Chris Ballengee with Trinidad & Tobago Sweet Tassa
Technique and Repertoire of Trinidadian Tassa Drumming
  Oral Presentation
Thursday, 2:00 p.m.

Specializing in ethnomusicology, Chris Ballengee’s current research goals focus on the effects of music and its ability to help turn an unfamiliar place into a comfortable, home-like setting for people in diaspora.  He has been researching Trinidadian tassa drumming since 2007, working toward a dissertation that focuses on a group of musicians in south Florida. With a secondary specialization in visual anthropology, Ballengee is also interested in the intersections of music, film, and video in ethnographic research. Ballengee is currently a PhD candidate in ethnomusicology at the University of Florida, holds a master’s in Ethnomusicology from Bowling Green State University (2005), and a bachelor’s in Music from Lenoir-Rhyne University (2003). His research has been presented at many regional, national, and international conferences.