On February 9, 1964, a quartet of four young men from the northern port city of Liverpool, England, made their American television debut on the Ed Sullivan Show. By April 4 of that year, that same band would hold ten of the top 12 positions on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, including the entire top… Read more »
Tag: music
The delights of French yé-yé pop
From 1962 to 1968, some of the most vibrant popular music in the Western world stemmed not from the US or the UK, but France. Dubbed the yé-yé movement, in part after the syllables “yeah yeah yeah” in the then-current Beatles’ hit “She Loves You,” this music combined French chansonwith British and American rock and… Read more »
Celebrating African-American Music Month
June is African-American Music Month, intended to celebrate the important contributions of African-American entertainers in the music industry. Most American popular music is rooted in Black music traditions dating to the founding of the country, a fact not always acknowledged in society, and these traditions range from instrumentation to musical style to vocalization. This blog… Read more »
The Archives of Traditional Music
On wax cylinders, aluminum and lacquer discs, open reel tape, wire and cassette tape, Chinese folk songs commingle with Native American narrative songs and Sea Islands protest songs. Here the works of Hoagy Carmichael rub shoulders with traditional songs of the Ainu, a people native to the island of Hokkaido in northern Japan. With over… Read more »
Music for social movements
Music is essential to social movements throughout American history. From the Revolutionary War to modern civil rights protests, music has invigorated the masses, served as a cultural touchstone for future generations, and galvanized communities to take action. This is true not only in the United States but throughout the world. A quick overview of protest… Read more »
A brief history of Gennett Records
The empty tower that looms over Whitewater Gorge in Richmond, Indiana is the last vestige of what was once a highly influential American recording label. While never very profitable, Gennett Records holds a number of distinctions important to the development of American music. It was here, in Richmond, that some of the first jazz recordings… Read more »
Women in Protest Music
Women have played an integral role in American protest for the last 100 years, from raising their voices for equality to securing rights for themselves and others. While the earliest women’s protest songs were written primarily by men, women have taken over as songwriters and have produced some of the most important protest music in… Read more »
Early American protest music
What’s a protest song? According to musicologist David King Dunaway, a protest song functions more as a mode for a message, rather than a distinct art form itself. “It is not popular music… it is not per se folk music…the field of political music includes everything from an electoral song of the 1730s to a… Read more »
A Pride Worthy Archives Update
IU East LGBTQ+ Archive Just in time for Pride Month, we added several new items to the IU East LGBTQ+ Collection. Current Visiting Assistant Professor of Music, Dr. Nathan Froebe, recently premiered his new song cycle titled “In Paths Untrodden” on Facebook Live. This song cycle consists of ten poems by Walt Whitman and depicts… Read more »
Celebrating Pride and African American Music Appreciation Month
June celebrations are myriad and interesting, with lots of opportunities for discovery and learning. This month, we celebrate both African American Music Appreciation Month and LGBTQ Pride Month. African American LGBTQ musicians have contributed some of the most recognizable songs in American history, as well as serving as examples of successful artists who in many… Read more »