Twentieth Century Music and Its Reflection of History Essay Example For Students

Twentieth Century Music and Its Reflection of History Essay For many hundreds of years, man has enjoyed and played music for various reasons: meditation, dancing, rituals, entertainment, to express feelings, to reflect on past events and to show what is happening in his world. In the Twentieth Century, music has been used for all of these, but none have been so important to making this country what it its today as the music that has reflected on past events and that shows what is happening in the country at the time that it was written. The sass was the first decade of the Twentieth Century in which the music of the time reflected what was happening in the world around it. The Great Depression left its imprint on the music more than any other event of that time. Most of the music of the sass offered relaxation to the battered soul. Popular songs of the time brought the listener into the despair of the times apparent in songs, such as Stardust, Solitude, and Blue Lovebirds Die Alone. World War II brought along a new attitude in its music. Songs of the WI era showed split ideas about the war. Some works made the American People aware of the dangers of democracy while most songs emphasized its blessings, giving Americans a patriotic, anti-Fascist attitude. One popular song of the time was Earl Robinsons Ballad for Americans which emphasized the strongest support for the war at that time. In the mid-sass, a new style of music known as Rock n Roll became prominent. This music was a combination of all the popular styles of music that preceded it. Three styles of rock: RB rock, country rock, and pop rock; were evident at this time. Culturally, white teenagers were the dominant members of society, but the most popular form of rock was RB rock, which was performed mostly by African-American males. This caused social problems because many upper class white American males babbled RB rock as African or race music. Some even charged that it was a conspiracy by the NAACP to corrupt white teenagers. To counter the popularity of RB rock, many record companies found white pop performers to cover popular songs recorded by African-American RB artists. When an African-American performer had a hit song, the record company would have it re-recorded by a white performer. Pat Boone had hits with Fats Dominos Anti that a Shame and with Little Richards Tutu Fruit. One record producer, Sam Phillips stated, If I could only find a white man who had he Negro sound and the Negro feel I could make a million dollars. By 1956, a young singer, Elvis Presley, fade Phillips a prophet with his hit song Heartbreak Hotel. Elvis Presley did more than any other artist to promote the style of Rock n Roll with fifty- two top thirty hits in less than ten years, earning himself the title of King of Rock and Twentieth Century Music and Its Reflection of History By David Peterson By the early sass Rock and Roll was a contributing factor to the Civil Rights movements bringing African-Americans to become equal to whites. White teenagers researched records released by African-American performers and African-American teenagers did the opposite. Whites and African-Americans sat beside each other at concerts, enjoying music that may not be performed by people of the same race as they were. However, in a society dominated by white males, many minorities were mocked and treated cruelly. Women were looked down upon as second class citizens in the sass; treated as sex objects in songs such as Buddy Nooks Party Doll, Johnny Titillations Poetry in Motion, and Eddie Hedgehogs (Girls, Girls, Girls) Made to Love). African Americans were also viewed as comic figures in songs such as the Coasters Charlie Brown, Little Anthony and the Imperials Shimmy, Shimmy, OK-OK Bop, and Mongo Sanitarians Watermelon Man. Native Americans were also depicted as cartoon characters in Johnny Protons Running Bear and Larry Verses Mr.. Custer. The accents of Italian and Hispanic emigrants were made fun of in Pat Bones Speedy Gonzales and Lou Months Pepping the Italian Mouse. To many, the period of 1964 to 1974 is the most important period of American music in this century. Rock music reflected attitudes of the youth of that time, the Baby Analyze How Renaissance Art Was A Reflection EssaySome music of the past two decades has been a reflection on past events. Frankie Vail released a solo record GREASE in 1978 which looked back on the past fondly. Other artists have written music which reflects on the past with bittersweet nostalgia such as Bob Eagers Against the Wind and Don Honeys End of the Innocence. Billy Joel looked at the Vietnam war in Goodnight Saigon and summed up forty years of pop culture from 1949 to 1989 in his song We Didnt Start the Fire. Eighties songs also viewed the social problems in America. Bob Eagers Making Thunderbird and Billy Joules Allentown drew attention to hard times in American manufacturing. Other artists helped out through benefit concerts such as Live Aid to help assist drought stricken African countries, Farm Aid to help farmers facing bankruptcy. Money from these benefit concert Band Aid was donated to combat hunger in Ethiopia. There are in the eighties and nineties very few songs which links to world events. Michael Jackson, though, through songs such as Heal the World, has been able to show how there are places in the world where people are going hungry. He has also demanded world peace and humane treatment toward animals with Earth Song. In the nineties, there has been music which reflects one of the biggest problems in American Sockeye in a number of years. Gangs rap (hard-core rhyming recited in rhythms) has influenced many lower class American teenagers to become involved Arizona, a large problem with American teens since the sixties. Music by rappers such as Dry. Drew, Snoop Doggy Dog, Easy-E, Ice-T, and Outpace Shaker, suggest violence toward law enforcement through songs such as Deep Cover and Cop Kill. These songs also recommend using high powered weapons and drive by shootings to solve their conflicts. Artists of gangs rap claim that they are not trying to influence young adults through their music, they are only showing what is happening on the streets of America. Rapper Snoop Doggy Dog was charged with murder in 1993 after his dockyard shot and killed a twenty year old gang member in Los Angels in self defense. In an interview before his acquittal, Snoop Doggy Dog (Calvin Broads) stated, This doesnt fit into the dream of stardom I had People think this is cool, that I like being notorious This is nothing cool, nothing fun, nothing to laugh about. In these present times, much of the music written and recorded is done for the sole purpose of painting a picture of events which Americans face or have faced. Through the process of recording music, we will be able to preserve history as it happens.