Music that originated from the Indians. After a long period of development, American music acquired a unique American style at the beginning of the 20th century, and achieved an equally important status as the music culture of Western countries.
Introduction
American music includes hip-hop rap (hip-hop rap), R&B soul (rhythm, blues and soul music), pop (avant-garde pop), rock & roll (rock music),
American country music (country music), Latin music (Latin music), Disco jockey (DJ electronic mixed dance music is included in hiphop), punk (punk music is included in rock), Funk Music (loose Jack music), CRunk amp; , classical (classical) and other diversified American and European and American mixed music elements.
Background
Before that, there were music from various ethnic groups or races living in the United States, as well as music brought by European musicians from various European countries. Professional music. After a long period of mutual influence and integration, they promoted the formation and development of American music. The United States has a historical and cultural background that leads the world in artistic achievements and development in music and art. After being baptized by popular music in mass entertainment, American mainstream music and non-mainstream music have been enthusiastically sought after and praised by fans all over the world. , the international pop music scene has gradually become synonymous with European and American music, and the artistic expression styles of various American music have gradually been absorbed and mixed by the mainstream music of major entertainment and cultural countries in Asia and Europe, making American music cross-border and become a global phenomenon. The preferred trendy music culture indicator for world music fans.
16th to 18th centuries
Indian singing was mainly used on occasions such as labor, weddings and funerals, and preparations for war. It was accompanied by drums and other percussion instruments, with simple and unique tones. After the 16th century, with the arrival of immigrants from various countries, they also brought their own music culture. After a fierce battle, the British finally gained the upper hand in the North American continent. Therefore, British music has the greatest influence on American music, and it laid the initial cornerstone for the formation of American music. In 1619, the first batch of African black slaves was trafficked to North America. Black Africans love music and are used to singing while working. The moving tunes and unique syncopated rhythms of black music played a huge role in the development of American music. In 1640, Massachusetts published "The Bay Psalms," the first book published in North America. In the early 18th century, in order to improve singing skills, many pastors wrote books to guide singing. At the same time, with the increase in immigration and the gradual prosperity of some large cities, secular music also became active. European musical instruments such as violins, guitars, harpsichords, etc. became popular, and professional musicians emerged. The first concert was held in Boston in 1731. The usual concert program includes patriotic songs, opera arias, traditional folk songs, etc., and sometimes some titled or untitled instrumental works. On this basis, the first batch of composers born in the United States were produced. Compared with European music, the works of American composers at that time were considered immature.
19th-20th Century
At the beginning of the 19th century, many European musicians came to the United States, and they brought music levels and techniques that were far more advanced than those in the United States. After the European Revolution in 1848, a large number of German musicians immigrated to the United States. They brought significant changes in the musical taste of Americans who were originally accustomed to hymns, and also had a huge impact on the creation of the younger generation of American composers. At the same time, music education has developed rapidly.
After the Civil War
American music life became more active, and some important music groups were established one after another, such as the Metropolitan Opera (1881), the Boston Symphony Orchestra (1881), etc. . More importantly, a group of composers with considerable professional skills emerged. They raised American music to the level of Europe, but their works lacked originality and had an obvious tendency to imitate. Among them, the most accomplished one is E. McDowell is considered the first American composer to achieve international fame. While American composers were almost exclusively following European styles, songwriter S. C. Foster used the tunes of African American music to compose. Many of his songs were written for the "black troupe" that was popular at the time (white people dressed up as black people, and their members were called troubadours); but the real African American music was not taken seriously, and they were only circulated and developed among black people. The main types of popular black music at that time included spiritual songs, blues, labor songs, etc. At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, a new trend emerged in the United States to break away from the control of German music. Czech composer A. Dvozak played a big role in this. He was invited to serve as president of the New York Academy of Music from 1892 to 1895. He suggested that American composers use American Indian and black music into their own creations. Some composers also turned to French music, and their creations were closely related to Impressionism. Another composer C. E. Ives was on his own to explore an Americanized musical language. He went unnoticed at the time and was later recognized as the most famous composer of the older generation in America.
Characteristics
In the 1920s, public opinion encouraged American composers to create works with American style and characteristics. A group of composers, with support from various quarters, contributed to the establishment of American nationalist music. Especially in the field of symphony, they have won a position for American music to keep pace with the music of European countries. He studied in Paris from the French composer N. Boulanger learned A. Copeland, R. Harris, W. Piston, V. Thomson and R. Sessions (1896-) and others, to a certain extent, combined the American musical language with the top Western composition techniques. Their students and followers such as W. Schumann, S. Barber, L. Burstein and others followed in their footsteps. Most of these young composers were trained domestically. American music in the 1920s and 1930s did not just develop in one direction. Western music experienced unprecedented drastic changes after World War I, and new modern music genres emerged; even the above-mentioned composers showed varying degrees of experimental nature in some of their works. The most important experimentalist was the French composer E. Varèse. At the same time, American popular music developed unprecedentedly. In particular, jazz music, which evolved from black music such as blues and ragtime, is popular across the country. Independent American-style musicals (also known as Broadway musicals) were gradually developed on the basis of European operettas and comic operas, and occupy a special position in popular music. Famous musical theater composers include R. Rogers (1902-1979), G. Gershwin, Burstein, etc. The emergence of the Nazi regime and World War II brought many famous European composers to the United States, such as P. Hindemith, B. Bartók, Schoenberg, Stravinsky, D. Milhaud et al. They brought a new and huge influence to American musical life. The United States became an important center of Western musical culture. The national character of American music creation is no longer taken seriously, and the stylistic differences between the works of many American composers and European music have almost disappeared.
Diversity
After the 1950s, American music became more diverse. Although some composers basically compose according to traditional musical language, what attracts the new generation of composers is the endless emergence of various new music genres. The representative figure is J. Cage. In the field of popular music, new varieties have also emerged. Rock music, developed from blues and other music, swept the country, and jazz music took a back seat. Representative figures of rock music include E. Presley (1935-1977) and other famous singers of folk songs include B. Dylan (1941- ) et al.
MJ. The emergence of Jackson
After the 1970s, the craze of rock music gradually declined. Various pop music influenced each other and tended to be comprehensive in style. The most famous pop music singer is Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 - June 25, 2009) Jackson
In terms of music performances, the United States is often due to having the world's No. 1 First-class conductors, soloists and opera singers have reached a very high level. American symphony orchestras such as Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, New York and Philadelphia all enjoy international reputation.
American Music
The United States became an independent country in 1776. In its early years, it was very colonial, and almost all of its culture was transplanted from Europe. It is a transplant from Europe. Folk music is based on black spiritual songs, which combine African traditions and forced Christianity to develop a very different style. The development of the west produced cowboy songs. Although it has not deviated from the European (especially British) folk style, it is energetic, rough and sentimental, and has its own characteristics. The development of the west has produced cowboys, and cowboy songs (cowboy songs) have not deviated from the European (especially British) folk style, but they are energetic. , rough and sentimental, but also distinctive. The talented songwriter Stephen Foster (1826-64) absorbed these factors and wrote a song that can almost be called an American folk song:
Negro Spiritual: Joshua fit the battle of Jericho [1.29]
Negro Spiritual: Joshua fit the battle of Jericho [1.29]
Swing low, sweet chariot [2.25]
Swing low, sweet chariot [2.25]
Foster: De Camptown Race [3.06]
Foster: De Camptown Race [3.06]
Trad. (cowboy song ): Carry me back to the lone prairie [3.20]
Trad. (cowboy song): Carry me back to the lone prairie [3.20]
The rise of New England in the nineteenth century It has the so-called transcendentalism (Emerson, Hawthorne, Thoreau, etc.) thought, which advocates personal autonomy and does not rely on any authority. This led to the gradual emergence of literature and art with American characteristics. The first maverick American composer was Charles Ives (1874-1954). The first maverick American composer was Charles Ives (1874-1954). He was taught by his father and had no formal musical training. He was also a successful businessman. He composed music solely to satisfy himself and had no intention of pleasing the audience.
For his time, his music broke all the rules of European music (overlapping popular tunes, inconsistent rhythm, and even inconsistent tonality), and the "avant-garde" is terrible: Ives: Putnum's Camp, from Three Places in New England [6.13] Another non-academic composer is George Gershwin (1898-1937). He brought jazz into the "classical" realm (we have introduced his works many times). Composers at the same time as him or later were all from the academy.
Aaron Copland (1900-90), who was born in New York, can write very difficult academic works. But his fame is mainly based on his American-flavored ballets (Billy the Kid, Rodeo, Appalachian Spring) and orchestral music. He may be the most representative master of "American classical music". He is diverse, active, and even domineering, and he can express the American style very well.