Initially, I was surprised that there has been an extremely limited discussion of ethics in the field of ethnomusicology, but after reading this chapter, I am not surprised at all because of its complexity. Besides the "normal" ethical issues familiar to everyone, such as whether a code of ethics inhibits or promotes intellectual freedom and who we should be concerned about when addressing this issue: the researcher or the researched, there are additional difficulties in Ethnomusicology. Not only were there the more "expected" musical ethical questions such as discriminatory lyrics, copyright issues, and whether ascribing the relations in music theory as universal is ethical, but also much more "unexpected" ones. Agawu writes about many thought-provoking questions. For example, traditional African music is always communal, and it must be done with others. Then, are staged performances with a non-participating audience ethical? Is breaking verbal agreements with your research subjects considered unethical or a necessity of fieldwork? Is lying to protect someone in your party ethical? Finally, your own reflexive views can be read differently by people from different cultures, and what details are you "allowed" to leave out?
Discussion Question: What is your view on "fictional ethnographies"? Do you think Agawu's book African Rhythm: A Northern Ewe Perspective is ethically "better" or "worse" because it incorporates elements of both truth and fiction?
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