DOCSLIB.ORG

Development of Materials for a One Year Course in African Music for the General Undergraduate Student

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Development of Materials for a One Year Course in African Music for the General Undergraduate Student DOCUMENT RESUME ED 045 042 24 HE 001 879 AUTHOR Butcher, Vada E.; And Others TITLE Development of Materials for a One Year Course in African Music for the General Undergraduate Student. Final Report. INSTITUTION Howard Univ., Washington, D.C. SPONS AGENCY Office of Education (DHEW) , Washington, D.C. Bureau of Research. BUREAU NO PR-6-1779 PUB DATE Sep 70 CONTRACT OEC0-8-061779-2821 NOTE 242p. FDRS PRICE. 7rRs Price MF-$1.00 HC-$12.20 DESCRIPTORS. *African American Studies, *A.Erican Culture, *Curriculum Development, Curriculum Guides, *Higher Education, Instructional Materials; *Music, Music Education, Undergraduate Study IDENTIFIERS *Africa ABSTRACT The major objective of the Project in African Music at Howard University was to develop materials for a course in African music designed for General Education curricula in institutions of higher education. The project was expanded to include the development of materials on African-derived music and to make the materials adaptable for use in secondary schools. The report includes background!of the study, methods of collecting and developing materials, workshops and pilot courses, and results of the educational evaluation report sent to all workshop participants. Appendix A lists the collection of African traditional instruments gathered from Nigeria, Ghana, and Uganda. Appendix B includes materials developed by the project. The workshop program, auestionnaires, questionnaire recipients, and a press release conclude the report. (AF) 1,e e- 77(7 e,9 2_ id FINAL REPORT Project No. 6-1779 Contract No. 0-8-061779-2821 DEVELOPMENT OF MATERIALS FOR A ONE YEAR COURSE IN AFRICAN MUSIC FOR THE GENERAL UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT (PROJECT IN AFRICAN MUSIC) by Veda E. Butcher and Others College of Fine Arts Howard University Washington, D. C. September, 1970 The research reported herein was performed pursuant to a contract with the Office of Education, U. S. Department of Health, Education andWelfare.Contractorsundertakingsuch projectsunder Government sponsorshipare encouraged to express freelytheir professional judgment in the conduct of the project. Points o view or opinions stated do not, therefore, necessarily represent official Office of Education position or policy. U. S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, EDUCATION, AND WELFARE Office of Education Bureau of Research U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH. EDUCATION & WELFARE OFFICE OF EDUCATION THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRODUCED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROM THE PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIGINATING IT. POINTS OF VIEW OR OPINIONS STATED DO NOT NECES- SARILY REPRESENT OFFICIAL OFFICE OF EDU- CATION POSITION OR POLICY. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This report represents the fruits of the combined effort and thought of manypeople, all of whom gave unstintingly of their time and talent to the activities of the Project/in African Music. I should like, therefore, to express my appreciation to the following: Drs. George F. Donovan, Warner Lawson, and Willard Rhodes, Consultants; Profs. Halim EI-Dabh, Akin Euba, Fele Sowande, and Darius Thieme, Research Associates; Dr. Herman Brown, Miss Wanda Brown, Mrs. Lorraine Faxio, Miss Norma Mc Cray, Mr. Clyde Parker, Mrs. Paula Weak ley, and Mrs. Pearl Williams-Jones, Research Assistants; Dr. Albert Carter, Mrs. Yvonne Carter, Mrs. Ruth Johnson, Miss Yvonne Purnell,Mrs. Maude Thigpen, and Mr. Berkeley Williams, Staff Assistants; Messers. Kojo Fosu Baiden, Guakro Okurnanin -Sei, and John Yorson, Instructors of African Drumming and Dance. Special thanks also to the members of the Faculty of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University who moved their sonatas and symphonies a little closer together in order to make room for our talking drurris and ritual dandes in their studios, their libraries, their recital hallsand in their hearts. The final bow goes to my husband, James W. Butcher, in appreciation for his support, sympathy, and infinite patience. Vada E. Butcher September, 1970 SUMMARY DEVELOPMENT OF MATERIALS FOR A ONE YEAR COURSE IN AFRICAN MUSIC FOR THE GENERAL UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT (PROJECT IN AFRICAN MUSIC) by Vada E. Butcher and Others College of Fine Arts Howard University OE Bureau of Research No. 6-1779 Contract No. 0-8-061779-2821 Funding Date: June 1, 1968 After collecting and examining publications and audio-visuals on African music, the ProkIct in African Music at Howard University set out to develop materials designed specifically for courses inAfrican music in the GeneralEducationcurriculum. The rising importance of black studies in American education focused nation-wide attention upon the Project in late 1968, stimulating it to include Afro-American music among its concerns and to scrutinize all materials in terms of their suitability for secondary schools as w:,11as for liberalarts colleges. Special outlines, monographs, teaching units, and audio-visuals were created with the assistance of internationally recognized African and Afro-American musicians. These authorities also staffed a workshop for high school and college music instructors during the summer of 1969. The materials developed were tested in pilot courses taught at Howard University, and were evaluated by ninety music educators and administrators who found them generally suitable and valuable for courses in African and Afro-American music. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Introduction: Background of the Study 1 Methods 3 Educational Evaluation Report 11 Final Conclusions and Recommendations 23 Appendices: Appendix A: Traditional Instruments Collected 25 Appendix 6: Materials Developed by the Project Butcher: Course Outlines 31 Euba: Monographs 77 Thieme: Monographs 99 Mc Cray: Units on Afro-American Composers 123 Williams-Jones: Afro-American Gospel Music 199 Butcher: Introductory Lecture on Afro-American Music 221 Rhodes and Butcher: Slide-Tape Series on TraditionalAfrican Instru- ments (Script) 231 Thieme:Instructional Tape on Yoruba Rhythm (Script) 241 Appendix C: Workshop Agenda and Concert Program 247 Appendix D: Questionnaires 257 Appendix E: Recipients of Questionnaires 269 Appendix F: Press Release 277 ix INTRODUCTION: BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY General Education in American colleges and universities is responsible for endowing the student with an appreciation for his cultural heritage, informing him of the advances and developments of the present, and providing him with means of coping with the future. The remarkable ease with which we now communicate with all parts of the earth, and our consequent involvement with cultures which were once considered "remote" or "exotic," demand that we approach these objectives in terms of world orientation. American institutions of higher learning must not only turn out graduates who are able researchers and skirled professionals, but also (and possibly more importantly), they must build men and women who are prepared and willing to assume their social responsibilitics as world citizens. Whether the future holds a productive world state or another period of "dark ages" plagued by human conflict and atomic holocaust depends in great part upon our effectiveness in teaching the understanding of, and respect for, cultures different from our own. As efforts in this area of education are increased, the significance of the arts as cultural manifestations cannot be overlooked. Music particularly, is one of the few arts which possesses the ability to bypass the language barrier in revealing the imagination and emotions of men, Moreover, in most areas of the world, music accompanies the events of daily livingnot only the spectacular ceremonies of coronation, initiation, worship, marriage, and death, but such ordinary functions as work, courtship, games, civil complaint, hunting, etc, Clearly, the importance of music as an avenue toward the goal of mutual understanding among the peoples of the world cannot be denied. This study was undertaken as a part of a many-faceted program initiated at Howard University in1963, which is devoted to the infusion of new vitality into liberal arts music courses, especially in the area of world orientation. The stated objective of this study (known as the Project in African Music) was "the enrichment of General Education curricula in colleges and universities in the United States through the development of materials for a course inAfrican music which will give students in liberal arts colleges increased understanding of African peoples as revealed through their music." Africa was chosen as the geographical area for study because of its increasingly important role in world affairs. There is no doubt that African nations will develop into leading world powers in years to come. Economically as well as culturally,Africa is a source of magnificent wealth, most of which is yet untapped. Gold, uranium, diamonds, palm oil, and cocoa represent only a few of her natural resources, while her arts and customs represent Negroid, Semitic, and Hamitic cultures thousands of years old. African music poses special problems for one who would compress its function, meaning, and structure into a liberal arts course. The function of African musicits close association withritual,religion, and social customis quite different from that of Euro-American music which, in most cases,is quite divorced from everyday human activity. This African concept of music becomes even more difficult to comprehend when one realizes that Africaisa multi-tribal continent, consisting of thousands of ethnic 1 groups, each of which has its own language, customs, traditions, and music. Added to the problems of the social implications and diversity of the
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Waterboys a Rock in the Weary Land Mp3, Flac, Wma
    The Waterboys A Rock In The Weary Land mp3, flac, wma DOWNLOAD LINKS (Clickable) Genre: Rock / Pop / Folk, World, & Country Album: A Rock In The Weary Land Country: UK Released: 2000 Style: Folk Rock, Pop Rock MP3 version RAR size: 1566 mb FLAC version RAR size: 1152 mb WMA version RAR size: 1573 mb Rating: 4.3 Votes: 575 Other Formats: AC3 MP2 TTA ADX DTS MP4 AHX Tracklist Hide Credits 1 Let It Happen 6:19 My Love Is My Rock In The Weary Land 2 Choir – London Community Gospel ChoirOrgan [Mellotron] – ThighpaulsandraPercussion 8:15 [Tambourine] – Dave Ruffy* 3 It's All Gone 2:16 Is She Conscious? 4 4:42 Bass – Mark SmithDrums [Ocean Drum] – Jody Linscott We Are Jonah 5 Backing Vocals – Claire Nicholson, Robin Scott Bass – Mark SmithMandolin [Electric Slide] 5:07 – Anthony ThistlethwaitePiano – Richard Naiff 6 Malediction 4:16 7 Dumbing Down The World 3:07 His Word Is Not His Bond 8 3:59 Backing Vocals – Robin Scott Bass – Cameron MillerDrum Programming – Rowan Stigner Night Falls On London - Theme 9 0:48 Drum Programming – Dave Ruffy*, Rowan Stigner The Charlatan 10 6:53 Drums – Paul Beavis The Wind In The Wires 11 5:33 Drums – Chris TaggartPiano, Organ – Richard Naiff Crown 12 Drums – Kevin WilkinsonMandolin [Electric Slide] – Anthony ThistlethwaiteOrgan 7:04 [Mellotron] – ThighpaulsandraSaxophone – Gilad Atzmon Notes Track 1 is wrongly listed on the cover and is actually the song let it happen. All other instruments by Mike Scott. Other versions Category Artist Title (Format) Label Category Country Year A Rock In The Weary UK & 74321
    [Show full text]
  • I the Use of African Music in Jazz from 1926-1964: an Investigation of the Life
    The Use of African Music in Jazz From 1926-1964: An Investigation of the Life, Influences, and Music of Randy Weston by Jason John Squinobal Batchelor of Music, Berklee College of Music, 2003 Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Arts and Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master in Ethnomusicology University of Pittsburgh 2007 i UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES This thesis was presented by Jason John Squinobal It was defended on April 17, 2007 and approved by Dr. Nathan T. Davis, Professor, Music Department Dr. Akin Euba, Professor, Music Department Dr. Eric Moe, Professor, Music Department Thesis Director: Dr. Nathan T. Davis, Professor, Music Department ii Copyright © by Jason John Squinobal 2007 iii The Use of African Music in Jazz From 1926-1964: An Investigation of the Life, Influences, and Music of Randy Weston Jason John Squinobal, M.A. University of Pittsburgh, 2007 ABSTRACT There have been many jazz musicians who have utilized traditional African music in their music. Randy Weston was not the first musician to do so, however he was chosen for this thesis because his experiences, influences, and music clearly demonstrate the importance traditional African culture has played in his life. Randy Weston was born during the Harlem Renaissance. His parents, who lived in Brooklyn at that time, were influenced by the political views that predominated African American culture. Weston’s father, in particular, felt a strong connection to his African heritage and instilled the concept of pan-Africanism and the writings of Marcus Garvey firmly into Randy Weston’s consciousness.
    [Show full text]
  • Ellingtonia a Publication of the Duke Ellington Society, Inc
    Ellingtonia A Publication Of The Duke Ellington Society, Inc. Volume XXIV, Number 3 March 2016 William McFadden, Editor Copyright © 2016 by The Duke Ellington Society, Inc., P.O. Box 29470, Washington, D.C. 20017, U.S.A. Web Site: depanorama.net/desociety E-mail: [email protected] This Saturday Night . ‘Hero of the Newport Jazz Festival’. Paul Gonsalves Our March meeting will May 19-23, 2016 New York City bring in the month just like the proverbial lion in Sponsored by The Duke Ellington Center a program selected by Art for the Arts (DECFA) Luby. It promises a Tentative Schedule Announced finely-tuned revisit to some of the greatest tenor Thursday, May 19, 2016 saxophone virtuosity by St. Peter’s Church, 619 Lexington Ave. Paul Gonsalves, other 12:30 - 1:45 Jazz on the Plaza—The Music of Duke than his immortal 16-bar solo on “Diminuendo and Ellington, East 53rd St. and Lexington Ave. at St. Peter’s Crescendo in Blue” at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1956. That’s a lot of territory, considering Paul’s quar- 3:00 - 5:30 “A Drum Is A Woman” - Screenings at The ter century with The Orchestra. In addition to his ex- Paley Center for Media, 25 West 52nd St. pertise on things Gonsalves, Art’s inspiration for this 5:30 - 7:00 Dinner break program comes from a memorable evening a decade ago where the same terrain was visited and expertly 7:15 - 8:00 Gala Opening Reception at St. Peter’s, hosted by the late Ted Shell. “The Jazz Church” - Greetings and welcome from Mercedes Art’s blues-and-ballads-filled listen to the man called Ellington, Michael Dinwiddie (DEFCA) and Ray Carman “Strolling Violins” will get going in our regular digs at (TDES, Inc.) Grace Lutheran Church, 4300—16th Street (at Varnum St.), NW, Washington, DC 20011 on: 8:00 - 9:00 The Duke Ellington Center Big Band - Frank Owens, Musical Director Saturday, 5 March 2016—7:00 PM.
    [Show full text]
  • The Journal of the Duke Ellington Society Uk Volume 23 Number 3 Autumn 2016
    THE JOURNAL OF THE DUKE ELLINGTON SOCIETY UK VOLUME 23 NUMBER 3 AUTUMN 2016 nil significat nisi pulsatur DUKE ELLINGTON SOCIETY UK http://dukeellington.org.uk DESUK COMMITTEE HONORARY MEMBERS OF DESUK Art Baron CHAIRMAN: Geoff Smith John Lamb Vincent Prudente VICE CHAIRMAN: Mike Coates Monsignor John Sanders SECRETARY: Quentin Bryar Tel: 0208 998 2761 Email: [email protected] HONORARY MEMBERS SADLY NO LONGER WITH US TREASURER: Grant Elliot Tel: 01284 753825 Bill Berry (13 October 2002) Email: [email protected] Harold Ashby (13 June 2003) Jimmy Woode (23 April 2005) MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY: Mike Coates Tel: 0114 234 8927 Humphrey Lyttelton (25 April 2008) Email: [email protected] Louie Bellson (14 February 2009) Joya Sherrill (28 June 2010) PUBLICITY: Chris Addison Tel:01642-274740 Alice Babs (11 February, 2014) Email: [email protected] Herb Jeffries (25 May 2014) MEETINGS: Antony Pepper Tel: 01342-314053 Derek Else (16 July 2014) Email: [email protected] Clark Terry (21 February 2015) Joe Temperley (11 May, 2016) COMMITTEE MEMBERS: Roger Boyes, Ian Buster Cooper (13 May 2016) Bradley, George Duncan, Frank Griffith, Frank Harvey Membership of Duke Ellington Society UK costs £25 SOCIETY NOTICES per year. Members receive quarterly a copy of the Society’s journal Blue Light. DESUK London Social Meetings: Civil Service Club, 13-15 Great Scotland Yard, London nd Payment may be made by: SW1A 2HJ; off Whitehall, Trafalgar Square end. 2 Saturday of the month, 2pm. Cheque, payable to DESUK drawn on a Sterling bank Antony Pepper, contact details as above. account and sent to The Treasurer, 55 Home Farm Lane, Bury St.
    [Show full text]
  • Grade 6 Fine Arts
    Sixth Grade Fine Arts Activities Dear Parents and Students, In this packet you will find various activities to keep a child engaged with the fine arts. Please explore these materials then imagine and create away! Inside you will find: Tiny Gallery of Gratitude… Draw a picture relating to each prompt. Facial Expressions- Practice drawing different facial expressions. Proportions of the Face- Use this resource to draw a face with proper proportions. Draw a self-portrait- Use your knowledge from the proportions of the face sheet to create a self-portrait. Sneaker- Design your own sneaker. How to Draw a Daffodil- See if you can follow these steps to draw a daffodil. Insects in a Line- Follow the instructions to draw some exciting insects! Let’s Draw a Robot- Use these robot sheets to create your own detailed robot. Robot Coloring Sheet- Have fun. 100 Silly Drawing Prompts- Read (or have a parent or sibling read) these silly phrases and you try to draw them. Giggle and have fun! Musician Biographies- Take some time to learn about a few musicians and reflect on their lives and contributions to popular music. Louis Armstrong Facts EARLY LIFE ★ According to his baptismal records, Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on August 4, 1901, although for many years he claimed to have been born on July 4, 1900. ★ His mother, Mary Albert, was only sixteen when she gave birth to Louis; his father, William Armstrong, abandoned the family shortly after his birth - this resulted in Louis being raised by his grandmother until he was about five years old, when he returned to his mother’s care.
    [Show full text]
  • Stylistic Evolution of Jazz Drummer Ed Blackwell: the Cultural Intersection of New Orleans and West Africa
    STYLISTIC EVOLUTION OF JAZZ DRUMMER ED BLACKWELL: THE CULTURAL INTERSECTION OF NEW ORLEANS AND WEST AFRICA David J. Schmalenberger Research Project submitted to the College of Creative Arts at West Virginia University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts in Percussion/World Music Philip Faini, Chair Russell Dean, Ph.D. David Taddie, Ph.D. Christopher Wilkinson, Ph.D. Paschal Younge, Ed.D. Division of Music Morgantown, West Virginia 2000 Keywords: Jazz, Drumset, Blackwell, New Orleans Copyright 2000 David J. Schmalenberger ABSTRACT Stylistic Evolution of Jazz Drummer Ed Blackwell: The Cultural Intersection of New Orleans and West Africa David J. Schmalenberger The two primary functions of a jazz drummer are to maintain a consistent pulse and to support the soloists within the musical group. Throughout the twentieth century, jazz drummers have found creative ways to fulfill or challenge these roles. In the case of Bebop, for example, pioneers Kenny Clarke and Max Roach forged a new drumming style in the 1940’s that was markedly more independent technically, as well as more lyrical in both time-keeping and soloing. The stylistic innovations of Clarke and Roach also helped foster a new attitude: the acceptance of drummers as thoughtful, sensitive musical artists. These developments paved the way for the next generation of jazz drummers, one that would further challenge conventional musical roles in the post-Hard Bop era. One of Max Roach’s most faithful disciples was the New Orleans-born drummer Edward Joseph “Boogie” Blackwell (1929-1992). Ed Blackwell’s playing style at the beginning of his career in the late 1940’s was predominantly influenced by Bebop and the drumming vocabulary of Max Roach.
    [Show full text]
  • Mirror, Mediator, and Prophet: the Music Indaba of Late-Apartheid South Africa
    VOL. 42, NO. 1 ETHNOMUSICOLOGY WINTER 1998 Mirror, Mediator, and Prophet: The Music Indaba of Late-Apartheid South Africa INGRID BIANCA BYERLY DUKE UNIVERSITY his article explores a movement of creative initiative, from 1960 to T 1990, that greatly influenced the course of history in South Africa.1 It is a movement which holds a deep affiliation for me, not merely through an extended submersion and profound interest in it, but also because of the co-incidence of its timing with my life in South Africa. On the fateful day of the bloody Sharpeville march on 21 March 1960, I was celebrating my first birthday in a peaceful coastal town in the Cape Province. Three decades later, on the weekend of Nelson Mandela’s release from prison in February 1990, I was preparing to leave for the United States to further my studies in the social theories that lay at the base of the remarkable musical movement that had long engaged me. This musical phenomenon therefore spans exactly the three decades of my early life in South Africa. I feel privi- leged to have experienced its development—not only through growing up in the center of this musical moment, but particularly through a deepen- ing interest, and consequently, an active participation in its peak during the mid-1980s. I call this movement the Music Indaba, for it involved all sec- tors of the complex South African society, and provided a leading site within which the dilemmas of the late-apartheid era could be explored and re- solved, particularly issues concerning identity, communication and social change.
    [Show full text]
  • Gospel Music, According to Aretha
    encountered, this budding singer-pianist fully work artistically or commercially. Gospel Music, was not simply a protégée, but a prodigy. But while Aretha struggled to find the Her gift is apparent in a recording made one right setting for her voice, the musical Sunday morning at a church service in 1956. landscape changed around her. By the According To Aretha Accompanied by piano, a teenage Aretha mid-’60s, a generation of songwriters and sings Thomas Dorsey’s classic “Take My singers including Curtis Mayfield, Wilson No one intermingled the secular and the Hand, Precious Lord” with extraordinary Pickett, Gladys Knight and David Ruffin spiritual — kept separate since the days of pitch and control. About four minutes in, had erased the separation between R&B slavery — like this daughter of a preacher man the song falls away, and for the next two and gospel, reshaping the sound of black minutes, the young woman improvises pop music and in so doing affecting the BY NELSON GEORGE moans, groans and whoops that would, one sound of all music in that vibrant era of day, become staples of American singing. exploration. The soul sound — with its t age 14, Aretha Louise Franklin The vocal techniques Aretha was attitude reflecting the progressive ideas was already a veteran of the black exploring in church had largely been of the civil rights movement — was as gospel circuit of the 1950s, a confined, due to racism and tradition, to dominant for a young person then as, say, segregated world of charismatic “Negroes.” But the sound was a product trap is today.
    [Show full text]
  • Early Blues Bibliography
    EARLY BLUES BIBLIOGRAPHY In any selection of books the choice must inevitably be subjective as to what to include or exclude. This selection has ommitted some choices that other might have included. Also there are many articles, periodicals and magazines that provide information for the researcher that cannot be included here but are, perhaps, in Robert Ford's 'Blues Bibliography' or Edward Komara's '100 Books Every Blues Fan Should Have'. This selection is based very much on my own collection of books found in markets, second hand book shops but more recently through Amazon and the web site 'Abe Books' Many books are out of print, have reached the third, fourth or later edition but details are included here that will allow the collector to locate and purchase their own choice. I have not sought to comment on the accuracy, usefulness or expertise of each publication and care should be taken on choice of purchase as many are price inflated when a little more research will lead to better value for money. Where possible I have tended to provide details of hard cover books but many are also available in soft cover at a much reduced price. It should also be remembered that any list such as this is out of date the moment that it is produced. New books are regularly published. The University Presses of America provide a sound source of academic work under the general priciple of 'Publish or Perish' which reflects the wide range of books from the very simple history to the in depth difficult to read study of an aspect of my favourite genre of music - The Blues.
    [Show full text]
  • Ernest Elliott
    THE RECORDINGS OF ERNEST ELLIOTT An Annotated Tentative Name - Discography ELLIOTT, ‘Sticky’ Ernest: Born Booneville, Missouri, February 1893. Worked with Hank Duncan´s Band in Detroit (1919), moved to New York, worked with Johnny Dunn (1921), etc. Various recordings in the 1920s, including two sessions with Bessie Smith. With Cliff Jackson´s Trio at the Cabin Club, Astoria, New York (1940), with Sammy Stewart´s Band at Joyce´s Manor, New York (1944), in Willie ‘The Lion’ Smith´s Band (1947). Has retired from music, but continues to live in New York.” (J. Chilton, Who´s Who of Jazz) STYLISTICS Ernest Elliott seems to be a relict out of archaic jazz times. But he did not spend these early years in New Orleans or touring the South, but he became known playing in Detroit, changing over to New York in the very early 1920s. Thus, his stylistic background is completely different from all those New Orleans players, and has to be estimated in a different way. Bushell in his book “Jazz from the Beginning” says about him: “Those guys had a style of clarinet playing that´s been forgotten. Ernest Elliott had it, Jimmy O´Bryant had it, and Johnny Dodds had it.” TONE Elliott owns a strong, rather sharp, tone on the clarinet. There are instances where I feel tempted to hear Bechet-like qualities in his playing, probably mainly because of the tone. This quality might have caused Clarence Williams to use Elliott when Bechet was not available? He does not hit his notes head-on, but he approaches them with a fast upward slur or smear, and even finishes them mostly with a little downward slur/smear, making his notes to sound sour.
    [Show full text]
  • Immigrant Musicians on the New York Jazz Scene by Ofer Gazit A
    Sounds Like Home: Immigrant Musicians on the New York Jazz Scene By Ofer Gazit A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Music in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley Committee in charge: Professor Benjamin Brinner, Chair Professor Jocelyne Guilbault Professor George Lewis Professor Scott Saul Summer 2016 Abstract Sounds Like Home: Immigrant Musicians On the New York Jazz Scene By Ofer Gazit Doctor of Philosophy in Music University of California, Berkeley Professor Benjamin Brinner, Chair At a time of mass migration and growing xenophobia, what can we learn about the reception, incorporation, and alienation of immigrants in American society from listening to the ways they perform jazz, the ‘national music’ of their new host country? Ethnographies of contemporary migrations emphasize the palpable presence of national borders and social boundaries in the everyday life of immigrants. Ethnomusicological literature on migrant and border musics has focused primarily on the role of music in evoking a sense of home and expressing group identity and solidarity in the face of assimilation. In jazz scholarship, the articulation and crossing of genre boundaries has been tied to jazz as a symbol of national cultural identity, both in the U.S and in jazz scenes around the world. While these works cover important aspects of the relationship between nationalism, immigration and music, the role of jazz in facilitating the crossing of national borders and blurring social boundaries between immigrant and native-born musicians in the U.S. has received relatively little attention to date.
    [Show full text]
  • FOR CODESRIA Anyidoho/Madame Virginie Niang Sept 17-19
    1 THE IMPORTANCE OF AFRICAN POPULAR MUSIC STUDIES FOR GHANAIAN/AFRICAN STUDENTS by John Collins INTRODUCTION A) The role of popular music and mass entertainment in the independence struggle and the consequent importance of local popular performance in the vision of pioneer African leaders: i.e. a mass music for a mass party (eg highlife as the product of the ‘veranda boy’ class). Thus the state support of popular as well as traditional and western type art/religious music sectors by the pioneering leaders Nkrumah, Nyere, Sekou Toure, President Keita. Their approach can therefore be considered as tri-musical B) The failure of this tri-musical approach being transmitted into the Ghanaian tertiary education system. This became rather bi-musical; i.e. the training of students only in traditional African and imported western art idioms C) Some reasons for this intellectual university hostility to popular music/culture 1) imported elitist, Marxist and Frankfurt School ideas concerning the ephemeral, frivolous, low status and inconsequential nature (cf. high art) of popular music and performance. 2) Residual African traditional attitudes towards professional musicians. Low regard and apprehension of such indigenous professional traditional groups as West African jalis/griots, praise drummers and goje players D) The negative consequences of the narrow bi-musical approach has effected both the university students and the evolution of local musical forms such as highlife music and the concert party. It fosters elitist attitudes by students who do not consider the creative role of the masses and intermediate classes important in musical development. It has in a lack of intellectual input into local popular music: few books and biographies on the topic, no intellectual input into it.
    [Show full text]