The American Music Research Center is conducting a comprehensive study of the music and music making of Pueblo, CO and the surrounding county.

Led by CU Boulder ethnomusicologists Drs. Susan Thomas and Austin Okigbo and Dr. Xochitl Chavez from the University of California, Riverside, the study will document the music and culture of the city of Pueblo and its immediate vicinity.  Researchers will interview community members who are current and past participants in musical activities and will create a digital archive of interviews and performances that will be accessible to the general public through the University of Colorado Libraries. The project is also partnering with the Latino History Project and K-12 educators to create educational and curricular materials.

Our Commitment

We are actively advancing the University of Colorado Boulder’s commitment to building diversity, inclusivity, and equity by sharing the diverse histories, experiences, and perspectives of American musicians broadly through thoughtful research and promotion, community programing, and archived music collections. The Soundscapes of the People research initiative is a response to these core values. In collaboration with communities who have been traditionally underrepresented in music studies, this initiative aims to document and preserve unique stories and sounds from Southern Colorado and the Borderlands region. Through its diverse labor force and rapid industrial expansion in the late 19^th and early 20^th century, Pueblo had an integral role in establishing the American West. This project examines the city’s social and labor history as experienced through music and sound and also follows musicians and their music into the present as the city transitions into a post-industrial future.

Pueblo’s Role in Shaping Narratives of the American West

Pueblo’s story is integrally tied to the nation’s. The city can be thought of as occupying a double “borderland” both between North and South–as it once stood on the U.S. border with Mexico–and between East and West–the “rails and nails” produced at the city’s steel mill quite literally provided the key to open Colorado’s Gateway to the West. Pueblo’s industrialization and the Colorado Fuel and Iron steel plant made the city a beacon of 20th century modernism and drew waves of immigrants from Europe, the eastern United States, surrounding rural areas, and Mexico and Central America. Pueblo is surrounded by quality farmland, and the city’s economy and culture is marked by both industrial and agricultural labor and the struggles of workers to secure and retain their rights. In spite of the region’s centrality in the U.S.’s economic, geographic, and military development and its role in shaping narratives of the American West, Pueblo’s own cultural history and its contributions have largely been lost and overlooked. Soundscapes of the People looks to music as a tool for community building and activism as well as the soundscape for Pueblo’s experiences of industrialization and cosmopolitanism and later economic decline and isolation. The project aims to shed light on the role of music in shaping the city in the past, help us to better understand the present, and suggest new paths for the future.

• Soundscapes of the People Community Interviews

  Additional Info

  Researchers are conducting oral history interviews with musicians, music educators, and other arts stakeholders in Pueblo, Colorado. These interviews will be housed in collections at the CU Boulder and CSU-Pueblo libraries.

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  Location

  in colorado

  Pueblo

  Dates

  Ongoing

  Public or Private

  Private Program (by request only or for a specific audience or group)

  Program Fee

  No charge to attend/participate in activity or program

• Soundscapes of the People Educator Blog

  Additional Info

  Educators, researchers, and students are creating K-12 educational materials based on the Soundscapes of the People oral history collection.

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  Location

  on campus

  Dates

  10/26/2023 - 10/26/2023

  Public or Private

  Public Program (open to the public)

  Program Fee

  No charge to attend/participate in activity or program

  Online Resource

  Coming soon!

  Event URL

  https://cupresents.org/performance/1690432446/cu-music/chamber-orchestra/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CSong%20of%20Pueblo%E2%80%9D%20explores%20significant,Sand%20Creek%20and%20Ludlow%20massacres.

• "Song of Pueblo" Documentary - Rocky Mountain PBS

  Additional Info

  "Song of Pueblo" is a multimedia oratorio that tells stories of southeastern Colorado's indigenous and immigrant communities. Written by Daniel Valdez, an orchestrated version premiered in 2023 with performances by the CU Boulder Chamber Orchestra and the El Pueblo Ensemble. The documentary (in production) features footage from the premieres, and it shares the stories of key collaborators in creating and performing the work.

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  Location

  on campus

  Dates

  10/26/2023 - 10/26/2023

  Public or Private

  Public Program (open to the public)

  Program Fee

  No charge to attend/participate in activity or program

  Online Resource

  Coming soon!