 2007. CD Review: Vietnam: Vocal music from the Northern Plains. Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 41, p. 75.
Norton, Barley. 2007. CD Review: Que Huong (Homeland). Songlines: The World Music Magazine., 44, p. 75.
Norton, Barley. 2007. A Review Essay on Recordings of Music from Vietnam. World of Music, 49(1), pp. 215-222.
Norton, Barley. 2007. CD Review: The Rough Guide to the Music of Vietnam. Songlines: The World Music Magazine, 46, p. 67.
Norton, Barley. 2007. Feature article "Postcard from Hanoi, Vietnam". Songlines: The World Music Magazine., 45, p. 51.
Norton, Barley. 2005. Singing the Past: Vietnamese Ca Tru, Memory and Mode. Asian Music, 36(2), pp. 27-56.
Norton, Barley. 2005. Review of 6 CD Box Set , 鈥淰ietnam 鈥� Mother Mountain and Father Sea, an Introduction to the Traditional Music of Vietnam鈥�. White Cliffs Media WCM 9991. Ethnomusicology Forum, 14(1), pp. 121-123.
Norton, Barley. 2002. The Moon Remembers Uncle Ho: The Politics of Music and Mediumship in Northern Vietnam. British Journal of Ethnomusicology, 11(1), pp. 71-100. ISSN 1741-1912
Harris, Rachel and Norton, Barley. 2002. Introduction: Ritual Music and Communism. British Journal of Ethnomusicology, 11(1), pp. 1-8. ISSN 1741-1912
Norton, Barley. 2000. Vietnamese Mediumship Rituals: The Musical Construction of the Spirits. The World of Music, 42(2), pp. 75-97.

Digital

Norton, Barley. 2015. Ca Tr霉 Singing in Vietnam: Revival and Innovation.
Norton, Barley. 2005. Website on Vietnamese Ca Tru.

Film/Video

Norton, Barley. 2020. Make a Silence - Musical Dialogues in Asia, Journal of Anthropological Films Vol 4, No 2 (2020)..
Norton, Barley. 2020. Story 4 - Beatboxing versus traditional drumming.
Norton, Barley. 2020. Story 2 - The Future of Tradition.

Printed Ephemera

Norton, Barley. 2014. Exhibition catalogue text for the installation - "Homelands: Working the Rice, Working the Forest" by the Landscape Quartet featuring Nguyen Thanh Thuy..

Professional Activity

Norton, Barley. 2021. Member of the REF 2021 Sub-panel 33 (2018-2021).
Norton, Barley. 2020. Member of the Society for Ethnomusicology Council (Elected for 3-year Term, 2017-2020).
Norton, Barley. 2018. Chair of the British Forum for Ethnomusicology (2015-2018).

Report

Norton, Barley and Hoang, Van Chung. 2020. Heritage of Future Past - Story Collection. Project Report. British Council, Vietnam.

Other

Norton, Barley. 2001. Ca tru: the music of north Vietnam. Nimbus Records NI5626, Wyastone.

Research Interests

Dr Barley Norton鈥檚 research interests include ethnomusicological filmmaking and theory, the cultural politics of musical practice, discourse on cultural heritage and music revival, music and religious experience, music and emotion, music and gender theory, music censorship, improvisation, performance and modal theory. His academic research is informed by practice. During field research in Vietnam he learnt to play two Vietnamese lutes: the dan day and dan nguyet. He also plays Sundanese music from Indonesia on the kacapi zither and the gamelan degung orchestra.

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