In March 2025, at the Institute of History of Science of the Autonomous University of Barcelona, the conference “Colonialism, Coloniality and Circulation of Knowledge in the Modern Era” was held, organized by Dr. Enrique Moral (UPF-iHC), Dra. Anyely Marín (UAB-iHC) and Yvonne Ramírez (UPF). There, Tasio Rodrigo presented his paper “Musical encounters with sloths and manatees: Music in the creation of knowledge about American fauna.”
This is the abstract of the presentation:
Music theorists and natural historians of the 17th and 18th centuries debated on numerous occasions the musicality of animals; both their ability to sing and their ability to appreciate music. The knowledge created in these debates served to reinforce certain ideas about the shared and differentiating characteristics between humans and animals (rationality, sensitivity, affections, etc.).
Through this presentation, I intend to explore the way in which this knowledge was interpreted to understand and explain the natural world of the American continent. Through two case studies (the song of the sloth, and the musical appreciation of manatees) my intention is to explore the circulation that this knowledge had in the New World, and the use that was given to it in these contexts.
