Documenting the Musical Heritage of the Bronx
Sara Nuta (GGFUP, 2017, Location: New York City)
MISSION STATEMENT: My mission for this fellowship is to apply the urban theories and research I’ve done in the classroom to a real neighborhood in order to learn more about the ways cities work and the people who inhabit them. I also want to use this fellowship as an opportunity to untangle the ways in which journalists and photographers document urban settings, and the social and political implications of the observer’s perspective. Through interviewing members of the Albanian, Yemeni, and Bangladeshi communities, I hope to develop a contact list for The Bronx Music Heritage Foundation that they can use to reach out to local musicians for performances, classes, and other local events held at BMHC. This will align with the BMHC’s mission to keep the vibrant spirit of the Bronx alive, but also extend this to other immigrant groups that may not typically receive recognition as part of the South Bronx’s reputation for cultural vitality. This fellowship will also help me reconcile my interests in journalism, media criticism, and metropolitan studies into a coherent research project.