MUSIC 102 FINAL FALL 25 UW MADISON

Harlem Renaissance

- cultural and intellectual explosion of African American life

- optimism, community pride, vision of equality

- coming of age for African Americans: self-sufficiency and rejecting minority status

Two Harlems

1. (White) wealthy, art, culture, and middle-class aspiration

2. (African American) Rent parties, crowded living, poverty, low wages

Harlem Stride Piano

- A faster style of piano, combining ragtime rhythm with jazz energy

- Competitive and flashy, leading to cutting contests

- Expanded African American audiences

- Demanding and orchestral style of playing

Rent parties

- Sole purpose of raising money to pay rent for the whole house

- Often included live music performances

Piano (Harlem Renaissance)

- Center of a new type of music (ragtrime, harlem stride)

- Symbolized the divide between the two sides of Harlem

Harlem Renaissance Demographics

- before 1920s, mainly a white European immigrant neighborhood

- post WWI, African American boom, massive migration

- by late 1920s, 70% black

Middle class opinions (of HR)

They were not a fan (of the southern migrants), they brought syncopated music

Cutting Contests (HR)

Where pianists challenged each others' skills (Harlem Stride)

James P Johnson

- Harlem Renaissance

- "Father of Stride Piano"

- quintessential stride pianist, "macho" culture (who can play the most notes fast)

- Carolina Shout and Harlem Symphony

Willie "The Lion" Smith

- Harlem Renaissance & Stride Piano

- Known for skill in cutting contsts, admired by Duke Ellington

Thomas "Fats" Waller

- Harlem Renaissance

- Most popular stride pianist

- Entertainer, blended jazz

- Ain't Misbehavin', Honeysuckle Rose, Jitterbug Waltz

Harlem Renaissance People

- James P Johnson

- Willie "The Lion" Smith

- Thomas "Fats" Waller

- Count Basie

James Reese Europe

- African American band leader in the early 1900s.

- Incorporated dance rhythms into his music

- Brought African American music to Europe and the mainstream through the 369th Infantry Regiment (WWI), aka the "Harlem Hellfighters"

- brought orchestra to Carnegie Hall (Huge Success)

Slumming

- White people go to black communities (Harlem) to enjoy their entertainment (more authentic)

- Created a "Closeness" between white and blacks, but still separated because of segregation

Swing in Harlem Dances (post 1920)

- Charleston, Shimmy, Black Bottom

Savoy Ballroom

- Integrated dance hall, the starting place of the modern swing dance style (1926)

- Black and white patrons met there, danced there, & went home together from there

- Lindy hop into the jitterbug

- Locked during WWII

War Bond

- Debt securities issued by a government to finance military operations & other expenditures in times of war

Swing Kids

- a group of young jazz fans

- Met in secret to play jazz records & tune into Allied radio to dance

Talent Agent

is a person who finds jobs for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, and other professionals in various entertainment or sports businesses.

Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters

- Railroad attendants, black men, long hours and low pay

- First labor organization led by African Americans

- Threatened to march on Washington unless jobs were opened up for black workers

Zazzuzz

French jazz musicians

AFM Recording Ban

- American Federation of Musicians began striking against the major American recording companies due to disagreements over royalty payments

- 1942 No union musician could make commercial recordings for any commercial record label. This lasted for 2 years.

Record sales during Great Depression

Dropped dramatically

Radio

- Became essential to music business post Great Depression

- Fueled Benny Goodman and Swing Craze

Jazz during WWII

- remind soldiers of home

- jazz = identiy of american spirit --> freedom & swing

- served as morale music

- v discs = records for soldiers

- jazz headquarters shifted to 52nd street

- nazis ban word "jazz", continued to flourish

- AFM strike and ban

Hipster Aesthetic

-Being well dressed

-Specific language

-New assertiveness

adopted the lifestyle of the jazz musician:

- Dress -Slang -Use of drugs -Relaxed attitude -Self imposed poverty -Relaxed sexual code

52nd street

- "the street"

- new jazz headquarters/hot spot

Benny Goodman

- set off the "Swing craze"

- small group jazz into mainstream

- deffered from war due to back injury

Minton's Playhouse

-Free food and drinks on Mondays for musicians willing to jam

-Attracted commercial (swing) "sidemen"

-Got away from music that felt "phony"

-"hippest" place in town

-Jam sessions run until dawn

Duke Ellington

- wrote "jump for joy" = all black musical, challenged racist perceptions

- too old to enlist in the army

- Hosted a weekly radio program that sold war bonds

- presented the breakthrough 44 minute Black, Brown, & Beige at Carnegie Hall

Glenn Miller

- split up his band to create special all-star air force unit

- "Chattanooga Choo Choo"

Various clubs on 52nd street

- 7 cellar clubs (Social club of young men in a poor urban area)

- Streets filled with service men

- Mix of alcohol and race created constant conflicts

- Southern servicemen were enraged seeing well dressed African Americans

Swing and War People

- Benny Goodman

- Duke Ellington

- Glenn Miller

Swing and War Places

- Minton's Playhouse

- Connies Inn

- Small's Paradise

- Barron's Exclusive Club

- Cotton Club

- Clubs on 52nd street (e.g., Jimmy Ryans, The Onyx, The Famous Door)

Swing Shift Maisies

- 40s lingo for "temporary" workers

- portrayed as attractive, competent, patriotic, and temporary

- traditionally male roles beforehand

B-girls

Female musicians who circulate and encourage clientele to buy drinks

Swing shift

The extra shift temporarily added for the purpose of wartime production (women in previously male roles)

Girl band travel during wwII

- difficult to find food & housing

- could be very hazarduos

- bands not allowed to travel more than 300 miles anight (often ignored)

Jazz education (All Girl Bands)

- Women had more access to band in high school than to shop classes

- Women in professional bands had prior experience playing in high school

- Many received their first professional experience in high school bands

Origins of all girl bands

- WWII did NOT invent all girl bands

- Many bands disbanded before the war

- A handful of all girl bands were around before the war as well

Rosie the Riveter

- Symbol for wartime women workers (professionalism_

- portrayed as attractive, competent, patriotic, and temporary (same as swing shift maisie)

- Enhanced opportunities

Girl Bands

- International Sweethearts of Rhythm

-Vi Burnside

-Ernestine "Tiny" Davis

- Jane Sager

- Mary Demond

- Vi Wilson

- Viola Smith

Vi Burnside

- part of International Sweethearts of Rhythm

- Alumnae of the "Harlem Playgirls"

Ernestine "Tiny" Davis:

- part of International Sweethearts of Rhythm

- Alumnae of the "Harlem Playgirls"

Jane Sager

- Trumpet soloist in the "All-American Girl Orchestra"

Mary Demond

- Professional career started from a Downbeat ad

Vi Wilson

- bass player

- one of two African Americanmusicians in the "All-City Orchestra"

Viola Smith

- Drummer

- did not think women musicians were subs

- Playing professionally for 45 years

Jazz Age emphasized...

Soloing over orchestration

Europe 1912 Carnegie Hall Performance

The first concert by Black Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, brought African American music to a white audience, a breakthrough (James Reese Europe)

First Dancing (before 1910)

Waltz, polka, quadrille

New Dancing (around 1914)

Turkey Trot and Tango (more energetic)

Swing in Harlem

- Black entertainment for white audiences = industry

- Harlem nightlife featured both integrated clubs (e.g., Small's Paradise) and segregated white-only venues (e.g., Cotton Club)

- Harlem was the heartbeat of swing

The Great Depression

- Record sales collapsed, musicians lost work, the rise of nightclubs and radio

- caused radio to become essential to the music business (fueling swing craze)

- End of prohibition: alcohol and jazz at home

Jazz During WWI

- Jazz was introduced to Europe by African American Regimental Bands

- Led by James Reese Europe

- laid groundwork for the jazz age

International Sweethearts of Rhythm

- 1st integrated all women swing band

- groundbreaking during WWII

Girl Band Standards

- Fake: play a tune without knowing it

- Ride: improvise with good rhythm

- Take off: solo for several choruses

- Play the spots: sight read well

Bebop Influences (post WWII)

- American growth

- Cold War threat and migration

- Increased drug use

Bebop and Modern Jazz Style

- Developed in after-hours jam sessions (52nd Street NY)

- Folk to art

- Small groups

- Fast and complex

- Listening over dancing

- Improvisation, longer and faster solos, advanced harmonies

Bebop Pioneers

- Young

- Frusterated that bebop didn't benefit them the way swing did ($/fame)

- ex. Johnny Carisi

Harlems Rhythm Club

A legendary, informal spot for musicians to rehearse, store instruments, play pool, and host cutting contests after main gigs, serving as a vital employment hub for jazz players in the 1920s and beyond.

Jam sessions at Minton's and Monroe's

Late night gatherings of musicians in small night clubs. Any musician could go and try and perform; however musicians would try to make newcomers feel unwelcome by playing at a fast tempo, playing in an unfamiliar key, and modulating up a half step after every chorus.

- Charlie Parker (Bebop)

Connie's Inn

All white club in harlem

Small's Paradise

Integrated club but African American owned

Barron's Exclusive Club

- owned by Barron Wilkins

- allowed whites and black celebrities

Cotton Club

African American's performed for white and wealthy audiences

Examples of 52nd Street Cellar Clubs

Jimmy Ryans, The Onyx, The Famous Door

All Girl Band Struggles

- Being seen as professionals

- Being considered "visual entertainment"

- Glamor Struggles (weight, glasses, etc.)

- Traveling

Bebop and Race

- Bebop transcends race barriers

- Living and working in a separate and unequal world than their white counterparts

- white musicians struggled to imitate

- African Americans enjoyed a degree of social freedom and prosperity