Sunday, November 7, 2010

Racism and Jazz

Although jazz was born out of a collision between two cultures, the issue of social stratification and racial identity was rarely addressed in early jazz history. However, in pre-war 1930 America, racism began to be recognized as an issue for the first time, especially as it applied to the growing jazz industry. As jazz became incredibly prominent as both an economy and a musical style, the race identities that were deeply engrained in the system became increasingly obvious. In the very beginning, the music that predated jazz was primarily for entertaining small groups of black slaves and allowed them to alleviate the hardships of oppression. Jazz itself developed out of a musical rebellion against the control of the white man. As jazz, and the people who developed it, migrated northwards toward Chicago and New York, the constantly changing musical style branched out from its African roots, absorbing and affecting white middle class culture. By the time it hit New York City, jazz was being played, recorded, and listened to by blacks, whites and Creoles alike. However, since the music spanned so many cultures, it allowed for vehement racism to be bred within the growing jazz world. Encouraged by the increasing incorporation of economics and money into the music, a growing dichotomy began to push black and white artists to separate sides of the industry. Since white-dominated society allowed for white artists to have easier access to bookings and high-end shows, blacks were forced to play for primarily black audiences and therefore weren’t as able to promote their music to the American masses.
The issue of racial dichotomy regarding musical success was widely ignored for many years as jazz began to emerge out of the South. Giola discusses how one of the first jazz recordings was by the Original Dixieland Band, an entirely white ensemble playing entirely black music. The opportunities that existed in the professional musical world, especially as jazz became a nationwide phenomenon, were limited to black artists. Those unwilling to make certain sacrifices that undermined their racial identity, such as hiring white managers or collaborating with mixed race bands, were often stuck in black night clubs performing for their locale only. Those that made it big were like Duke Ellington, who worked with many white men during his career, because he was willing to forgo his racial pride in order to obtain fame and success. Subcultures like the gangs of New York and Chicago encouraged the subjugation of the black artists to the white man’s economic and social power, often resulting in gang leaders having complete control over “plantations” of black musicians trying to succeed (Travis 43).
However, change came with the 1930’s and the rise of technology. Whereas at first musical technology severely limited black bands who didn’t have access to it, cheaper microphones, radios, and recording equipment suddenly allowed bands with less white influence to broadcast their art. Indubitably, with yet another increase in the popularity of jazz (as well as an easier way to publicize it to the masses) gave rise to critics of the art, many of whom were advocates for black musicians and integrated bands. Suddenly, an issue that had been blatantly ignored for several decades was on the front page of brand new jazz magazines. The commodification of jazz meant that the public took a sudden and incredible interest in the music and the lifestyle, and publication of the inner workings and racial conflicts of the industry sold papers. Critics like John Hammond capitalized on the newfound interest of the American middle class in jazz, taking the stance of defending the black musicians and advocating for their rights and talent.
Overall, it was the technology and consumer culture that arose in the 1930’s that contributed to the novel interest in the unfairness of the (long ignored) racial and social dichotomies that made up most of jazz’s history. Without the public and the audience’s investment in the widely broadcasted music and culture of jazz, the blatant racism in the system probably would have continued to go unnoticed.

13 comments:

  1. That covered a lot in answering the question.
    What I noticed though, was that its missing a greater economic context, besides the Chicago "plantations".For example, the class and race consciousness associated with fascism and communism would fit well into the second half of your blog.

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  2. I like how you focus on the image of a racial dichotomy within the music, the white and the black, that was always very apparent in the bands of the era. I agree that it was the rise in popularity of the music, and the consequential rise of the jazz critic that allowed race in jazz to become that much more prevalent.

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  3. were limited to black artists. Those unwilling to make certain sacrifices that undermined their racial identity, rock music blogs

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