This essay uses Mikhail Bakhtin’s dialogic theories to explore the way jazz musicians engage in s... more This essay uses Mikhail Bakhtin’s dialogic theories to explore the way jazz musicians engage in self-expression that is at the same time inseparable from their relationship to others. For Bakhtin, the self is rooted in the social world yet retains “unfinalizability”—our ability to shape ourselves. Bakhtin shows us both that jazz improvisation is a struggle to differentiate one’s own voice from others’ and that musicians find their own voice only in relation to others through dialog—with themselves, tradition, the audience, and other musicians. I argue that jazz, as a dialogic art form Bakhtin calls “polyphonic,” is particularly suited to the expression of the unfinalizable self, which requires a supportive group of equals.
... Although various trumpeters like Buddy Bolden, Joe Oliver, and Freddie Keppard were given the... more ... Although various trumpeters like Buddy Bolden, Joe Oliver, and Freddie Keppard were given the title "King," the emphasis was on the ... sound ideal." According to Barry Kernfeld, Armstrong's voice is "raspy, perfectly suited to the African-American conception of sound upon which ...
What does racial identity mean in twenty-first-century America? Some say we live in a “postracial... more What does racial identity mean in twenty-first-century America? Some say we live in a “postracial” world, and increasing numbers of Americans have multiethnic backgrounds. We academics recognize that race is a social construction, yet Americans remain attached to traditional racial categories. In 2008, approximately 15% of all marriages in the United States were interracial, and beginning with the 2000 census, Americans have been allowed to check more than one racial category. Yet 97% of Americans in 2010 reported only one race. We are proud of electing our first “black president” even though his mother was white and he grew up barely knowing his African father.
ABSTRACT The representation of the past in “postmodern” musical works is often seen as a rejectio... more ABSTRACT The representation of the past in “postmodern” musical works is often seen as a rejection of coherent historical narratives. Works featuring a mixture of styles (“polystylism”), “borrowed” sounds (either sampled or quoted), and a collage structure supposedly reflect and enact postmodernism’s rejection of “grand narratives” in general and the idea that history has a coherent meaning in particular. This essay contests this interpretation of such postmodern devices by looking at two works using such musical features in the service of what I call “aural history”: the musical enactment of historical events. Using Bakhtin, I argue that Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra (1969) and John Zorn’s “Shtetl” (from his 1993 composition Kristallnacht) use postmodern devices to craft dialogical narratives. Rather than mirroring postmodern undecidability, such musical narratives “orchestrate” (Bakhtin) historical voices into an enactment of the past as seen from the present.
The article examines the controversy over the status of “the jazz tradition” -- the identificatio... more The article examines the controversy over the status of “the jazz tradition” -- the identification of a set of central musicians, performances, and stylistic features. The differing views of its defenders and opponents are grounded, I argue, in divergent political assumptions. Advocates of the tradition (“neotrads”) like Albert Murray, Stanley Crouch, and Wynton Marsalis believe the maintenance of the jazz tradition is necessary to stave off cultural mediocrity, social degeneration, and the destruction of the music’s African American core. Opponents (“antitrads”) contend the tradition is stifling and hegemonic and advocate its opening or rejection in the pursuit of a society more accepting of difference. I find the reasoning and social analysis of both groups fundamentally flawed and explore the possibility of a jazz tradition that is neither rigid nor borderless but rooted in the historical experiences of musicians and audiences.
The arts' relationship to democracy is an uneasy one. Any claim that the arts inherently supp... more The arts' relationship to democracy is an uneasy one. Any claim that the arts inherently support democracy must be greeted with skepticism. In this century fascist dictators have used the arts to maintain the support of the populace; one thinks here of Leni Riefenstahl's film Triumph of the Will, aesthetically brilliant yet financed by Adolph Hitler. On the other hand, artworks have supported struggles for democracy, from the Spanish Civil War to the Sixties. Similarly, democracy's effect on the arts has been the subject of contentious debate. Conservative critics of democracy have been most prominent; typical is Henry James's remark that a "huge democratic broom" has swept away the past and ushered in an era of "the new, the simple, the cheap, the common, the commercial, the immediate, and, all too often, the ugly."' Yet, others would argue that the freedom inherent in democracy is necessary for the arts to flourish, as the history of "socialist realism" and other state approved art forms has shown. The eighties and nineties have seen a renewed interest in the arts' political role. Thus, we find ourselves enmeshed in discussions of violence on television, misogyny in rock and rap lyrics, and NEA funding for sexually provocative and anti-religious art. Yet, although popular and scholarly political analyses of the arts have been numerous, studies specifically concerned with the arts' relationship to democracy have been rare.2 For this reason, one welcomes Democracy and the Arts, a collection addressing two primary questions: Do the arts support democracy? and Is democracy good for the arts? To its credit, Democracy and the Arts encompasses a wide range of views and touches on a variety of debates. The book's success in
... Marxist analyses of the political role of the arts include Maynard Solomon, ed., Marxism and ... more ... Marxist analyses of the political role of the arts include Maynard Solomon, ed., Marxism and Art (New York: Vintage, 1974); Fredric Jameson, Marxism ... 4. For other accounts of Trilling, none of them from the point of view of political theory, see Mark Krupnick, Lionel Trilling and ...
... 8. Crouch, Always in Pursuit, 60-1. 9. See Baby Dodds, The Baby Dodds Story, as told to Larry... more ... 8. Crouch, Always in Pursuit, 60-1. 9. See Baby Dodds, The Baby Dodds Story, as told to Larry Gara (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State ... For black audiences, waltzes might be played 4/4; for white audiences, pieces might be played "straighter." Danny Barker has also talked about ...
Page 1. "Let Freedom Ring!": Free Jazz and African-American Politics Charles Hersch nO ... more Page 1. "Let Freedom Ring!": Free Jazz and African-American Politics Charles Hersch nO n August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King stood before 250,000 black and white Americans and proclaimed, "Let freedom ring!" urging citizens ...
Preface Introduction: "The Brethren" in "Closed Chambers"? The "Priestly... more Preface Introduction: "The Brethren" in "Closed Chambers"? The "Priestly Tribe" or "Nine Old Men"? Images of the Court during the New Deal From "Potato Hole" to "Marble Palace": How the Court Presents Itself High Priest or "Nine Scorpions"? How the Justices Present Themselves Defrocking the Priests? Media Presentations of the Court "Do the Justices Wear Clothes"? Public Perceptions of the Court Conclusion: "God Save this Honorable Court"! Selected Bibliography Index
early in his memoir, Really the Blues (1946), Jewish jazz clarinetist Milton “Mezz” Mezzrow descr... more early in his memoir, Really the Blues (1946), Jewish jazz clarinetist Milton “Mezz” Mezzrow describes a conversion experience. Mezzrow and his friends approach a segregated lunch counter in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. as someone who is, in his words, “dirty from riding the rails and dark-complexioned to begin with,” he is told, “We don’t serve niggers in here.” Clearly a mistake has been made, perhaps because of their dirty faces. however, the more he thinks about it, Mezzrow believes it was not a mistake: “We were Jews, but in Cape Girardeau they had told us we were Negroes. Now all of a sudden, I realized that I agreed with them.” he vows to become a “Negro musician.”3 Mezzrow’s conversion from Jew to black is well known, but his is only the most extreme example of Jewish jazz musicians who identify with african americans because of a felt sense of affinity.4 These musi-
This essay uses Mikhail Bakhtin’s dialogic theories to explore the way jazz musicians engage in s... more This essay uses Mikhail Bakhtin’s dialogic theories to explore the way jazz musicians engage in self-expression that is at the same time inseparable from their relationship to others. For Bakhtin, the self is rooted in the social world yet retains “unfinalizability”—our ability to shape ourselves. Bakhtin shows us both that jazz improvisation is a struggle to differentiate one’s own voice from others’ and that musicians find their own voice only in relation to others through dialog—with themselves, tradition, the audience, and other musicians. I argue that jazz, as a dialogic art form Bakhtin calls “polyphonic,” is particularly suited to the expression of the unfinalizable self, which requires a supportive group of equals.
... Although various trumpeters like Buddy Bolden, Joe Oliver, and Freddie Keppard were given the... more ... Although various trumpeters like Buddy Bolden, Joe Oliver, and Freddie Keppard were given the title "King," the emphasis was on the ... sound ideal." According to Barry Kernfeld, Armstrong's voice is "raspy, perfectly suited to the African-American conception of sound upon which ...
What does racial identity mean in twenty-first-century America? Some say we live in a “postracial... more What does racial identity mean in twenty-first-century America? Some say we live in a “postracial” world, and increasing numbers of Americans have multiethnic backgrounds. We academics recognize that race is a social construction, yet Americans remain attached to traditional racial categories. In 2008, approximately 15% of all marriages in the United States were interracial, and beginning with the 2000 census, Americans have been allowed to check more than one racial category. Yet 97% of Americans in 2010 reported only one race. We are proud of electing our first “black president” even though his mother was white and he grew up barely knowing his African father.
ABSTRACT The representation of the past in “postmodern” musical works is often seen as a rejectio... more ABSTRACT The representation of the past in “postmodern” musical works is often seen as a rejection of coherent historical narratives. Works featuring a mixture of styles (“polystylism”), “borrowed” sounds (either sampled or quoted), and a collage structure supposedly reflect and enact postmodernism’s rejection of “grand narratives” in general and the idea that history has a coherent meaning in particular. This essay contests this interpretation of such postmodern devices by looking at two works using such musical features in the service of what I call “aural history”: the musical enactment of historical events. Using Bakhtin, I argue that Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra (1969) and John Zorn’s “Shtetl” (from his 1993 composition Kristallnacht) use postmodern devices to craft dialogical narratives. Rather than mirroring postmodern undecidability, such musical narratives “orchestrate” (Bakhtin) historical voices into an enactment of the past as seen from the present.
The article examines the controversy over the status of “the jazz tradition” -- the identificatio... more The article examines the controversy over the status of “the jazz tradition” -- the identification of a set of central musicians, performances, and stylistic features. The differing views of its defenders and opponents are grounded, I argue, in divergent political assumptions. Advocates of the tradition (“neotrads”) like Albert Murray, Stanley Crouch, and Wynton Marsalis believe the maintenance of the jazz tradition is necessary to stave off cultural mediocrity, social degeneration, and the destruction of the music’s African American core. Opponents (“antitrads”) contend the tradition is stifling and hegemonic and advocate its opening or rejection in the pursuit of a society more accepting of difference. I find the reasoning and social analysis of both groups fundamentally flawed and explore the possibility of a jazz tradition that is neither rigid nor borderless but rooted in the historical experiences of musicians and audiences.
The arts' relationship to democracy is an uneasy one. Any claim that the arts inherently supp... more The arts' relationship to democracy is an uneasy one. Any claim that the arts inherently support democracy must be greeted with skepticism. In this century fascist dictators have used the arts to maintain the support of the populace; one thinks here of Leni Riefenstahl's film Triumph of the Will, aesthetically brilliant yet financed by Adolph Hitler. On the other hand, artworks have supported struggles for democracy, from the Spanish Civil War to the Sixties. Similarly, democracy's effect on the arts has been the subject of contentious debate. Conservative critics of democracy have been most prominent; typical is Henry James's remark that a "huge democratic broom" has swept away the past and ushered in an era of "the new, the simple, the cheap, the common, the commercial, the immediate, and, all too often, the ugly."' Yet, others would argue that the freedom inherent in democracy is necessary for the arts to flourish, as the history of "socialist realism" and other state approved art forms has shown. The eighties and nineties have seen a renewed interest in the arts' political role. Thus, we find ourselves enmeshed in discussions of violence on television, misogyny in rock and rap lyrics, and NEA funding for sexually provocative and anti-religious art. Yet, although popular and scholarly political analyses of the arts have been numerous, studies specifically concerned with the arts' relationship to democracy have been rare.2 For this reason, one welcomes Democracy and the Arts, a collection addressing two primary questions: Do the arts support democracy? and Is democracy good for the arts? To its credit, Democracy and the Arts encompasses a wide range of views and touches on a variety of debates. The book's success in
... Marxist analyses of the political role of the arts include Maynard Solomon, ed., Marxism and ... more ... Marxist analyses of the political role of the arts include Maynard Solomon, ed., Marxism and Art (New York: Vintage, 1974); Fredric Jameson, Marxism ... 4. For other accounts of Trilling, none of them from the point of view of political theory, see Mark Krupnick, Lionel Trilling and ...
... 8. Crouch, Always in Pursuit, 60-1. 9. See Baby Dodds, The Baby Dodds Story, as told to Larry... more ... 8. Crouch, Always in Pursuit, 60-1. 9. See Baby Dodds, The Baby Dodds Story, as told to Larry Gara (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State ... For black audiences, waltzes might be played 4/4; for white audiences, pieces might be played "straighter." Danny Barker has also talked about ...
Page 1. "Let Freedom Ring!": Free Jazz and African-American Politics Charles Hersch nO ... more Page 1. "Let Freedom Ring!": Free Jazz and African-American Politics Charles Hersch nO n August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King stood before 250,000 black and white Americans and proclaimed, "Let freedom ring!" urging citizens ...
Preface Introduction: "The Brethren" in "Closed Chambers"? The "Priestly... more Preface Introduction: "The Brethren" in "Closed Chambers"? The "Priestly Tribe" or "Nine Old Men"? Images of the Court during the New Deal From "Potato Hole" to "Marble Palace": How the Court Presents Itself High Priest or "Nine Scorpions"? How the Justices Present Themselves Defrocking the Priests? Media Presentations of the Court "Do the Justices Wear Clothes"? Public Perceptions of the Court Conclusion: "God Save this Honorable Court"! Selected Bibliography Index
early in his memoir, Really the Blues (1946), Jewish jazz clarinetist Milton “Mezz” Mezzrow descr... more early in his memoir, Really the Blues (1946), Jewish jazz clarinetist Milton “Mezz” Mezzrow describes a conversion experience. Mezzrow and his friends approach a segregated lunch counter in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. as someone who is, in his words, “dirty from riding the rails and dark-complexioned to begin with,” he is told, “We don’t serve niggers in here.” Clearly a mistake has been made, perhaps because of their dirty faces. however, the more he thinks about it, Mezzrow believes it was not a mistake: “We were Jews, but in Cape Girardeau they had told us we were Negroes. Now all of a sudden, I realized that I agreed with them.” he vows to become a “Negro musician.”3 Mezzrow’s conversion from Jew to black is well known, but his is only the most extreme example of Jewish jazz musicians who identify with african americans because of a felt sense of affinity.4 These musi-
Uploads
Papers by Charles Hersch