The Role Of Jazz Music In The American Cultural Diversity

Student Name Course Instructor Date The Role of Jazz Music in the American Cultural Diversity Most societies today are comprised of people from different cultures. The United States comprises of people from all walks of life and with diverse cultures. They have appreciated the differences in gender, color, religion and social status and thus embrace what is broadly referred as cultural diversity. Universities in the US have been able to accommodate individuals from all over the world who come to seek superior and quality education and better opportunities. Majority come as students come from diverse cultures and different ethnic backgrounds and who are then connected through utilization of the art of music. America has the most established music industry in the world with a number of record companies, radio stations and television channels that reflect its ethnic diversity. Music genres such as hip hop blues, jazz, pop, techno and rock have flourished because of cultural mixes and have attributed to a stereotypical American identity. The purpose of the paper is to examine and elaborate the impact of jazz music on the American citizen’s lifestyles and cultural expression. The American culture is very influential and over the centuries has shaped many other cultures all over the world. Music that was developed in the US such as hip hop and jazz has created an American identity and an overall American image. The lenient immigration laws in the US have greatly helped the growth of music in the country. The mix of the black and white music had the Europeans come with their musical backgrounds; African slaves added their musical traditions and the Native Americans brought their traditional rhythms to create unique musical sounds that cut across issues of gender, race, language and social classes. Fitzpatrick mentions “This mix of traditional music has fostered ethnical crossings and generated a sense of patriotism in early 20th century America where most songs dealt with themes such as freedom, equality and pride to be American” (Fitzpatrick 55). Jazz is a type of music that is uniquely American and is said to have been developed after the civil war by African Americans in New Orleans. The birth place of jazz music is significant because New Orleans had people from different ethnicities. There were Germans, Africans, Native Americans, Spanish, Italians and the French. They combined elements of European music and African traditions and the mix provided the perfect blend. It was initially played by the slaves as they toiled the fields and later incorporated indoors in places of enjoyment. Dinerstein notes “Jazz is important because the most popular music today can be traced back to Jazz origins. Jazz is an offshoot of the blues, swing, big band, pop, rock and roll, soul, hip hop and rap music” (Dinerstein 305). The fusion of both the European and African culture in its sound enabled it to be universally accepted and though in a small way helped to reduce the impacts of racial segregation that existed during that time. It’s noted that despite the discrimination that existed, jazz musicians considered themselves equals and it was common to find white musicians performing in black bands. The Duke Ellington’s orchestra performed regularly in white only clubs such as the Cotton club. Jazz music provided a powerful tool that African Americans used to express themselves and highlight their struggles of enslavement and discrimination. Joyner and Peretti reinstate that fact in his article and states “First of all this music is the cultural and spiritual tool and means by which the journey of an entire group is chronicled. Second, jazz is the repository of how our ancestors were able to maintain life energy in the face of inhuman treatment by one group of humans towards another” (Joyner and Peretti 214). As a result jazz often creates intense reactions whenever it is played because of its symbolism about the evolution of the African American people from bondage to freedom. In the 1920’s jazz music majorly highlighted aspects of the social inequalities that existed and as Joyner states “Jazz marked the degeneration of civilization” and hence created divisions between people of different social classes and races (Joyner and Peretti 214). Efforts to ban what was p...