About:

Jonathan H. Shannon is Professor and Chair in the Department of Anthropology, Hunter College, City University of New York, and a member of the doctoral faculties in Music and Anthropology at the CUNY Graduate Center. He earned his BA in English Literature from Stanford University and a PhD in Anthropology from the CUNY Graduate Center. His research and writing focus on aesthetics and music performance in the Arab world and Mediterranean, with a special focus on Syria, Morocco, Spain, and Turkey. He is the author of numerous articles and three books: Among the Jasmine Trees: Music and Modernity in Contemporary Syria (2006); A Wintry Day in Damascus: Syrian Stories (2012); and Performing al-Andalus: Music and Nostalgia across the Mediterranean (2015). His current research investigates the dynamics of collective memory and cultural change among displaced Syrian musicians in Turkey and Europe. He is the recipient of many awards and fellowships, including from Fulbright and Guggenheim.