About Jonathon Smith
Bio
Jonathon Smith’s research explores the shifting spaces of Sacred Harp singing with a particular focus on imagined and real ruralness, conceptions of the southern U.S., Celticism, race, and sexual identities. Dr. Smith has given research presentations for the Society for American Music, the Society for Ethnomusicology annual meeting, the International Council for Traditional Music, and the Southern American Studies Association, among others. Other research and performance interests include bells and carillons, Irish and Breton music, and the broader Celtic phenomenon. Jonathon was University carillonneur for Lander University (undergraduate) and the first graduate student Chimesmaster for the University of Illinois’ Altgeld Chimes organization after major renovations in 2016. He is an avid photographer and Sacred Harp singer and frequently travels throughout the U.S. and Europe for singings.
Education
BA (organ), Lander University (SC); MM (musicology), University of Tennessee; PhD (musicology), University of Illinois
Research and publications
Selected publications
“‘To Darkness, Fire, and Pain’: Sacred Harp Singing, Ruralness, and the Southern Gothic,” Southern Cultures, Vol. 29, 2023 (published 2024).
“Camp Fasola: Teaching ‘Tradition’,” Tributaries, Journal of the Alabama Folklife Association, No. 12, 2011.
Teaching and advising
Classes taught
MUS 133
Introduction to World Music
MUS 413 (Music and Performance)
The Sacred Harp: the Performance and Politics of Shape-Note Singing [syllabus]
MUS 418/518 (Regional Studies in Musicology)
"Disrupting Dixie": Music in the South
Music of the Celtic World
MUS 421 (The Music of America)
In Search of the Folk—Traditional Music in America
"This Ain't Texas": Complicating Country Music
MUS 512 (Foundations/Methods of Musicology II)
Introduction to Ethnomusicology