My New Essay on Race and American Music

[AllenLowe]

I like cutting and pasting, Dave; it's one of those post-word-processor options that makes me feel like I'm saving time.

As for military service and musicians, a good question, though the divide may be generational - those of Curley Russell's generation did anything they could to avoid the military (it was Curley who told me that most of Benny Carter's band took a drug concoction to make their blood pressure go haywire in order to get physical deferments; also, think of Lester Young and his experiences). On the other hand, more of those of Braxton's generation served (I think).

In re, once again, the place of the music and its social context - I have long felt that the music can certainly hold it's own, outside of such "contextualization;" The usefulness of social integration into histories is, IMHO, that they do help to illuminate the aesthetic. So, yes, it can and should be done, but VERY carefully in order to avoid tha academic crapola that has been spewed in the name of jazz history.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

What is most interesting about, say, Michaelangelo? His culture, or the sheer scope of what he accomplished as an individual? True, the two are inseparable. But it is the individual talent which is most fascinating.

Not to me; the most important thing to me about him, and most other artists, is that they worked exclusively for the ruling classes, the only people who could afford to support them, and therefore had to adhere to their ideals. This continues to the modern age and applies equally to Duke Ellington.

But not to Jimmy Forrest;

“Hey Mrs Jones,

How’s Mr Jones?

Hey Mrs Jones,

How’s Mr Jones?

And by the way,

Are you alone?”

To me the overriding standard by which I measure music (my own and others) is that of newness, novelty, edge, technical control, organization, and surprise.

And that ain't the standard I measure music by. I measure it by the way it REPRESENTS the culture that it derived from. So that Jimmy Forrest is more important to me than Duke Ellington. Which, to avoid confusion, is not to say that I think that Forrest is BETTER. Such concepts as quality are invalid to me; they are, in the end, constructs of the ruling classes - which makes the rules, among which are the rules that say what's supposed to be good, bad or indifferent, in art, which is at the service of the ruling classes. (Since the French and Industrial Revolutions, the job of the ruling classes has been taken over by the middle class, it shouldn't be necessary for me to point out.)

MG

[Pete C]

I'm assuming the packaging of On The Corner (cover art, title) was partly a function of Miles' desire to reconnect with black audiences, yet the music is so freakin' advanced and off the wall that I'm guessing only the most advanced and adventurous listeners of any background really connected with it. It took me about 25 years to really "get it," but of course by then so much music was mining similar territory that one's ears were more prepared.

[AllenLowe]

"I measure it by the way it REPRESENTS the culture that it derived from"

well then don't forget Leni Riefenstahl or other fascist representations -

and Kenny G does this well -

but I don't think jazz represents anything, ultimately - great works do not reflect history, they provide an alternative to it.

"He has nothing to say, only a way of saying it." - Alain Robbe Grillet

Duke reflected the ruling class? Really an oversimplification, and not based on the actual music. Interesting points, MG, though probably for

another thread. Importance to me, however, is based on the work, not where it comes from. Otherwise I would reject Wagner and Beethoven for the music's derivation in a culture that led us to WWII and The Holocaust.

Edited March 26, 2012 by AllenLowe

[Face of the Bass]

"I measure it by the way it REPRESENTS the culture that it derived from"

well then don't forget Leni Riefenstahl or other fascist representations -

and Kenny G does this well -

but I don't think jazz represents anything, ultimately - great works do not reflect history, they provide an alternative to it.

"He has nothing to say, only a way of saying it." - Alain Robbe Grillet

Duke reflected the ruling class? Really an oversimplification, and not based on the actual music. Interesting points, MG, though probably for

another thread. Importance to me, however, is based on the work, not where it comes from. Otherwise I would reject Wagner and Beethoven for the music's derivation in a culture that led us to WWII and The Holocaust.

What I like about music is finding ways to connect the work to the context from which it emerged. In another medium, Leni Riefenstahl is actually a perfect example of this. Watching Triumph of the Will or even looking at some of her African photographs from after the War are great ways to try and understand the relationship between fascism and art. I "enjoy" consuming that kind of art just as much as any other kind, because it makes me think, and that is what I want art to do. But then again, I'm a historian, so I'm always trying to find ways into understanding the past, and one of those ways is through art and music, unquestionably.

Now, there is also art that I think has a moral dimension that I am receptive to as well, and so that adds perhaps another dimension to how I appreciate the actual content of the thing in question.

[seeline]

Early combos made up of black musicians in Puerto Rico, in Cuba, Trinidad, and Brazil and recorded in the first part of the 20th century offer fascinating glimpses of the African method in both collision with and in isolation from Euro forces, in the throes of publicly issued declarations of cultural independence. These groups may lack the particular and peculiar influence of ragtime (and, thus, a specifically jazz-like lineage), but they do not show that the musical idea of tempered steel and brass was far from new.

Re. Brazil, Cuba and Puerto Rico:

afaik, most of the early recordings made in Brazil were of mixed-race ensembles and made by (primarily) mixed race individuals. Some of the early Cuban and Puerto Rican groups were white (or what N. Americans would call "white"; perceptions might well differ in the actual countries where the artists lived and worked).

In Brazil, there certainly *is* a meeting of European musical styles and African-derived genres (choro music being one of the genres where this is most obvious), but I don't think it's fair to anyone to say that there is a single "African method."

For one... in all 3 countries, people came from diverse parts of Africa. (In Brazil, mainly from what are now the Congo and Angola, but also from West Africa - places as diverse as present-day Mali and Benin.) There is no single "African aesthetic" in Brazil, Cuba or Puerto Rico. All 3 of these countries are culturally complex and very distinct from each other. (Cuba has more than a little Haitian influence in its music, too, as many slave owners in what is now Haiti fled to Cuba during the Haitian revolution.)

Trinidad has a very interesting cultural mix - one where there is a lot of South Asian influence in the music, due to the large numbers of Indian laborers who emigrated to Trinidad and Tobago after slavery was abolished. You can hear it in pop music from Trinidad today - Google "chutney soca" for starters; also "tassa." (A drum ensemble style brought to Trinidad from India.) And *then* there are the Spanish influences - still - partly because Trinidad and Tobago are so geographically close to Venezuela. (Venezuelan waltzes and parang groups that perform Spanish-language songs during the Christmas season are examples - fwiw most parang groups are black; there is likely more about which I know nothing.)

I also have to question the whole notion of "African method," if only because Africa is a huge continent with incredibly diverse musical and cultural traditions. My feeling is that most N. Americans get too reductive about this, if only because there's a lot going on that doesn't fall into the strict categories that writers and researchers are accustomed to. (See The Latin Tinge and Latin Jazz: the First of the Fusions by John Storm Roberts for starters; there is much, much more out there - in English at that, though some of the best material on Brazilian music hasn't been translated into English and likely never will be.)

I am not an expert by any means, btw... I defer to those who are and tend to ask them lots of questions. (Maybe too many, for their taste, at least!)

*

One other thought: I'm not sure why the comments on younger American folk/folk-roots revival (or whatever other names we could use) is there, nor what relevance it has to the main discussion. Taste and opinion are taste and opinion - as I'm sure you'd agree. There are things about a lot of younger folk musicians that I don't get, but that's (imo) more of a reflection on my tastes and the way I think about music than it is to do with the musicians themselves.

Could it be that a lot of them are discovering things that were discovered by a previous generation? [winking icon goes here] I think so, for whatever that's worth.

Edited to add: In Brazil (afaik, anyway) the brass ensemble tradition comes from military and police bands. There is one place where large brass ensembles are part of Carnaval - up in the northeastern part of Brazil, in the cities of Recife and Olinda. The musical style that's big for Carnaval there is frevo (the name comes from a Portuguese word meaning "to boil"), and the name is apt. It's super-up-tempo dance music, quite different from samba as heard in Rio, Bahia and elsewhere. The dancing is very acrobatic and challenging, with many moves derived from capoeira. (Believe it or not, the Wiki entry on this is pretty good: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capoeira )

Puerto Rican music: alto saxophoist Miguel Zenon has written some really good material on folkloric styles from various parts of PR. (Check his website link to "liner notes" for his album Jibaro - this is material that wasn't published in the actual liners to the disc.) And trombonist William Cepeda - who comes from a long line of Afro-Puerto Rican musicians and dancers - is also a great source, but afaik, he hasn't written anything about it. His recordings (especially the one he made with a folkloric percussion ensemble from his home village) are great primers, though.

Edited March 26, 2012 by seeline

[David Ayers]

See Peter van der Merwe, Origins of the Popular Style, for a more strictly musicological approach to this question.

[seeline]

See Peter van der Merwe, Origins of the Popular Style, for a more strictly musicological approach to this question.

Good book, and good rec!

[AllenLowe]

I like Van Der Merwe.

As to the negative comments on current folk and routes players; well, this essay is intended as the liner notes to my new project; aside from being the way I feel, I think it describes the difference in my own approach. I just find the whole roots thing to be too bland these days.

[seeline]

I think some "roots" music is a bit bland, too, but I'm not sure that I've listened to enough to be able to assess the style (as played by younger musicians) fairly.

However, I do think that the younger people who are truly involved in "roots" music (as opposed to folk-type singer-songwriters) are discovering (for themselves) a great many of the same things that touched off the 60s "folk revival."

I also think that there's a bit of a "generation gap" thing going on - for me personally, that is. By the same token, I've heard material that I think is fresh and pretty exciting.

But that's just me.

Edited March 26, 2012 by seeline

[Neal Pomea]

"Though, once again, the jazz world is fond of saying that its music is America's sole original artistic contribution, they leave out, at their own historic peril, country and hillbilly music, ragtime and show music, minstrelsy and Tin Pan Alley, not to mention gospel, rhythm and blues and rock and roll."

It's a minor point but I would also include Cajun, Creole, and zydeco music. They could never have occurred anywhere but here in the melting pot. I do not think they are subsets of country or hillbilly music the way bluegrass is. Same goes for Tex-Mex or Hawaiian. Maybe hip hop (rap) is the most culturally specific music around that you listen to today, but there are others. Unless I misunderstand what you meant by culturally specific. What DO you mean by culturally specific? Carry on!

Edited March 26, 2012 by Neal Pomea

[seeline]

Good points, Neal.

Chris Strachwitz (owner of Arhoolie Records) has done an incredible job of documenting Mexican-influenced styles in the US and Mexico itself; also other types of regional music that aren't well-known outside of the areas where they're popular. (Like polka - in all sorts of guises.)

I think restricting American popular and roots music to music that has lyrics in English leaves out a *lot* of great material that's equally (often uniquely) American.

Edited March 27, 2012 by seeline

[AllenLowe]

Neil - I agree. For the 2nd printing -

[cih]

interesting essay.

off topic but just re. the class thing earlier, there’s a quote from Michelangelo - something like - “when I am working, I am so free that even in the presence of the pope I unthinkingly put this old felt hat on my head and talk with liberty. So far they haven’t killed me for it..”

[AllenLowe]

I can identify with that one.

[fasstrack]

I find it sad that no one seems to care about what I brought up earlier. Not that I need attention, it needs/deserves attention IMO. Are we so fragmented a society, so atomized that we can't have---if not a sociological study at least a discussion on a board of jazz people---on how music brings out the commonalities, not the differences in people?

That's it from me as far as this. Y'all got it---or don't.

[medjuck]

Good points, Neal.

Chris Strachwitz (owner of Arhoolie Records) has done an incredible job of documenting Mexican-influenced styles in the US and Mexico itself; also other types of regional music that aren't well-known outside of the areas where they're popular. (Like polka - in all sorts of guises.)

I think restricting American popular and roots music to music that has lyrics in English leaves out a *lot* of great material that's equally (often uniquely) American.

Wow. I just saw Chris on Saturday night at a gumbo party in SF. (Fund raiser for New Orleans musicians.) Apparently he's mainly doing Mexican music now.

[seeline]

Mexican music: that's been true for some time, although he's still putting out great reissues of Puerto Rican etc. etc. music as well.