New Orleans Jazz - Assignment Example

DD Month YYYY Jazz Heritage The claims that New Orleans was the birthplace of Jazz music are backed upby the revelation of the Black American’s history that this was the only place in the new world where the slaves were at liberty to own drums. The slaves from this particular place were also allowed to carry out the VooDoo ritual as opposed to those from other areas. This is attributed to be one of the main reasons for the rise of Jazz music in New Orleans. This rise of Jazz music in New Orleans is claimed to result from the social forces. Jazz music cropped up due to the rather significant social tension between the blacks and the white community located in this area. Further societal differences like the class difference present in the society between these two communities is also attributed to result in the rise of Jazz music (Custodero). It is from these societal differences that the drum beats and horn blowing sounds were taken by the whites and blended with the music they heard from the churches and barrooms to give birth to this new genre of music now known as Jazz music. In line with the social factor that led to the rise of Jazz music in New Orleans, an ethnic group known as the Creoles were also credited for the rise of this new genre of music. These were French and Spanish speaking blacks who majority originated from the West Indies before settling in Louisiana. After the purchase of American state of Louisiana, these individuals out rightly became American citizens, therefore, the Geographical aspect of both Louisiana and New Orleans are contributor to the rise of Jazz music (Jazz In The International Sphere: Glocal Jazz Dialects And Poly-Idiomatic Creative Music). The Creole musicians made some of the best society bands in New Orleans due to their delicate tone, precise technique and authentic flow of music. It is the blend of this music from the blacks living in New Orleans that gave birth to jazz music. New Orleans is considered as a party town due to the blossoming culture sophistication present in the area. New Orleans is known for its mix of different cultures which include; creoles African-American, Caribbean, Haitian, Irish, German and the Vietnamese. It is through the blending of all these cultures and their cultural activities like; the military marching bands, the blues and folk music, different types of church music, ragtime, echoes of traditional African drumming, and different dance styles shows; that has led to it being referred to as a party town (Frith). Some significant traditions that were established in new Ordeals and still exist to date are the French Quarter that was the home of the free French origin high-class individuals living in New Orleans in its early years. These quarters are estimated to be more than a century old. Swing Benny Goodman is claimed to be one of the forefathers of Jazz music; he was famously known as the “King of Swing”. Goodman was recognised for his relentless pursuit of perfection and growth of Jazz music. He is also credited with bringing the swing era to Jazz music, which refers to music that involves a large dance band. Goodman was at first initiated into Jazz music when he was at a tender age of 10 years at this age he was practising playing the clarinet and by the age of 14 he was so good that he was taken in by a band featuring the legendary Bix Beiderbecke (Frith). His development continued and by the age of 16 he joined a band led by another famous legendary Ben Pollack which was based in Chicago, at this time Goodman was being referred to as “comer”. Pollack’s band is recognised as the band that led to his recognition though at that time he was also recording on his own. In the year 1929 he began his solo music career as a freelance musician based in New York. It is during this time that Benny Goodman made himself the sensational musician he later became through leading a pit orchestra and playing studio dates. However, his first big break came in the year 1934when he joined Billy Rose band. Due to the racial barriers that existed in New Orleans there was always tension among different race groups in this area. This problem started to go away with the fall of the economy of the United States of America economy in the year 1930 and the publicity of these problems and the popularity of Jazz music. Hammond was a writer who was well known for his effort in advocating for the unity between the black and whites in order for the society to flourish. He went further by hiring a black pianist who played in Benny Goodman’s band that was a sign of unity between the two races in the integration of Jazz music. Sing, sing, and sing is one of Goodman most famous tunes however Louis Prima originally wrote it (Jazz In The International Sphere: Glocal Jazz Dialects And Poly-Idiomatic Creative Music). In regards to these record Goodman and his band are credited for their majestic performance at the Palomar, which attracted over 12, 0000 fans this performance is also associated with the root oh ‘hot “Jazz. Goodman was also credited for his support and help in the careers of other Jazz musicians like the pianist Teddy Wilson (1912–1986) and Lionel Hampton (1909–2002) the drummer. Hard Bop, Funky, Gospel Jazz Gospel and Soul Jazz were similar from their similar style of play and origin. One of the major characteristics of these two genres of music is they were mostly related or played by the African American. These were the individuals recognised as the root basis of this genre of music. Another common characteristic of gospel and soul jazz music is its performance style; both types of music appreciate the use of instruments which plays a significant tone in the articulation of the music in its tone and flow. Both Soul and Jazz music related with intriguing of emotions, this is enabled by various tones in the articulation of this type of music. Soul and music both are known to borrow from the 12 bar, 3 line lyric styles used in Jazz music (Custodero). Some of the modern day gospel Jazz musicians who are well known include; Ron Winans, Vickie Winans and Cece Winans. These musicians are well known and command quite a huge fan base they are also huge contributors to the growth and popularisation of soul gospel music. Ron Winans is known for his prowess in tone and rhyme articulation that is borrowed from gospel Jazz style of music. Vickie Winans is known for her repetition plays in her music this is similar to that in gospel soul style of music which is fundamental in the creation of its lyrical style. Lastly, Cece Winans is the most popular of the three musicians she is known for the tone articulation in her songs. Here ability to change her tone while singing has given her music a unique and authentic touch. Similarly tone is also characteristic found in soul gospel music. Works cited Custodero, L. A. Living Jazz, Learning Jazz: Thoughts On A Responsive Pedagogy Of Early Childhood Music. General Music Today 22.1 (2008): 24-29. Web. Frith, Simon. Is Jazz Popular Music?. Jazz Research Journal 1.1 (2007): n. pag. Web. Jazz In The International Sphere: Glocal Jazz Dialects And Poly-Idiomatic Creative Music. College Music Symposium 55 (2015): n. pag. Web. Read More