Quaderni IRCrES 21 – Cap.7

Eco-music: rock per l’ambiente

Eco-music: rock for the environment

Laura Bonato, Carmen Concilio

Università di Torino, Dipartimento di Lingue e Letterature Straniere e Culture Moderne, Complesso Aldo Moro Via Verdi 18, 10124 Torino, Italia

contact authors: laura.bonato@unito.it; carmen.concilio@unito.it

 

Abstract

Rock, one of the most irreverent popular art forms of the last century, has been able to represent changes in society: for years it has conveyed and materialized the moods of young people from different generations. Its performers have represented the dreams, desires and anger of the youths. And if today it is no longer a confrontational and critical instrument, this does not mean that it has reduced its communicative potential: today, as in the past, it continues to convey environmentalist messages. The entire history of rock music is characterized by the presence of themes such as the defence of the planet and harmony with nature in its lyrics, and many artists have contributed significantly to instilling and spreading awareness on issues of environmental protection. The two-voice contribution presented here sets out to analyze ‒ with the tools of cultural anthropology, (acoustic) ecology studies and post-colonial studies ‒ some works by English-speaking rock artists who, from the 1960s onwards, have been spokesmen for environmental issues. Moreover, our contribution proposes the analysis of a film about the role of rock music for a group of Inuit young people who want to convey an ecological message about the Arctic as fragile landscape. The intent and engagement of the young musicians in the film is completely in line with- and a consequence of- the engagement of international singers, musicians and artists who have used rock to convey such messages and warnings about environmental multiple crises.

Keywords: rockers, environmental humanities, activism, climate change, environmental and social justice.

 

DOI: 10.23760/2499-6661.2024.21.07

ISBN: 978-88-98193-36-3

ISSN (online): 2499-6661

 

How to Cite

Bonato, L., & Concilio, C. (2024). Eco-music: rock per l’ambiente. In Finardi, U. (cur.). Cambiamento climatico e sostenibilità: una visione multidisciplinare (pp. 141-155). Quaderni IRCrES 21. CNR-IRCrES. http://dx.doi.org/10.23760/2499-6661.2024.21.07