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The Powers That Be

“Let me tell you the story of Right Hand, Left Hand. It’s a tale of good and evil. Hate: it was with this hand that Cain iced his brother. Love: these five fingers, they go straight to the soul of man. The right hand: the hand of love. The story of life is this: static. One hand is always fighting the other hand, and the left hand is kicking much ass. I mean, it looks like the right hand, Love, is finished. But hold on, stop the presses, the right hand is coming back. Yeah, he got the left hand on the ropes, now, that’s right. Ooh, it’s a devastating right and Hate is hurt, he’s down. Left-Hand, Hate, KO-ed by Love.”

(Actual song starts around 2:00, music video by Spike Lee)

So goes one of the only main monologues attributed to Radio Raheem throughout the film Do the Right Thing. Instead, he spends most of his time cruising the streets of Brooklyn, radio in hand blasting Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power”.

Fight the Power was commissioned by Spike Lee, specifically for the film. The song takes the refrain of a classic Isley Brothers tune and turns up the energy and rhythmic impulse past 10, resulting in an anthem of protest and unity. Fight the Power’s release is a pivotal moment in the development of hip-hop, with Public Enemy injecting political and social values into the nascent genre of hip hop while combining with Spike Lee’s film to create a unified form of social protest for a restless youth population, forever cementing hip-hop as a unique way to combat social institutions.

In the article, “Does music trump politics”, Lamell, an organizer of a community orchestra who hired a controversial political talk show host to conduct a Haydn symphony, states that, “music and politics ‘are two entirely different worlds: Political discourse is one realm, and music is another realm”. While this may be true for some forms of absolute music, the logic behind this statement blatantly ignores the composer and (more importantly), human behind the piece, not to mention the performers who bring that piece to life. Political ideologies perpetually affect every decision humans make, even if this filter occurs unconsciously. Not only that, but this statement also appears to be made under the assumption that only Western classical music is worth acknowledging as “music” because anyone who has been living in America within the past half a century has witnessed politics as a hotbed for music, not just in hip hop but the entire punk movement (notables such as Bad Brains, Dead Kennedys) as well as folk music with Crosby Stills and Nash, Neil young, and Bob Dylan just to name a few. Both Spike Lee and Public Enemy resoundingly reject this idea of fine arts simply being an escape from everyday life, with astute portrayals of urban cultural conflict and unified protest respectively, specifically revolving around power and its’ abuse. In the words of prominent African-American author, Ta-Nehisi Coates, “All the world’s boomboxes were transformed into pulpits for Public Enemy. Before now, the music was escapist and fun– some beats and the dozens, fat chains and gilded belt-buckles. But Chuck D pulled us back into the real….. Here in Baltimore, brothers would put on the Enemy and recoil. We had never heard anything so grating–drums crashed into whistles, sirens blared off-beat. But the cacophony was addictive and everywhere”.

To understand Fight the Power, first one must understand what the hook, “Fight the power, We’ve to fight the powers that be” actually means. It’s easy to take the line at face value and assume that Public Enemy is simply calling for retaliation against any and all authority but instead the line is referencing the systematic abuse of power by those in positions of authority, and how these systems keep the poor and rich (many times along racial lines) disparate. Off of the second verse the lines, “People, people we are the same, No we’re not the same cause we don’t know the game, What we need is awareness, we can’t get careless…” reinforce this concept. Even groups such as NWA (who formed slightly after public enemy but had songs like Fuck the Police that were released before Fight the Power) who had traces of socio-political message hadn’t fully capitalized on how unique of a position hip-hop was in to educate and unite African-Americans, and this mentality coincides with Mike D’s belief mentioned earlier in the second verse, “What counts is that the rhymes, Designed to fill your mind”.

So what exactly is it about Fight the Power that made it so anthemic for millions of people? Firstly, is the song’s (as well as much of early hip hop’s) roots in African American culture, specifically through the use of samples as well as shout outs like, “Sound of the funky drummer” in reference to the James Brown song (a break beat responsible for an unfathomable number of hip hop beats). A cursory glance at the song’s WhoSampled page (a site that breaks down both what samples are used in hip hop songs as well as the ability to look at the various ways in which a single song has been sampled throughout history), brings up names such as James Brown, Isley Brothers, Sly & the Family Stone, the J.B.s, Bob Marley (I know, technically not African American), and Syl Johnson, a who’s who of progressive black artists. Pair these reworked cultural touchstones with scathing lyrics such as,

“Cause I’m Black and I’m proud
I’m ready and hyped plus I’m amped
Most of my heroes don’t appear on no stamps”

and,

“Elvis was a hero to most
But he never meant shit to me you see
Straight up racist that sucker was
Simple and plain
Mother fuck him and John Wayne”

and it becomes easier to understand why this resonated with millions of young black people in the 1980’s, especially after epidemics such as AIDS and the war on drugs that destroyed urban areas had been mishandled by the powers that were. While the Elvis line is a bit of hyperbole considering Elvis himself was respectful to his African-American inspirations (admitted to here by Chuck D), the line is supposed to convey the frustration that for  the majority of America, Elvis was the be all end all of rock music, blocking out any recognition of all of the African-American musicians that preceded and inspired him. John Wayne on the other hand had this to say in a Playboy interview back in 1971, “I believe in white supremacy until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility. I don’t believe in giving authority and positions of leadership and judgment to irresponsible people”, so the bitterness is understandable.

(Spoiler alert for Do the Right Thing ahead)

The culmination of all the events in Do the Right Thing leads to a showdown in the only pizza joint in the neighborhood owned by a white Italian family, with a riot catalyzed by the shop owner breaking Radio Raheem’s box with a baseball bat due to his refusal to turn the hip-hop off. This is a mightily simplified version of a very complicated film, yet serves as potent foreshadowing by Spike Lee of both the power of hip-hop as a social statement as well as the apprehension and fear it caused when it first started becoming popular. While the summer of 1989 was maybe not the first moment that politics and hip hop intertwined, it served as a visceral introduction for mainstream America to a very frustrated and very vocal group named Public Enemy.

Further Exploration:
-Do the Right Thing (film)
-http://www.npr.org/event/music/560379652/the-roots-feat-bilal-tiny-desk-concert (very current example of hip-hop and politics)
-Fear of a Black Planet (album by Public Enemy)

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Assignment #2 “Strange Fruit”

“Strange Fruit”: An American Protest Song                                                                           by Livio Fasullo

“Strange Fruit”- Abel Meerpol

“Southern trees bear a strange fruit,

Blood on the leaves and blood at the root,

Black body swinging in the Southern breeze,

Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees.

Pastoral scene of the gallant South,

The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth,

Scent of magnolia sweet and fresh,

And the sudden smell of burning flesh!

Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck,

For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck,

For the sun to rot, for a tree to drop,

Here is a strange and bitter crop.”

 

    In 1939 Billie Holiday sang “Strange Fruit”, the poem above, set to music for an integrated audience at New York City`s Cafe Society. After she finished the audience was silent until one patron began to nervously applaud. (http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/m/margolick-fruit.html)“Strange Fruit” became one of Billie Holiday’s signature songs, and she would perform it nightly at the “Cafe Society” and wherever else it was safe to perform. (http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/m/margolick-fruit.html) Although Holiday`s label Columbia Records, refused to record it, and many radio stations refused to play it, “Strange Fruit” was quite successful.

    To understand the success of “Strange Fruit” it is important to understand its origins. “Strange Fruit” was written by Alan Meerpol, a white Jewish schoolteacher from the Bronx who was inspired to write “Strange Fruit” in 1934 when he saw the haunting photograph of the lynchings of Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith in Marion, Ind.  http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129025516 Meerpol gave the song to Barney Josephson, the founder and owner of Cafe Society, who gave it to Billy Holiday to perform. (http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/m/margolick-fruit.html) It is important to note that when Holiday recorded “Strange Fruit” in 1939, lynchings were still occurring each year and then President Franklin Delano Roosevelt refused to sign anti-lynching legislation over fear of upsetting Southern Democrats (http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/m/margolick-fruit.html). Some say that “Strange Fruit” marked the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement in America 14 years before Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus. Legendary drummer Max Roach said “When she recorded it, it was more than revolutionary…No one was speaking out (at the time) She became one of the fighters… She became a voice of black people and they loved this woman.” ( http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/m/margolick-fruit.html).

 

   Over the years, other artists have recorded “Strange Fruit” to Protest Inequality in America. Nina Simone recorded it in 1964 for the album Pastel Blues. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pastel_Blues)  Simone would continue to perform “Strange Fruit” live as her involvement in the American Civil Rights movement increased in the 1960s. Here is a recording of Simone performing it live at Morehouse college in Atlanta, 1969. “Strange Fruit” was also in the speeches of Khalil Abdul Muhammed, a speaker of the Black Panthers. http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/m/margolick-fruit.html

 

   “Strange Fruit” has continued to appear in the news during the last year.The British Singer Rebecca Ferguson, refused to sing at President Donald Trump`s Inauguration unless she was permitted to sing “Strange Fruit” (she did not perform).  (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jan/02/rebecca-ferguson-says-she-will-play-trump-inauguration-if-she-can-sing-strange-fruit)President Donald Trump has been criticized for his affiliation with the White-Nationalist linked Steve Bannon and for refusing to condemn the actions of a white-Nationalist groups at the Charlottesville Rally. On August 11-12 2017 various White Supremacist groups held the Charlottesville Rally protesting the removal of the a Confederate era monument, during which a protestor drove a car into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing one and injuring 19. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unite_the_Right_rally) In response, dancer Travis Wall choreographed a dance routine set to Nina Simone`s rendition of “Strange Fruit” comparing a current hate crime to the countless hate crimes of the Jim Crow Era South.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REQLA_05TlI

   These modern performances of “Strange Fruit” are very socially and politically motivated. In these scenarios, the performance (or refusal thereof) of a song protesting lynching is used as to condemn modern hatred, and the President who turns a blind eye. And although “Strange Fruit” is clear example of how music can be used to make a bold political statement, any instance in which a political figure uses music is political. Conservative radio host Dennis Prager conducted the Santa Monica Symphony on August 16th 2017, just four days after the tragedy in Charlottesville. Prager and Orchestra director Guido Lamell responded to criticism by claiming that conducting Haydn is not a political statement. Yet Prager, who claims that Classical Music glorifies the supremacy of White Western Culture made a huge political statement by telling his supporters to buy all the tickets available in the hall. http://musicologynow.ams-net.org/2017/09/does-music-trump-politics-dennis-prager.html

 

   In conclusion, Music is incredibly powerful as a political tool. Music can inspire suppressed people to speak out against the oppressive, and it can enable the oppressive and hateful to gain influence. Any patriotic tune can be used as propaganda by political party, and any folk song can become an anthem of resistance. “Strange Fruit” was an incredibly powerful piece of music that

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Lingering Discord: K-Pop Star Vs. Politics

K-Pop. What can be said which already hasn’t been said? K-Pop, or Korean Pop, has become a music sensation spanning the entire globe, destroying the cultural barriers separating the West and Eastern hemispheres. With upbeat rhythms, insane choreography,

and overall presentation, it’s no wonder that K-Pop has become the global phenomenon it is currently today. However, it’s all ingrained in a fog of limbo between music and politics. Tiffany Hwang[1], a budding K-Pop artist and member of the popular group “Girls’ Generation”, made a critical mistake due to her lack of knowledge in cross country tensions and almost led to the end of her career.

Before getting into any form of politics, some important historical background of Korea is needed. During the early 1900’s, specifically from 1910-1945, Japan placed Korea under colonial rule and tensions were high between the two countries. Japanese occupation was ruthless as any of amount of freedom was severely limited. Koreans were forced to ban their own native language in schools, and were even demanded to change their names to Japanese, with a whole 80% of the populace complying with their demands.[2] However, the biggest atrocity to come out of Japanese occupation was the use of “comfort women”; essentially Korean women who were used as sexual slaves for Japanese soldiers.

Korean Comfort Women

This caused an immense rift between the two countries, one which still lasts to this day. In this article,[3] Jazeera writes “But they [Japanese] misjudged how deeply ingrained the issue is in South Korean society.” This single quote demonstrates the decades long strained relationship between both Korean and Japan.

Now, why include historical background when discussing K-Pop? It’s due to the fact that something as worldwide and influential as K-Pop cannot escape the grasp of past misdoings and politics. First, let me point out that K-Pop as a medium is extremely successful in East Asian countries, especially in Japan. KARA, a five member girl group, was able to generate a whopping $60 million dollars of revenue in Japanese CD and DVD sales alone on their 2011 tour.

The five members of KARA

On the surface, this seems like a simple transaction of cultural exchange and in way, it is. There was no ill intent both by the members of KARA and the Japanese audience. However, while the same could be said of Tiffany Hwang, the reception was drastically different and demonstrated the lingering political tensions between Korea and Japan. During Girls’ Generation’s tour in Japan during August 2016, Hwang posted several pictures on Snapchat with the Japanese Imperial Flag, serving as a way for her fans to know her current location.

This act in itself poses no political outcry and was just an innocent way of communicating between performer and audience. The problem comes from the fact that she posted these pictures on Korea’s Liberation Day.[4] As the name implies, this was the day when Korea broke free from Japanese occupation, liberated by both United States and Soviet Union forces. Due to the dense history between the two East Asian countries, this act by Hwang was deemed incredibly offensive to the Korean populace, especially on their day of liberation. Hwang was able to delete the pictures in a quick three minutes, but it was far too late: “Her career literally came to a halt,”[5] with sponsorships and television roles being taken from her instantly. In a way, this story correlates with Colin Kaepernick’s refusal to stand during “The Star-Spangled Banner”, albeit with differing connotations. In an article from The New Yorker, Kaepernick says, ““I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.”[6] This type of mindset is reminiscent of the people of Korea in how the Japanese Imperial Flag represents the same type of oppression Kaepernick himself feels. The Imperial flag is a symbol of inhumane oppression and is shrouded in decades of dark history and in Kaepernick’s mind, the United States shares this trait. It is also important to note that Kaepernick’s own devotion to protest the anthem is different than Hwang’s unknowing mistake; one was purposeful and the other was accidental. However, the theme of oppression is apparent in both and demonstrates the correlation between both stories.

In my mind, both Kaepernick and the people of Korea are justified in their reactions. I believe Blake put it well when he used the phrase “us and them” in his blogpost. In Kaepernick’s position, he was protesting against the history of the United States and the recent events which painted the country’s flag as a symbol of oppression; a fight between minority vs. majority. In Hwang’s position, it was almost as if the people of Korea were asking her the question, “Japan or us”. Hwang’s mistake essentially cements the idea that K-Pop stars are not immune to such scrutiny, especially with their celebrity status in Korea. Politics, those especially concerning Japan, are still touchy subjects and possesses the power to bring down the cultural powerhouse of K-Pop should the opportunity arise.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiffany_Hwang

[2] http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/main_pop/kpct/kp_koreaimperialism.htm

[3] http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/09/south-korea-world-longest-protest-comfort-women-170908024721239.html

[4] https://www.army.mil/article/192286/korean_national_liberation_day

[5] http://thepolitic.org/when-pop-music-goes-nuclear-the-explosive-politics-of-k-pop-in-asia/

[6] https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/colin-kaepernick-and-the-radical-uses-of-the-star-spangled-banner

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Why Jimi Hendrix’s Rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner” is More Relevant Than Ever

It’s well known that the 1960’s were a unique and crazy time in United States history. The civil right’s movement, the assassination of President Kennedy, the controversial policies of President Nixon, the Vietnam war, the space race/moon landing, the complete overhaul of the popular music world as Rock and Roll swept in from England, and many other phenomena set a political stage where controversy roared. It seemed impossible to make a meaningful statement that people would listen to.

Amidst all of this, on August 18th, 1969, Jimi Hendrix did just that. On the final day of Woodstock, towards the end of his set, he played a distorted, extended, somewhat mangled version of the star spangled banner. If you haven’t seen and heard it before, check it out before you read any further.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwIymq0iTsw

 

Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock, 1969                            http://www.guitarhive.com/images/Hendrix-Woodstock_small.jpg

 

Hendrix plays the melody painfully slowly, lingering on every moment and letting his guitar feedback into his wall of amps. He is accompanied only by drummer Mitch Mitchell-http://www.drummerworld.com/drummers/Mitch_Mitchell.html. Throughout the entire song he lets his vibrato pedal create a churning effect on his sound, almost like the whirring off helicopter propellers starting up-http://www.rockprophecy.com/shop.html. Following the lyrics-”rocket’s red glare” he uses his tremolo bar and string-bending to morph his guitar’s feedback into a violent visual. After “bomb’s bursting in air” Hendrix uses his guitar’s whammy-bar to drop the high note down over two octaves, crashing into harsh noise as bombs dropped in Vietnam across the world. He even quotes “Taps”, the bugle call played at military funerals, so as to lament the military lives being lost in that same conflict http://www.music.army.mil/music/buglecalls/taps.asp. Regardless of one’s opinion on it as a piece of history or a political statement, I don’t think anyone can deny that the performance is encapturing.

New York Times writer William Robins points out that the Star Spangled Banner has a “long, polarizing history” in which Hendrix’s performance is only a chapter. There was a harsh parody of the song made in 1844 criticizing the lingering institution of slavery in which the last line is “O’er the death-bed of freedom/ the home of the slave. –https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/colin-kaepernick-and-the-radical-uses-of-the-star-spangled-banner. Since then it has long been a target vehicle for critiquing the state of the nation, as is true today with the Colin Kaepernick/NFL protests.

And it’s in light of the recent political climate that I believe that Hendrix’s interpretation of the anthem is as meaningful as it has ever been. Instead of bombs dropping on Vietnam it’s on the middle east. Instead of Nixon’s hardline republican policies it’s Trump’s heartless and insane policies. The anger in the performance could just as well be directed at the killings of Trayvon Martin or Philando Castile as it could that of Martin Luther King Jr. The patriotism in Hendrix’s beautifully powerful sound as he screams the melody still applies to those who are able to look past the numerous deep problems the U.S has and appreciate the beauty of the nation. Woodstock attendee said that Hendrix’s performance “was the most electrifying moment of Woodstock, and it was probably the single greatest moment of the sixties. You finally heard what that song was about, that you can love your country, but hate the government”-https://hooksanalysis.wordpress.com/2014/06/14/improvised-jimi-hendrix-star-spangled-banner-1969-and-john-bonham-moby-dick-1970/. I believe that in current times, as a misogynistic narcissist runs the country, and every American lives with the knowledge that our private information is legally sold from corporation to corporation through questionable means, that message holds up powerfully. 

On the Dick Cavett show  in 1970, Cavett remarked that Hendrix was bound to recieve some “nasty letters” about his performance of the anthem, which Hendrix quickly shrugged off saying “I thought it was beautiful.” And to me that inner confidence that Hendrix had about his work is part of what makes it so great. I personally hear it every time I listen to the Woodstock national anthem performance, and I hope it inspires any listener to have that confidence in the beauty of the USA, while acknowledging it’s flaws and struggles.

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I Profeti

https://uploads4.wikiart.org/images/marc-chagall/prophet-jeremiah-1968.jpg

The year is 1931.  In the United States, the effects of the Great Depression are beginning to take a toll.  In Europe, unease reigns supreme.  The feeble peace brought by the treaty of Versailles still holds, but is beginning to crumble.  Antisemitism is once more on the rise.  As always when times are troubled, a scapegoat is found.  In the lead up to the horrors of World War II, Europe brings back the traditional bogeyman of the Jew.  While it is still years removed from the absolute evil of the Holocaust, Jewish life in Europe feels threatened.

In Italy, Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, a famed guitarist and composer of Jewish Heritage is approached by Jascha Heifetz with a request.  Heifetz wishes have a concerto composed for him, to be premiered by himself and Arturo Toscanini.  By 1931, Heifetz is already possessed of fame and glamour he will maintain for the rest of his life.  He has also been a naturalized US citizen for six years.  Castelnuovo-Tedesco accedes Heifetz’s request, and so Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s 2nd Violin Concerto, subtitled I Profeti, is born.  Into this work, Castelnuovo Tedesco channels all his pride in his Jewish Heritage, and all his fear and defiance towards the uncertain grim future.

I Profeti is divided into three movements, each named after a prophet from the Torah (Old Testament).  These movements are, in order:

  1. Grave e meditative Isaiah
  2. Espressivo e dolente Jeremiah
  3. Fiero e impetuoso (ma sostenuto e ben marcato il ritmo) Elijah

While the concerto is generally in minor mode, the final movement Elijah is a rather boisterous march in major.  This, combined with the fireworks in the solo violin may signal Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s optimistic outlook towards the future.  Another, darker interpretation, stems from the religious implications of Elijah’s return.  According to Jewish liturgical lore, Elijah is set to return at the end of the world, at the age of ultimate redemption.  [Side note – every Passover, Jewish Families set aside a cup of wine at Seder for Elijah, and leave a door open for him]  Thus, the celebratory finale may also be seen as a sign of Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s readiness for the end of days.

While the social implications of such a work of art are clear, the political implications may be more obscured.  Unfortunately, both in 1931 and now, Hate is political.  To stand up to it then becomes a poltical gesture in itself.  Castelnuovo-Tedesco was under no obligation to open himself up to further attacks by exposing his Jewishness in such a clear manner.  Yet, he chose to remain true to himself and his heritage.  Often, a work of art becomes more than the simple lines on canvas or sound waves in a concert hall – it becomes imbued with the politics and social standings of its creator.

While a work of art can reflect history, it can not change it.  Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s valiant effort to change his world through his art failed, as history shows.  Persecution of Jews in Italy only escalated.  By the late 1930’s, works by Jewish composers were no longer permitted on the stage or the airwaves.  Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s livelihood is at stake.  In 1939, months before the beginning of World War II, he flees to the United States, where he rejoins Heifetz in California, which has become a hub of the artistic Jewish Émigré community.  He remains there for the rest of his life through his death in 1968, and rebuilds his reputation, composing soundtracks for over two hundred Hollywood films, as well as numerous works for guitar.

(Castelnuovo-Tedesco with Igor Stravinsky – http://www.milkenarchive.org/artists/view/mario-castelnuovo-tedesco/)

To me, I Profeti holds a special place in the pantheon of works for violin for the defiance that went into its composition.  Castelnuovo-Tedesco refused to be cowed into submission by the forces of hatred.  He chose to celebrate his Jewish Heritage rather than be terrified by the consequences of it.  I Profeti stands strong as a celebration of Jewish Culture and learning, and remains relevant today not just as a work of art, but as an act of political courage.

 

Sources:

Biography

http://www.milkenarchive.org/music/volumes/view/a-garden-eastward/work/violin-concerto-no-2/

http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/111833/jewish/The-Prophet-Elijah.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mario_Castelnuovo-Tedesco

Europe in 1931

Elon, Amos. The Pity of It All: a Portrait of German Jews 1743-1933. Penguin, 2004.

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“Back In the USSR”: Parody or Political Statement?

In early 1968 , The Beatles went on a meditation retreat in Rishikesh, India. They aimed to study Transcendental Meditation with their guru Maharishi, and eventually become teachers of this craft. Mike Love, from the Beach Boys, was also on this trip.

The Beatles with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

Love recalls  “sitting at the breakfast table and McCartney came down with his acoustic guitar and he was playing ‘Back In The U.S.S.R.’ and I told him that what you ought to do is talk about the girls all around Russia, The Ukraine and Georgia. [Paul] was plenty creative not to need any lyrical help from me but I gave him the idea for that little section”. McCartney did in fact take Love’s suggestion and wrote about admiring girls from Georgia, Ukraine, and Moscow, all locations represented in the USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics).

Album Sleeve

 

A performance of “Back in the USSR” by the Beatles

 

“Back to the USSR” represents influence and power that music has in creating political controversy. When the song was released in 1968, America was at war with Vietnam. Because Russia supported the Viet Cong, conservative Americans immediately rejected this song, believing the Beatles were sympathizing with the enemy and promoting communism. The lyrics to this song fueled anger in Americans, especially the John Birch Society, who were particularly offended by the lines “You don’t know how lucky you are, boys”.

Additionally, this song caused controversy in Russia. Rock and roll was not respected at the time and the Beatles were not either. This said, Back in the USSR became wildly popular in Russia, and people sought to listen to the song even from tapes smuggled into the country. Elton John performed the song in Moscow a year after Americans had boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics in Russia and wrote “they went ape s—. It was like playing ‘Philadelphia Freedom’ in Philadelphia”. The fact that there was such varied reactions to this song only made it more controversial.

Paul McCartney argues the claims of this song being politically charged by explaining this song as a parody of Chuck Berry’s hit “Back in the USA”.

McCartney says “I just liked the idea of Georgia girls…and talking about places like the Ukraine as if they were California, you know?…Its a jokey song, but it’s also become a bit of an anthem now…In my mind its just about a [Russian] spy who’s been in America for a long time and he’s become very American but when he gets back to the USSR he’s saying ‘Leave it ‘til tomorrow to unpack my case, Honey, disconnect the phone’”. It is interesting that McCartney had to defend himself for attempting to humanize young people on the other side of the world, and was also forced to defend the feeling of pride and comfort when a person returns home.

Performance of “Back In the USA” by Chuck Berry

 

In the article “Colin Kaepernick and the Radical Uses of the Star Spangled Banner”, Robin writes “Our national symbols are always more complicated than their original myths”. Kneeling at a football game to illuminate long-standing racism is viewed as a disrespectful and criminal act amongst conservatives. This can relate to Back in the USSR. Just as kneeling down during the Star Spangled Banner has become a controversial symbol of a larger national issue, Back in the USSR developed into a symbol of controversy during a time when a war was taking place . A parody song aiming to humanize non-American young people became a highly political debate.

This topic is very relevant to our class so far because we have focused so much on audience reception, the power of change and imitation, and how composers adapted to political ideals or brought to light political issues in their music. Politics and music will always be intertwined because politics inspires the cultural environment. As music is a pillar of culture, it is fair to say that these two will always have a powerful connection.

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Miriam Makeba: “Mama Africa”

It is crazy to think that apartheid, the system of institutionalized racism in South Africa, was abolished way too recently in 1991. It was just twenty-six years ago that South African people were classified into four different racial groups with the goal of maintaining white supremacy. It gave rise to some of the most influential protest movements, within the country, by characters and heroes such as Nelson Mandela, as well as on a global scale. The arts and specifically music had a huge role in the fight against apartheid, with singer Miriam Makeba as a leading musician campaigning against the cruel injustices of apartheid in South Africa.

I’m sure you will recognize Makeba when listening to her performing her awesome “Pata Pata”:

However, today we will be focusing on her performing of the song “Soweto Blues,” by her one of her husbands, which talks about the 1976 Soweto uprising in South Africa. It was decreed in 1974 that the language Afrikaans was to be taught as much as English in schools. Because Afrikaans is inherently linked with racism, between 10,000 and 20,000 black students took to the streets of Soweto to peacefully protest the new law. The police quickly applied their forces very violently, leaving thousands of people injured and around 100-700 dead (the number of casualties is unclear).

Upon this tremendous tragedy, Miriam Makeba performed “Soweto Blues” at every chance. Its lyrics exclaiming,

“There was a full moon on the golden city Looking at the door was the man without pity / Accusing everyone of conspiracy / Tightening the curfew charging people with walking / Yes, the border is where he was waiting / Waiting for the children, frightened and running / A handful got away but all the others / Hurried their chain without any publicity.”

Miriam Makeba had an extensive musical career and participated in various bands, jazz bands, musicals, and films in Africa since very young. She got to travel to Venice to receive an award for her role in the controversial movie Come Back Africa, a documentary on South Africa. Makeba was soon in trouble with the African authorities for it because it portrayed their true and terrible side, and they obviously didn’t like it. She decided to not come back to South Africa, even if it meant she would practically get no payment for her performances. South Africa then revoked her passport, having Makeba officially in exile and preventing her from attending her mother’s funeral in 1960.

Miriam took refuge in London before coming over to the United States, where she would shoot to fame, performing for president John F. Kennedy, as well as alongside Nina Simone and other legendary artists in different occasions. She became a major activist against the injustice of the apartheid system.

“Music was a central part of the struggle against apartheid. The South African government censored many forms of expression, while many foreign entertainers refused to perform in South Africa and discouraged others from doing so in an attempt to isolate the white authorities and show their opposition to the regime. . . From abroad, Ms. Makeba acted as a constant reminder of the events in her homeland as the white power structure struggled to contain or pre-empt unrest among the black majority.” 

As if her stunning singing wasn’t enough, she even went on to testify for the United Nations Special Committee against Apartheid:

No wonder she is often called “Mama Africa!”

Let’s connect this to present day events, shall we? This movement against apartheid very clearly connects to Colin Kaepernick’s refusal to stand during the rendition of “the Star Spangled Banner” in protest and awareness of the oppression people of color are still living every day in the United States. I find the discussion on the various transformations of the anthem very meaningful and relevant to the crucial issue at hand—the oppression of an entire group of people because of their race—and directly connects to the music of protest and activism against apartheid in South Africa.  The Civil Rights Movement in the U.S. and the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa shared various similarities and both achieved a lot for people of color in terms of legal equality. However,  there is still a lot to be done in terms of social equality, and that’s what characters like Colin Kaepernick are rightfully protesting.

 

 

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Carmina Burana and It’s Ambiguous Origin

Considering it’s morally ambiguous past, Carl Orff’s Scenic Cantata Carmina Burana, can be heard by the general public everywhere from Ozzy Osbourne, Old Spice ads, and even Domino’s Pizza Commercials. Premiered in 1937 by the Frankfurt Opera and Bertil Wetzelberger and supercharged with conflicting undertones, Orff’s explanation of Carmina Burana created lots of conflict between the Axis and Allied powers of the second world war regarding Orff’ political standings.

Part of the reason Carmina Burana was such a success was because of it’s accessibility. Orff utilized a large modern orchestra, full chorus, and solo voices. The music has been shown to emulate and be derived from Stravinsky with maximalist Wagnerian features. Originally Orff was accused of using undesirable jazz-like rhythms in a Stravinsky-esque style, but Nazi Officials overlooked this fact once they realized the piece’s potential for propaganda. Another reason this was overlooked was by the common folk and dance elements also found in the piece.

One interesting tidbit of this history is that Orff was supposedly one quarter Jewish, making his political stance in the Nazi party particularly interesting. He was known to be friends with prolific Jews such as Kurt Weill and Franz Werfel while living in German. The most common explanation is that Orff simply took advantage of his popularity among both sides and used it to make money, and an interesting example of this can be seen in Frankfurt when Orff was documented in taking a commission to rewrite Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream score. He later denied this when the Allied powers were determining his employment status after the war ended. By believing his lies, his status was made “Gray-Acceptable”, and made him eligible for work in the Allied military government. Another way Orff’s employment status was hazy during the war was his actual employment in the Nazi regime. For multiple years, he was awarded a job composing music for the Hitler Youth and teaching music. He tailored the curriculum and music to align with the Nazi ideals, stressing folk music and emphasizing the negative impacts of jazz and atonality.

Finally, the most ambiguous part of Carmina Burana is the music itself and the undertones presented within the score and text. The title translates to Songs of Beuren (a Benedictine Monastery in Bavaria). The entire scenic cantata contains a total of 24 songs set to music, the text itself came mainly from the Burana Codex, a compilation of medieval poetry, speaking of sin, passion, lust, and even gambling and drinking. This is the first layer of of confusion as to why the Nazi’s used it as propaganda. The reason ties into a deeper meaning below the surface. The music contains many folk melodies and dance rhythms making it very easy to listen to. It also describes pastoral images of the forest and the Earth in a Wagnerian manner similar to that of the Ring Cycle. Hitler was a supporter and fan of Wagner’s music because it appealed to his ideology of the ancient forest and timeless German landscape for the perfect Aryan soldiers. While this was obvious to Hitler and the Nazi’s, it was not obvious to everyone, and Orff never clarified what his intent behind the piece was. In the end it seems like Orff was just an opportunist who slyly got away with appeasing both sides of the war depending on who was in power.

In quite a different situation and a different time, Colin Kaepernick has been doing quite the opposite of Orff in his stand against standing for the anthem. While Orff shied away from the fact that he was potentially part Jewish and still made money off of the Nazi’s when he might not have believed in their ideas, Kaepernick has taken a stand against the ideas he disagrees with and openly risks his career and public image for it. Perhaps Orff had a little more on the line, but racism in America now has become violent, so perhaps Kaepernick is risking more now than ever.

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Musicians During the Great Depression

How important is it for artists to create or play music that is personal to them? Artists during the Great Depression were hired to be in the WPA by the American Government in the 1930s. They were paid to write and play music that lifted the spirits of a poor nation, that showed patriotism and pride in the US. Orchestras would play selections from the European classics as well, but were always required to play music from an American composer. These American composers were heavily influenced to write in as American of a style as possible, with the overall goal of ending the Depression.

The WPA began on May 6th, 1935 by the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration. The purpose of the Works Progress Administration was to give jobs to Americans during the Great Depression. This was part of FDR’s New Deal, and the idea was to put the Americans to work being creative and uplifting the spirits in the nation. Eleanor Roosevelt was a major influence on FDR to create jobs for Americans in their field where they could be paid, this was very important for boosting the pride and self confidence of Americans. The WPA had many branches to it, and the one for musicians was called the FMP (Federal Music Project). The FMP hired all sorts of musicians including teachers, orchestral players, chamber music players, jazz musicians, singers, composers, etc. It was a bit of a struggle to get classical musicians to support American music at the time, because there was a huge appreciation for European music. Since the WPA was made to create American jobs and focus on American success, it was very important to the US government to insist on a certain amount of the music to be composed by American composers.

One of these American Composers hired by the WPA was Aaron Copland. Many composers of this time were pretty far left on the political scale, and Copland was not necessarily an exception although he didn’t seem to be an activist. During this war and anti-communist period, the political party in power was the Democratic Party but it was on the conservative side, so as not to appear socialist. This made far leftist musicians not the majority, although the majority of artists and intellectuals were interested in socialist values. Despite some political differences, the WPA still hired musicians based on merit more-so than political ideology (although there were a few cases where the government would not fund a show if it had “inappropriate” content, such as in the play The Cradle Will Rock by Marc Blitzstein). Copland was very popular among the population and the government. He created the sound that we associate “American” music with now. Some of his most famous pieces include Rodeo, Billy The Kid, and Appalachian Spring. He used many American folk tunes to create nationalist music, very similar to how European composers wrote their nationalist music. For example, Appalachian Spring is heavily influenced by Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring because of its use of authentic national music.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVahuS9hk_s

The question that I have to ask about this program; did it cause composers and musicians to write or play music they wouldn’t naturally have done? And is it the right of the American government to dictate what should be written and played? In the 2017 article Trump is Wrong if He Thinks Symphonies are Superior, Mr. Tommasini writes that President Trump believes that Western music was far superior to specifically Radical-Islamic cultures, essentially encouraging American classical composers to write music to show how much better we are than other cultures. Many politicians during the Great Depression were so afraid of communism (much like Trump is of Islam), that they wanted music to influence American values to show how different they were from communists. Yet by doing this, they copied what the Soviet Union was doing during the Socialist Realism period. Composers in the Soviet Union, like Shostakovich, were afraid of writing music that wasn’t liked by the government because they could be arrested, so they had to find ways to write music following those rules or at least hiding it so well that no one understood. Copland wasn’t afraid of the government coming to take him away in the middle of the night, but it is possible that composers would fear they wouldn’t have a job if they wrote anti-American music. They had to create something that they didn’t necessarily believe in, especially if they were socialists/communists.

Where is the line that we as musicians shouldn’t cross to remain true to our creative selves? Is it more important to treat music as a job or as an art, or can it be both? I don’t think it is fair to say that Copland was a sellout to the American government, but how much should we allow the government to dictate what we can create as art?

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The not so crazy Eminem Freestyle.

Earlier this month the BET awards showed a ‘highly controversial’ cypher featuring rapper Eminem bashing Donald Trump. The video can be seen here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LunHybOKIjU

While this naturally received a slew of press, celebrity endorsements, and right-wing hatred, to me it seemed to play into all the ideals that hip-hop has always stood for. Hip-hop, as an urban and traditionally African-American art-form naturally has a liberal agenda, values equality and inclusion, and esp. stands for civil rights (think Public Enemy, N.W.A., Mos Def, etc.). Therefore, while Eminem was definitely audacious (per his usual self) his views were certainly not a surprise given the hip-hop genre’s continued expression of left-wing ideals. In no way do I mean to discredit the ideals associated with hip-hop, in fact I stand with them, but I do mean to say that people getting surprised at a rapper having democratic views, would be like a teacher getting surprised that there students do their blogpost the day beforehand.

Needless to say this politically charged rant was met with cheers among other outspoken advocates for equality. The rap notable stands with Colin Kaepernick with the line “This is for Colin, ball up a fist.” Colin Kaepernick, of course made recent headlines with his refusal to stand for the national anthem at a preseason NFL game. Colin was quoted in an article with The New Yorker, saying that “To me, this is bigger than football, and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.” Colin gave a shout out to Eminem showing his support via Eminem was also given props by J. Cole and Lebron James, among many other celebrities.

To me these celebrity endorsements definitely show support for Eminem, but they do little beyond that. These tweets seem to circumvent actually saying anything substantial by merely showing support. I suppose in the Twitter age this is how support is shown, but at some point it makes you wonder when they are actually going to open a serious dialogue about their positions. The entertainment industry as a whole has expressed their disapproval for Trump several times now, but simply talking about it doesn’t seem to be doing much but catching headlines for a few weeks. I suppose what I’m saying is that art in this case Hip-Hop has advocated in attempts to affect social change for some time, but to me and it seems like to Eminem and other celebrities, we want to do more than just talk about social change we want to actually affect social change.

One idea that I think is pertinent to mention in discussing actually affecting social change is the “us and them” mentality, as it plays right into the hands of people who want to divide us. In keeping with the us and them mentality that divides the left and right parties of America respectively, Trump was recently quoted in an article by the New York Times saying “We write symphonies,” and in doing that essentially inferred that the white, right-wing, western world writes symphonies, (the pinnacle of music), and that, as a clear expression of our superior intellect, will help us overcome the barbaric savages we currently fight against (hard sarcasm). Trump’s ideals aren’t so much shocking anymore, but the fascinating thing is the clear connection he is making with music and politics. Our last president, Barrack Obama, was noted as having several rapper’s visit the White House, and said his favorite song of 2015 was Kendrick Lamar’s “how much a dollar cost.” Clearly, showing that president’s use their music choices to represent to the public something about themselves and their ideals. The problem with this and the ‘us and them’ mentality, is that when Obama was bringing rappers into the White House it was met with much contempt by the right wing, and now when Trump references symphonies the New York Times rips him apart in the aforementioned article. I think it is important to stand for what you believe in, but the “I’m right because you’re wrong” mentality I think is only dividing us further. It also isn’t to say that having one party where we all get along is ever going to happen either, as we clearly observed with the U.S.S.R. and socialist realism works of composers of that time. The point isn’t to make everyone fall in line and believe one ideal, but it also isn’t to alienate people and mock their views. We are not all going to get along, but I think if we can come together on some common ground, we could at least open a dialogue, which at this point seems out of the question by left-wing advocates like Eminem, but also by Trump himself.

Further research

Full Lyrics of Eminem’s Cypher

New York Times article about Eminem’s cypher

USA Today article about Eminem’s cypher

For other rapper’s speaking out against Trump, please see Snoop Dogg’s Lavender which was condemned by Trump in an article by the New York Times.