Interdisciplinary Studies

Popular Music

In American History

Learning Targets• To investigate the traditional music brought to

America by French, Scandinavian, Arab, and Asian settlers and immigrants.

• To study examples of the syncretism or blending of French, Scandinavian, Arab, and Asian culture and traditions with American musical elements.

• To learn about some of the traditional instruments and formsassociated with these musics and cultures.

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Vocabulary

Cajun Music Frottoir

Gamelan Shamisen

zydeco Taiko

sansei

Scandinavian Influence in the Upper Midwest

Scandinavian immigrants came to American and settled in:

•Wisconsin in 1840s

• Minnesota in 1850s

Immigrants from Sweden had the largest population in this group.

Scandinavian Influence

Immigrants from Norway had the next largest population.

Other immigrants of Scandinavian descent include:

•Danish

•Finnish

•Germans

•Polish

•Czechs

Scandinavian Influence

The oldest dances from Norway include:

Halling

Springer

Ganger

Scandinavian Influence

Instruments associated with this style of music include:

Hardanger Fiddle

Other instruments include:

Lur

Scandinavian Influence

Other instruments include:

Accordion

Listening “Banjo Old Time”

Banjo, Old Time is an example of a polka. This listening example is performed by LeRoy Larson and the Minnesota Scandinavian Ensemble.

Arab American Traditions

Arab American traditions in relation to music influence is one of the least studied in American History.

There are approximately 2.5 million immigrants of Arab descent who lived in the United States.

Early Arab immigrants came to the United States as early as 1870 representing twenty (20) different nations of the Arab world.

Arab American Traditions

Immigrants representing Arab nations include:

Saudi Arabia

Somalia

Lebanon

Egypt

Iraq

Morocco

Arab American Traditions

The largest population of Arab Americans reside in Detroit, Michigan

Arab American Traditions

The first Arab American museum is located in Dearborn, Michigan.

Arab American Traditions

Arab American Traditions

Please visit the following exhibits:

Current Exhibits:

Creative Dissent

The Youth/Dhallinyarads

Ten: The Exhibition

Arab American Traditions

Please visit the following exhibits:

Permanent Exhibits:

Gallery 1: Coming to America

Gallery 2: Making an Impact

Community Courtyard: Arab Civilization, Our Heritage

Listening – “Zaffat al-Hilu”[The procession of the Beautiful

Bride]

“Zaffat al-Hilu” is an example of Iraqi American music performed by the Bells Band.

The context of this piece is an Iraqi-Italian wedding documented in 1995.

English Translation: Tonight we dot eh Zaffah for the bride and groom of the Black eyes [a sign of beauty]

The ring that she’s wearing is shining all over her dress; there is nothing else like it in the market.

Congratulations to you [two], the beloved ones.

Arab-American Influence

Recent events have given rise to anti-Arab, anti-American sentiment.

Gulf War

9-11 attacks

Subsequent acts of terrorism throughout the world

Famous Arab-Americans

• American Activist – Ralph Nader• Energy Secretary – Spencer Abraham• Quarterback – Doug Flutie• Indy Racer – Bobby Rahal• Musicans – Frank Zappa and Paula Abdul• Radio and Television Personality – Casey

Kasem• Teacher and Astronaut – Christa McAuliffe• Actors – Danny Thomas and Salma Hayek

The Asian Influence

The perception of Asian influence in America is primarily through popular and classical music.

The Asian Influence

George Harrison (1943-2001) promoted an awareness of Indian music in Western popular culture during the 1960s through recordings of the Beatles.

The sitar is a fretted lute with a long neck.

The Asian Influence

Indonesian music, particularly from Java and Bali, is widely performed in American academic circles on the gamelan.

The Asian Influence

Two American composers were instrumental in introducing this style of music to American audiences.

•Lou Harrison (1917 – 2003)

•Henry Cowell (1897 – 1965)

The Asian Influence

The impact of Indonesian and Indian music is significant. Two of the largest Asian American groups are Chinese and Japanese.

Two Asian American activist include:

•Fred Ho

•Nobuko Miyamoto

Chinese and Japanese Influence in America

Disparities among the Chinese were brought to the forefront by two writers:

Bret Harte – “The Heathen Chinee” (1870)

Mark Twain – Ah Sin (1877)

Chinese and Japanese Influence in America

As a result of Chinese disparities, communities of Chinese emerged in what is known as “Chinatowns”.

These are located in:• San Francisco•Los Angeles•Chicago•Boston•New York

Chinese and Japanese Influence in America

Japanese immigrants arrived in American in the 1890s.Japanese did not arrive prior to this time due to limits placed on workers leaving Japan to work in another country.

Chinese and Japanese Influence in America

The internment of more than 100,000 Japanese and Japanese Americans during World War II (1939 – 1945) greatly affected the Japanese population.

President Franklin D. Roosefelt issued an order in the wake of the bombing of Pearl Harbor.Later, President Gerald Ford overturned this issue, resulting in the release of these Japanese Americans in 1976.

Chinese and Japanese Influence in America

As a result of disparities imposed on Chinese and Japanese in America, there was an emergence of Asian activisim.

There are three cultural generations of Asian

Americans: •issei [first generation, born between 1890s and mid-1920s]•nisei [second generation, born between 1910 and 1940]•sansei [third generation, entered high school and college in the 1960s]

Asian American Activism

By late 1960s, Asian Americans came together to develop an activist agenda to reclaim their heritage.

•Through music and various styles:• Jazz• Classical• Opera• Traditional Asian instruments

Asian American Activism

Nobuko Miyamoto became an early voice of the Asian American community.

An activist of the sansei generation, she collaborated with Chris Iijima and Charlie Chin to produce of the first Asian American songs with a social and political message.

Asian American Instruments

shamisen – [bamboo flute]

shakuhachi – [a plucked lute]

taiko – [barrel drum]

Asian American Influence

Fred Ho (b. 1957)is a Chinese American musician and composer born in Palo Alto, California.

Asian American Influence

Fred Ho is the composer of A Chinaman’s Chance, and leader of the Afro-Asian Music Ensemble.

He is the conductor of the Monkey Orchestra. Mr. Ho is a saxophonist.