The Swing Era and Race (Steenalisa Tilcock)

Race played an important role in jazz history since the advent of the art form in New Orleans due to jazz’s very nature—it was a primarily black form of music that was appropriated by white culture.  However, in the 1930’s, it became especially pertinent for three main reasons.  Firstly, the “Swing Era” saw an upsurge in the number of white musicians playing jazz (Professor Stewart’s lecture).  Benny Goodman, for example, a white man, was crowned by many as the “king of swing” (Gioia 129).  Even though jazz had long been recorded and sold by white producers and bought by white patrons, this was the first time that black musicians saw any serious competition from white musicians (they had of course been present from the 1900’s onward, but there had been far fewer of them).  This created tension, as black musicians were now being edged out of their own art by white musicians.

Secondly, already strenuous race relations were exacerbated by what was probably the worst economic disaster in America’s history, better known as the Great Depression.  If times had been prosperous, there would likely have been room enough for both the white and black musicians to grab a piece of the pie.  As it was, the pie was very small, and musicians who were at a social disadvantage (i.e. because of race) were often excluded from it.  Black musicians now had to compete with more white musicians for fewer jobs, and they often found themselves unemployed.  As Professor Stewart stated in lecture, when times are bad, people who find themselves down on their luck generally try to find others to blame their problems on or to push beneath them.  This is exactly what happened to America’s black population, at the hands of America’s newly poor white population.

Finally, with the dawning of the Swing Era, jazz found a national market for the very first time.  This was incredibly exciting, as it meant the music was being enjoyed and appreciated by more people, extending its importance beyond being a merely regional phenomenon to a national movement.  However, it also meant that there was a lot more pressure on the musicians to produce what an incredibly wide (and white) audience wanted to hear.  If they failed to do this, it was very unlikely that they would be able to find even mildly lucrative gigs, which were offered by white record company owners and club proprietors.  Thus, black musicians were essentially leashed, unable to explore the full potential of their art due to the need to gain popularity among whites.  As Professor Stewart stated, “class dimensions turned artists into just workers.”  This new limited role was extremely inhibiting, and it is easy to imagine that it lead to a considerable amount of racial strain.

It was a combination of these three elements (including many other complex factors) that brought race to the forefront of jazz in the 1930’s.

Commented on Emily Wettleson.

Blog Post 2: Chicago (Steenalisa Tilcock)

            Although both Chicago and New York made significant contributions to jazz in the 1920’s, Chicago’s influence was ultimately more important.  Chicago supplied a stew of cultural conditions without which jazz, including that which would later migrate to New York, would not have been the same.  In the decades before the 1920’s, a large number of African Americans migrated from the Southern states and cities like New Orleans to the Northern states and cities like Chicago in order to escape poverty and discrimination and find new opportunities.  With this diaspora came New Orleans’ jazz musicians, including King Oliver and Louis Armstrong, who were also looking for economic opportunity.  As industry was important to Chicago’s economy, African Americans found jobs in factories and stockyards.  Given, these jobs were low-paying and involved grueling physical labor, but they were generally a step up from the plantation work in the South.  One way for people to break out of these conditions was to play jazz, and play it well.  Chicago’s economic and social environment allowed many opportunities for this.  Record companies were numerous, giving musicians a chance to have their music distributed widely.  In addition, Chicago fostered a thriving club scene, with institutions ranging from smoky speakeasies, to illustrious, high-class ballrooms.  Jazz musicians typically began their careers playing in lower-class clubs for black patrons and worked their way up to the fancier establishments with white patrons.  (This barrier was sometimes hard to break, and some of the top tier clubs remained open only to white musicians).  As control of Chicago’s clubs and recording studios was almost exclusively white, one could argue that it is largely due to the fact that Chicago’s white population enjoyed jazz that it became so popular, even though the people creating it were primarily black.

            The Chicago jazz style grew out of the New Orleans, largely because jazz arrived in Chicago through the players who travelled there from New Orleans, such as Oliver and Armstrong.  The jazz solo as we know it today was born in Chicago, and there musicians explored its vast potential.  Armstrong was a pioneer in this arena.  According to Fletcher Henderson, it was largely thanks to the influence of Armstrong—who during his stint with the Fletcher Henderson band energized its style—that swing became the phenomenon that it was.  Also on the forefront of Chicago jazz were cornetist Bix Beiderbecke and saxophonist Frank Trumbauer.  They developed an aesthetic that we now refer to as “cool jazz,” which, according to Gioia, focused on “attaining a clarity of musical expression” (Gioia 81).  It differed from “hot jazz” in that it foregrounded emotion and expressiveness instead of chord-building and technical skill.  The completive interplay of counterpoint lines is also a characteristic Chicago jazz (Gioia 72).  The playing of a song was a musical battle instead of the harmonious blending together that it was in New Orleans.  This style seems to be unique to Chicago, as in New York the focus lay more on the interplay between sections instead of individual musicians.  In addition, clarinetists in Chicago helped push the instrument past the arpeggios that its style was previously confined within, giving it an aesthetic similar to the cornet, which allowed for experimentation and creative development.  Frank Teschemacher was a key player in this innovation—his daring style would later influence clarinetists such as Benny Goodman (Gioia 75).

            One band that represents the culture and community of Chicago is the Austin High Gang, comprised of students from Austin, west of downtown Chicago (Gioia 74).  They were inspired by recordings of the New Orleans Rhythm Kings and Beiderbecke, and their own later recordings were lively and energetic, much like Chicago’s club atmosphere.  The set-up of their band, with one musician to each part, follows the template set by Chicago ensembles, and their enthusiasm and devotion mirrors the attitude of the city.  Whether they loved the music or just loved to dance to it, Chicagoans were excited about jazz.

Commented on Austen Trout