Chapter 17. The Search for an
American Identity

ObjectiveTo look at various ways in which America
attempted to stake out its own identity in
a cultivated art form that is fundamentally
European.
When did the search for a distinct American
music identity arguably begin?


-
in the late nineteenth century
Antonin Dvorák
Why might classical music be perceived to be
the least representative form of American
music?
 the elite, aristocratic, Western European
roots of classical music
 American orchestras’ emphasis on the music
of Western European

composers

The Debate over Nationality
The debate over nationality was between the
“nativist” view and its critics.

–
“nativist” view:



that there should evolve a distinctively American music,
developing a life of its own not in the shadow of European
tradition, together with an audience to appreciate and
support such music
an idealistic desire to express the national, the specific
the belief that music should express this place and this
time
critics’ view (a view that has been
called “expatriate”):



a reverential attitude toward European masters
(mainly Germanic)
an idealistic dedication to the cosmopolitan, the
universal
the belief that music should transcend place and
time
Music Education and Culture after the MidNineteenth Century

What are some of the changes in the patterns of
American life that occurred after the Civil War?
–
–
–
–

westward expansion; movement of population
building of more towns and cities
new wealth
advances in education and culture
By 1900 symphony orchestras could be found in growing
cities (besides New York and Boston).
– Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, St. Louis, Los Angeles

Who is considered the leading founder and conductor of
the American symphony orchestra?
– Theodore Thomas (1835-1905)
Idealistic Promoters of a Native Music
– 1870s—Fisk Jubilee Singers and other groups
presented a contrasting view of African American
music and culture to that of the minstrel stage.
– 1880s—American Indian music was being collected
and studied.
– 1880s—Harrigan and Hart presented plays on the
popular musical stage that showed everyday
characters in everyday situations.
– 1890s—ragtime arrived in the East from the Midwest.
– 1892-95—Czech composer Antonin Dvorák was in
America.
Arthur Farwell (1872-1952)
–
–
strong advocate for new American music
1901--founder of a composers’ press: Wa-Wan Press



–
–
Wa-Wan is an Omaha Indian ceremony of peace and
brotherhood.
published the work of thirty-six American composers (nine
women)
developed an American music more in touch with American life
organized the New York Community Chorus
Indian works in arrangements:


–
Impressions of the Wa-Wan Ceremony of the Omahas (1905)
Three Indian Songs (1908)
Original works based on Indian melodies:

Navajo War Dance for piano (1905)
“Pawnee Horses”
a concert work for solo piano inspired by an
Omaha Indian melody.

from a collection titled From Mesa and Plain (WaWan Press 1905)
Listen for
–
–



rhythmic complexity of the main melody
syncopations
descending melodic line
–

typical of American Indian melodies (see Ch. 3)
narrow melodic range
–
evoking the overall sound of an Indian chant
American Music and American Life

three composers who produced the “most
quintessentially ‘American sounding’
classical music”
– George Gershwin (jazz)
– William Grant Still (blues)
– Aaron Copland (a Shaker hymn)
George Gershwin, Rhapsody in Blue (1924)

–
–
George Gershwin (1898-1937)
inspired by the increasingly popular jazz idiom
1924: established as a fixture in American classical
music with his composition, Rhapsody in Blue
Rhapsody in Blues, a jazz concerto for piano

–
–
that was premiered in New York on February
12, 1924.
Gershwin was soloist.
Listen for



jazzy solos (clarinet, trumpet, piano)
improvisatory feel
the extended passage for piano solo from about 1:10
(called a cadenza in classical music)
William Grant Still (1895-1978)
– the first African American composer to have a
work performed by a major symphony
orchestra
– the first black composer to have an opera
staged by a major company
– Still’s education in classical music exceeded
Gershwin’s:
Oberlin College
New England Conservatory
third movement of the
Afro-American Symphony, titled “Humor”



ragtime idiom
banjo
bluesy inflections

What is European about this work?
–
–
genre (symphony in four movements)
third movement in a symphony: typically a dance
movement
Aaron Copland (1900-1990)
–
–
–
–
–
–
has been labeled "Dean of American music"
Born in Brooklyn, NY
In his 20s he went to Paris; studied with
Nadia Boulanger.
influenced by jazz, cowboy songs, old
Shaker melody, revivalist hymns, fiddle
tunes
1930s ideology: art should serve the people
How does Copland capture the sound
of the Western Frontier?
Appalachian Spring (1944)
Understand the synopsis of the story
(p. 293-294)
 choreographed and danced by Martha
Graham (1894-1991), seminal figure in
modern dance in early 20th century
 concert suite of continuous sections later
(1945) arr. by Copland
