With hard times, racism flourishes, and the Great Depression during the 1930’s was an especially hard time for the whole country. Following the “roaring” party-time 20’s, the 30’s brought a decade of hardships that the music industry proved not to be immune to. Though race and racism had always played a strong role in the development of jazz, the 1930’s saw a wave of modern civil rights reform in the mainstream of liberal America. As racism was getting challenged on all fronts more and more through the years, the music world became an obvious focal point for change that would be viewed on the national and even international stages. The advent and public exposure to technological advances like the radio proved to have significant impacts on musicians and the ever evolving music industry.
As the Great Depression hit America, the music industry, which proved so lucrative during the 1920’s, was one of the first victims of a poverty stricken nation that could no longer afford luxuries such as live jazz entertainment. With the invention of the radio, and the end of Prohibition, jazz was no longer the exciting club atmosphere that it had been, “Not only alcohol, but the whole ethos and ambiance of jazz culture were demystified in the process. Both could now easily be consumed at home: alcohol legally purchased at the liquor store, jazz carried into the household over the airwaves” (Gioia 136). This fostered very strong competition for the ever dwindling job opportunities for jazz musicians, as few bands being distributed to radios everywhere negated the need for live music at multiple venues. At the same time, the radio allowed the careers of those few successful musicians to really flourish, allowing bands to gain a national fan base.
Perhaps the clearest example of the racism talks in the 1930’s were those between John Hammond and Duke Ellington. During this time, music critic and jazz enthusiast Hammond emerged as a strong proponent of integration of the music world. Hammond was a very important member of the jazz community as not only a noted critic but also as one of the first talent agents and he is credited with beginning the careers of and “discovering” such jazz legends as Fletcher Henderson, Count Basie, and Billie Holiday. Also, Hammond is credited with persuading Benny Goodman to integrate his band. In addition to this, Hammond notably criticized Duke Ellington for his “tact and suave manner [which] disguised a willingness to tolerate racial indignities for the sake of commercial success” (lecture 11/2). Hammond was accusing Ellington of being racially insensitive for continuing to play at the fully segregated Cotton Club. Further, Ellington was accused of catering his music to white tastes. Ellington would retort that Hammond, a white, Vanderbilt was in no place to comment on what it was like for a black musician to survive and thrive during the Great Depression. White musicians enjoyed many advantages in an extremely competitive industry for both whites and blacks. They were paid better, were generally accepted more, and were less subject to having their music stolen (Gioia 142). There was stiff competition throughout the industry but for the African American population, surviving the Great Depression necessitated compromise, however, I do not think Ellington was in any way oblivious to the lack of black people allowed in the club. The simple fact is Ellington had a steady job at the club in a time of great depression that saw many musicians fail.
The end of the good time 20’s ushered in a new era of solemn depression in America. Jazz, which has always flourished with the exciting party atmosphere, saw a significant evolution to survive the Great Depression. As the nation became more and more modern with its racial integration in society, jazz became a forefront battleground for the fight, with black musicians as a leading group in the public image.
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