15 Years Of Swing During The Great Depression
15 years of swing
Swing is the natural evolution of jazz music, retaining much of the style and characteristics associated with it, while being different enough both musically and socially to separate itself. Swing is generally accepted to have been conceived in 1924, when the name synonymous with swing Louise Armstrong joined Fletcher Henderson's band. However 1929 is the year swing really picked up in popularity. From this point swing grew through some wonderful technological and social advancement, and some shockingly difficult financial and world shifting issues.
This assignment will focus on the years between 1929; the year the Great Depression started and 1945, the year the Second World War ended, looking at how the Great Depression …show more content…
citizens found themselves out of work and having a very difficult time finding jobs. Of course this affected the musicians of this period; with so many people out of work and so little money to go around, the luxury of being paid a respectable amount was reserved only for the best and most acclaimed performers. And that wasn’t enough, as “during this time black musicians were restricted from studio work or radio performances”, limiting opportunities further still. The effects of this are with so many musicians struggling to find Paying venues or studios, they would have to try and obtain a standard job if they didn’t have one already. Many people would now be able to hear music that they previously wouldn’t have been able to, as a large number musicians would now be playing for free. Although times were hard for many people across America, Swing music began to thrive, as the new sounds and a more upbeat nature of the music caught the attention the …show more content…
Record companies that had previously been very successful were now experiencing plummeting sales, as companies that had sold close to a hundred million records were now only selling records around the six million mark. This brought about the demise of many record labels, making more people jobless adding to the already large number of unemployed across America. A saving grace for the music industry however came in the form of swing. The altered style and intensity of the already popular jazz music captured the attention of millions, and slowly over a period of 10 years leading up to the Second World War, the music industry managed to recover with renewed
Swing is the natural evolution of jazz music, retaining much of the style and characteristics associated with it, while being different enough both musically and socially to separate itself. Swing is generally accepted to have been conceived in 1924, when the name synonymous with swing Louise Armstrong joined Fletcher Henderson's band. However 1929 is the year swing really picked up in popularity. From this point swing grew through some wonderful technological and social advancement, and some shockingly difficult financial and world shifting issues.
This assignment will focus on the years between 1929; the year the Great Depression started and 1945, the year the Second World War ended, looking at how the Great Depression …show more content…
citizens found themselves out of work and having a very difficult time finding jobs. Of course this affected the musicians of this period; with so many people out of work and so little money to go around, the luxury of being paid a respectable amount was reserved only for the best and most acclaimed performers. And that wasn’t enough, as “during this time black musicians were restricted from studio work or radio performances”, limiting opportunities further still. The effects of this are with so many musicians struggling to find Paying venues or studios, they would have to try and obtain a standard job if they didn’t have one already. Many people would now be able to hear music that they previously wouldn’t have been able to, as a large number musicians would now be playing for free. Although times were hard for many people across America, Swing music began to thrive, as the new sounds and a more upbeat nature of the music caught the attention the …show more content…
Record companies that had previously been very successful were now experiencing plummeting sales, as companies that had sold close to a hundred million records were now only selling records around the six million mark. This brought about the demise of many record labels, making more people jobless adding to the already large number of unemployed across America. A saving grace for the music industry however came in the form of swing. The altered style and intensity of the already popular jazz music captured the attention of millions, and slowly over a period of 10 years leading up to the Second World War, the music industry managed to recover with renewed