New Orleans and the Birth of Jazz

Deep in the south of the United States lies the city of New Orleans. Scott Bakula

said New Orleans has a unique history as a great melting pot of all kinds of cultures, and

that manifests itself through the food, the people who live there and of course the music

(Bakul, Scott). Jazz is considered Americas classical music, as it is one of North

Americas oldest and most celebrated music genres ("A History of Jazz"). The birth of

jazz began in New Orleans as the African American culture gave life to the new form of

music. Jazz has been a proud part of American culture for over one hundred years.

(1,2,) Jocquin Fuller is a High school band teacher in North Carolina at the

Charlotte Latin School. Before moving to North Carolina Jocquin grew up in the swamps

of Louisiana. He grew up in Gretna, Louisiana, a town on the outskirts of New Orleans.

Although he has lived in the United States his whole life he experienced two very

different cultures. In Louisiana he was surrounded by jazz and the African America

culture. He grew up watching and listening to his dad play the piano in jazz clubs. The

music/jazz culture was enticing to him as a young boy. His family was a part of the lower

middle class so money was frequently tight but they always had music in their home.

Listening to his father play at jazz clubs led Jocquin to want to play the trumpet and

attend college to become a high school band director.

His college education led him to Rock Hill, South Carolina. He attended Winthrop

University and earned a degree in music education. Upon his arrival in South Carolina he

was surprised at the lack of jazz in the state. He longed to go to a jazz club and improvise

beats, rhythms, and melodies in what he knew as Louisiana jazz. After he graduated from

Winthrop he was determined to bring some authentic jazz to his students. He organized
the first jazz band at Dutchmen Creek Middle School and focused on developing,

teaching, and providing opportunities for his students to preform jazz throughout his

career. He endeavored to teach his students the history of jazz and the influence African

Americans played in its birth.

(3) New Orleans was the perfect place for a new genre of music to emerge. It was

not a typical southern city. Most of the south was trying to discard any African culture

slaves might cling to. However New Orleans city fathers tried to regulate it, allowing

small venues for African traditions to continue and evolve (McNulty, Ian).

For instance, slaves were allowed to congregate, make music and dance
in Congo Square, an area that is today part of Louis Armstrong Park on
North Rampart Street on the edge of the French Quarter (McNulty, Ian).

New Orleans housed the largest population of free colored people during the era

of slavery. Most of these people had access to European music traditions and some

formed bands that played at city balls and concerts. The people of New Orleans added

spiritual music from church, the blues, the minstrel shows (inspired by plantation life),

the beat and cadence of military marching bands, and the syncopation of the ragtime

piano to the European musical traditions (McNulty, Ian). New Orleans musicians began

sampling and experimenting from all of the different types of musical influences and

added the touchstone ingredient of improvisation to produce something completely

new (McNulty, Ian).

At the beginning of the 20th century jazz began to emerge as a musical revolution

encompassing several music styles including: ragtime, blues, spirituals, and marches ("A

New Orleans Jazz History, 1895-1927"). It also reflected the profound contributions of

people of African heritage to this new and distinctly American music ("A New Orleans
Jazz History, 1895-1927"). Jazz became popular because of Charles Buddy Bolden,

with his charisma and musical power he instantly became a legend. He became quickly

popular because he was able to give those listening what they wanted, something to

dance to.

New Orleans jazzmen became known for a style of blending improvised parts
sometimes referred to as "collective improvisation". It appealed to younger
players and dancers alike because it permitted greater freedom of expression,
spontaneity, and fun("A New Orleans Jazz History, 1895-1927").

Edward Kid Ory was another musician to put jazz on the map. At the age of 14

he was leading his own band and organizing dances for his neighbors. He had his eye on

New Orleans, the Mecca of jazz. In 1907 he took his Woodland Band to the city ("A New

Orleans Jazz History, 1895-1927"). Over the next ten years Ory upgraded his band to

include future jazz stars: Joe Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Johnny and Warren Dodds, and

Jimmie Noone ("A New Orleans Jazz History, 1895-1927"). His biggest triumph was

Economy Hall, a dance hall in the Treme section bordering on Stroyville and the French

Quarter ("A New Orleans Jazz History, 1895-1927"). The Economy was the site of

social aid and pleasure clubs. These type of organizations provided social services like

brass band funerals and dances to the black community in New Orleans ("A New Orleans

Jazz History, 1895-1927").

Orys career as a bandleader in the Crescent City (1908-1919) coincided with the
years in which the "collective improvisation" approach of New Orleans musicians
reached maturity. His band became an incubator for the development of black
jazz talent( "A New Orleans Jazz History, 1895-1927").

Many great musicians followed Ory. Both Ory and Bolden paved the way for future jazz

musicians.
 (4) New Orleans has a rich African American culture and that culture heavily

influenced jazz, but the view that jazz was African is a racist view.

White intellectuals claimed that jazz was "African" simply because the ancestors
of black musicians had come from Africa. But no white intellectual claimed that
country music was British (Scaruffi, Piero).

The difference was the white society was still identifying colored people as a separate

race. While white society was still isolating blacks, the era of jazz was representing the

exact opposite. Jazz captured the moment African Americans stopped being an isolated

culture and became one of the many groups of immigrants. Jazz marked the period of

time when blacks started contributing to shaping the soul of American society (Scaruffi,

Piero).

Even when they rebelled against that society, they were part of it and wanted to
be part of it. After all, few blacks desired to move back to Africa. They wanted to
improve the society to reflect their values, just like any other member of that
society (Scaruffi, Piero).

A major reason New Orleans became the home of jazz music was because people of

different races mixed much more freely in New Orleans than in any other American city.

There were opportunities for interaction, in spite of segregation, and many

neighborhoods were a crazy quilt with blacks, whites, and Creoles living together

(Scaruffi, Piero). African Americans used their music as a way to express themselves and

the oppression they felt. They wanted to be included into society but it did not come

easily. The early forms of jazz allowed a performer to present an individual statement of

pain, oppression, poverty, longing, and desire without falling into self-pity.

Jocquin Fuller felt the significance of jazz music bringing people of all different

races together. Growing up he saw Blacks, Whites, Hispanics, Italians and many others

come together to play jazz. He learned the history and racist connotations attached to jazz
but he was also able to see what jazz was really trying to say and do. In his opinion jazz

was trying to say, come together and make something new and unique (Jocquin Fuller,

interview 1).

Racism is still an issue throughout America. The oppression of minorities is not as

intense as it has been in the past. Jazz is still associated with the African American culture

but is now viewed as a way the African Americans are trying to add to their society in

America. New Orleans is still a major hub for jazz music and is considered a culture

meting pot.

(5a) Oppression was a major topic among jazz musicians. They used their craft to

help bring awareness to the struggles their people were facing. In her 1939 hit single,

Strange Fruit, Billie Holiday sang of the hard times for blacks in the south. Her song

paints a picture of blacks being hung/lynched up in the poplar trees of the south. The song

has a medium range, the movement occurs mostly in steps with the occasional skip, and

the contour of the song is up and down. The meter/rhythm is quadruple simple. The song

is in the key of B flat minor. The texture of the piece is important throughout the song.

The music begins with a distinct sound but fades into the background when Billie starts

to sing. The spacing of the musical arrangement and the vocals is composed to highlight

the words being sung (Paolz). The Timbre of the song is created with the combination of

the piano, trumpet, and vocals to form a droopy and somber tone. The tempo is slow and

steady throughout the song; the dynamics start out as mezzo piano (mp) and gradually

increase to mezzo forte (mf) and finish with forte (f). The songs form had variation and

contrast.
 (5b) In the 1900s blacks had little influence in initiating change in the south so

most of the black jazz musicians moved to the northern states to pursue their careers

including Holiday. In the north they had opportunities to perform music the way they

wanted and could reach a wider range of people. In 1939 when Holiday released her hit

Strange Fruit the south was amuck with segregation and Jim Crow laws. Equal rights did

not exist for blacks in south. The Ku Klux Klan, a white supremacy group, terrorized

black families by burning down their homes and hanging them in trees surrounding their

homes. Due to the circumstances in the south racism became a hot topic for African

American jazz musicians. The 1900s broke open the protest era of jazz music as artists

began protesting discrimination through their music. Artists like Duke Ellington released

powerful and moving songs and albums. In 1943 Ellington released Black, Brown, and

Beige for his first concert at Carnegie Hall. The tone of the composition was parallel to

the history of the black man in America ("Black, Brown and Beige").

Charles Mingus was another artist who protested inequality through his music.

Mingus was known for being outspoken and after the 1957 Little Rock Nine incident in

Arkansas he responded angrily. He released a song called Fables of Faubus, which

criticized Governor Orval Faubus and his refusal to integrate schools (Verity, Michael).

His lyrics were harsh towards the Governor and the Ku Klux Klan comparing them to the

German Nazis. Along with Mingus, Ellington, and Holiday there was also John Coltrane,

Max Roach, Benny Goodman, and Louis Armstrong. Each of these artists used their

music as a way to bring awareness to the social issue of racism.

(5c) As the years have passed jazz has remained a part of the American music

culture. Racism has also remained a social issue. As both have stayed a part of America
today they have collided. Billie Holidays song has inspired new pop culture music from

artists Kanye West and Mick Jenkins. Kanye West sampled Nina Simones 1965

interpretation of Strange Fruit on blood on the Leaves, a song from his sixth studio

album Yeezus, which was release in 2013 ("Strange Fruit"). Mick Jenkins was inspired by

Carmen McRaes 1962 rendition of Strange Fruit on his track Martyrs, from his 2015

EP The Waters ("Strange Fruit"). The jazz of the 1900s still lives on in the music of

today.

New Orleans was the birthplace of jazz. Multiple cultures and genres of music

contributed to its unique sound. The African Americans played a big part in the coming

forth of jazz. Throughout the 20th century black jazz musicians used their music to bring

light to the social issue of racism in the United States. While time has passed racism can

still be seen today. Modern day musicians have drawn from jazz artists of the past to

create music protesting the racism that still exits in our world today. Jazz was established

in one of the countries biggest melting pots. New Orleans brought about one of Americas

oldest and most celebrated music genres.

(6) Bibliography

1. Bakul, Scott. "Brainy Quote." BrainyQuote. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2017

2. "Black, Brown and Beige." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 17 Mar. 2017. Web. 25

Mar. 2017.

3. "A History of Jazz." A History of Jazz. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2017.

4.McNulty, Ian. "First Notes: New Orleans and the Early Roots of Jazz."French Quarter

New Orleans. FrenchQuarter.com, 11 Dec. 2015. Web. 25 Mar. 2017.

5. "A New Orleans Jazz History, 1895-1927." National Parks Service. U.S. Department

of the Interior, n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2017.

6. Paolz. "Listening Description 1: Billie Holidays Strange Fruit. Rhythm of Latin

America: A Study in Music. N.p., 31 Jan. 2013. Web. 17 Mar. 2017.

7. Scaruffi, Piero. "A History of Jazz Music." A History of Jazz Music. N.p., n.d. Web. 17

Mar. 2017.

8. "Strange Fruit." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 21 Mar. 2017. Web. 20 Mar. 2017.

9. Verity, Michael. "How Jazz Helped Fuel the Civil Rights Movement." ThoughtCo.

About Inc., 3 Mar. 2017. Web. 17 Mar. 2017.

10. Jocquin Fuller, Interview 1

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