ABSTRACT
The Christmas Bands Movement is a parading practice and cultural expression of the lower- and middle-class peoples of mixed descent in the Western Cape of South Africa. Although they replicate, in some ways, other, more well-known kinds of marching bands, they have a unique musical expression, drawn from various influences, locally situated and produced. A marginal grouping within the national landscape, their locally defined sound has gained national recognition and has influenced and been honored through the Cape Jazz styles of renowned musicians, such as Abdullah Ibrahim. This paper seeks to explore how this local music culture and the Christmas bands members as local subjects are (re)produced through the practice.
