Cody Case

I am a PhD Candidate in Ethnomusicology specializing in blocos afro community percussion ensembles, Black resistance, and the musical movements of samba-afro and samba-reggae music in Salvador, Brazil. My dissertation, “Drumming in the Breaks of Blocos Afro: Ancestrality and Black Resistance in Salvador, Brazil,” navigates theoretical frameworks of radical Black thought between Brazil, Africa, and the United States through the contexts of blocos afro. A bloco afro is a multifunctional Carnival organization often registered as an NGO and composed of a board of directors and coordinators, musicians, percussionists, vocalists, dancers, neighborhood residents, and fans who annually celebrate an Afrocentric theme. My project explores the meanings of ancestrality (ancestralidade) and Black resistance (resistência negra) among two blocos afro (Ilê Aiyê and Olodum). Through ethnographic fieldwork funded by a Fulbright-Hays DDRA, I documented the return of concerts and community activities from May 2022 to May 2023 which amount to 100+ high quality HD and stereo recordings including Carnival and special events. I will defend my dissertation in Fall of 2024.

At UF, I completed coursework in Ethnomusicology, Latin American Studies, and the Portuguese language while teaching an Introduction to World Music and Experiencing Music for multiple semesters. Prior to UF, I worked for six years in higher administration at the University of Kansas, played guitar in multiple bands, taught secondary language and music classes, and earned his BA and MA degrees in Ethnomusicology from the University of Washington. My former research interests and fieldwork experience include researching African popular music in Ghana and Tunisia before dedicating my academic work to Afro-Bahian popular music.