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James Madison University JMU Scholarly Commons Masters Theses The Graduate School Spring 2018 Music in unconventional spaces: The changing music scene of Great Depression America, 1929-1938 Rachel Carey James Madison University Follow this and additional works at: https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/master201019 Part of the Cultural History Commons Recommended Citation Carey, Rachel, "Music in unconventional spaces: The changing music scene of Great Depression America, 1929-1938" (2018). Masters Theses. 562. https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/master201019/562 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the The Graduate School at JMU Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses by an authorized administrator of JMU Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Music in Unconventional Spaces: The Changing Music Scene of Great Depression America, 1929-1938 Rachel Elizabeth Carey A thesis submitted to the Graduate Faculty of JAMES MADISON UNIVERSITY In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of History May 2018 FACULTY COMMITTEE: Committee Chair: Raymond Hyser Committee Members/Readers: Gabrielle Lanier Philip Herrington Dedication This thesis is dedicated to my parents, Stephen and Theresa Carey, and my sister, Monica Carey, for all of their support and encouragement throughout my life. Words cannot begin to express my gratitude to them. ii Table of Contents Dedication…………………………………………………………………………………ii Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………………iii List of Figures .................................................................................................................... iv Abstract ................................................................................................................................v A Musical Prelude................................................................................................................1 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................4 I. Parks and Recreation ......................................................................................................12 II. Escaping the Concert Hall .............................................................................................35 III. Federally Funded .........................................................................................................65 Beyond the Depression ……………………………………………………………….…88 Appendix…………………………………………………………………………….…...97 Bibliography……………………………………………………………………………. 98 iii List of Figures Figure 1 Bandstand at the South Kensington Gardens………………………………… 24 Figure 2 Bandstand in Central Park……………………………………………………..25 Figure 3 Bandshell at Daytona Beach..………………………………………………… 28 Figure 4 Bandshell in Stanton..………………………………………………………… 28 Figure 5 The Paul E. Beck Memorial Bandshell..……………………………………… 30 Figure 6 Internal view of Tanglewood..…...…………………………………………… 31 Figure 7 External view of Tanglewood..……………………………………………….. 32 Figure 8 The former bandshell at Michigan State University..………………………… 33 iv Abstract The world of the Great Depression was in massive transition as the economy crumbled and people sought an escape from their ordinary and troublesome lives. The expanding and remodeling cultural forms of this time worked to provide this diversion for all people. One of these forms in particular adapted to fulfill the need of the American people: music. While music was a popular form of culture throughout the American past, it went through a large transition beginning in the Gilded Age through the Great Depression in order to survive. With the beginning of the Great Depression, professional and amateur groups began outreach for larger audiences, both as a way of maintaining their musical organization and as a means of reaching people who desired to escape from their everyday lives by losing themselves in the sound of music. Through this, cultural forms that previously belonged to certain classes no longer remained under their sole control. Cultural forms quickly became the property of the masses. One form this change took was the movement of music out of the concert hall and into the public sphere. This thesis will provide the first in-depth examination of the rise of music outside the concert hall in these unconventional spaces, which allowed for larger audiences and the presence of people who may have felt unwelcome in the formidable face of the concert hall. The first part of this thesis will establish context for the rise of music outside the concert hall during the Great Depression, beginning with the changing music scene of the Gilded Age. The first chapter will discuss the rise of public parks and the building of physical spaces made specifically for outdoor concerts. The second chapter features an overview of the concerts held outdoors during the Great Depression, as well as the groups that formed to perform at these concerts. Finally, the last chapter will examine the v Federal Music Project, the first federally funded music program in America, which led to the creation of new music groups and further groups performing in unconventional venues. vi 1 A Musical Prelude The Great Depression was a time uniquely primed for changes in the musical scene. As people grew more unsettled in their lives and sought to escape their economic woes, the culture of America changed to accommodate this escapism. Musicians, in need of work and hoping to boost morale across the country, came together to perform in new territory. This thesis argues that musicians, recognizing the economic troubles of their field and the problems of the world around them, took steps away from the formidable presence of the concert hall and moved performances outdoors. These unconventional spaces for music rose to prominence during the Great Depression, as they gave access to music for all people and provided a means for performers to continue playing. This thesis employs many secondary sources that revolve around the topics of cultural and music history from the Gilded Age to the Great Depression. Some of the most influential works consulted here include Lawrence Levine’s Highbrow/Lowbrow: The Emergence of Cultural Hierarchy in America, Witold Rybczynski’s City Life, Roy Rozenzweig and Elizabeth Blackmar’s The Park and the People: A History of Central Park, Paul Rabbitts’s Bandstands, and Robert S. McElvaine’s The Great Depression: America, 1929-1941. The majority of sources used in this thesis come from newspapers across the United States during the Great Depression. The selection of editorials and announcements about concerts held outdoors during this time appear due both to their widespread geographic locations and their accessibility. Through these newspapers, the prominence of the movement of concerts outdoors becomes prevalent. In order to support the central argument of this thesis, this work begins by establishing context extending back to the Gilded Age. Chapter one describes the rise of 2 parks in America and discusses this movement alongside the rising importance of concerts held outside the concert hall in such public spaces. The following chapter moves into the outdoor concerts during the Great Depression and the local bands created during this time. These groups, largely consisting of amateur musicians performing free to large audiences, aided in supporting musicians, audiences, and the musical environment during the Great Depression. Finally, chapter three describes the continuation of outdoor and other public concerts designed for wide audiences, funded through the federal government as part of President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal. Through the discussions of these chapters, it becomes apparent that musicians worked tirelessly during the Great Depression years to change the outlook for their field and for the people of America. My interest in this topic developed from many different paths. The first of these is my love for music, which brought an interest in music history that I have followed throughout my time studying the past. A second path was my interest in the Great Depression, borne out of an interest in the culture of the time and the ways in which people attempted to overcome the difficulties they faced. Finally, two classes in particular led to this research topic. In a class on the Gilded Age, I read Lawrence Levine’s Highbrow/Lowbrow, which proved massively influential to my understanding of and interest in the development of culture in American history. Additionally, in a seminar class on researching and writing history, I delved into the New Deal legislation that promoted the arts, particularly Federal Project Number One. After expanding my research, I found a recurring theme of the Great Depression: the movement of music from the concert hall to public spaces easily accessible by all people. Many people assisted throughout the process of writing this thesis, and my 3 gratitude to them goes beyond anything I could express in this prelude. First and foremost, to Dr. Raymond Hyser, who directed me during this process, taught me about the past, and gave me the confidence to believe in my abilities, your guidance over the past two years can never be overstated. Thank you for keeping me sane during this process and coming to my assistance when I was in need. Dr. Gabrielle Lanier served as a committee member on this thesis and provided invaluable feedback and advice. Thank you for your patience and generosity over

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