Bonnie McConnell

I am a PhD student in ethnomusicology researching the music of West African immigrants in Québec. This summer I pursued an intensive upper intermediate level French course at the Alliance Française in Seattle. This course enabled me to improve my French comprehension, conversation and grammar while researching and presenting material on West African musicians in Québec and the immigrant experience. I will continue to research these topics in my French and ethnomusicology coursework throughout the coming academic year. My interests include the experience of West African immigrants in Québec, the implications of immigration for Canadian society more generally, and the role of music in providing opportunities for cross-cultural interaction and exchange. My research examines the ways in which music expresses and celebrates cultural difference while simultaneously articulating, and sometimes creating, shared identities (e.g. Canadian, Québécois or pan-African).