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Thesis (M.S.)--University of New Orleans, 2003. / Title from electronic submission form. "A thesis ... in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in the Urban Studies Program"--Thesis t.p. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

This research explores Louis Armstrong’s artistic choices and their impact directly and indirectly on the African-American literary, visual and performing arts between 1923 and 1930 during the period known as the Harlem Renaissance. This research uses analyses of musical transcriptions and examples of the period’s literary and visual arts to verify the significance of Armstrong’s influence(s). This research also analyzes the early nineteenth century West-African musical practices evident in Congo Square that were present in the traditional jazz and cultural behaviors that Armstrong heard and experienced growing up in New Orleans. Additionally, through a discourse analysis approach, this research examines the impact of Armstrong’s art on the philosophical debate regarding the purpose of the period’s art. Specifically, W.E.B. Du Bois’s desire for the period’s art to be used as propaganda and Alain Locke’s admonitions that period African-American artists not produce works with the plight of blacks in America as the sole theme.

The purpose of this study is to provide a historiographical and musical analysis examining the jazz ride cymbal pattern, from its inception on woodblock, small accessory cymbals, hand cymbal mechanisms and brushes through what becomes known as the modern-day ride cymbal pattern. This research examines a wide array of drummers and bandleaders, with the objective of identifying the earliest recordings of this important addition to jazz drumming, and popular music history while analyzing the ride cymbal pattern's evolution through definitive recordings. The study begins with the earliest known recordings that clearly display the pattern as it is played on any of the instruments mentioned above. The research concludes with the jam sessions of the early 1940s at Minton's Playhouse, where the pioneer of bebop drumming, Kenny Clarke, experimented with altering the pattern. At this point, the pattern reach its final level of maturity and has since experienced no subsequent major modification. The historical and geographical analysis uses relevant literature from the field of jazz history in order to interpret and evaluate the impact of the the overall trajectory of the music and players. By surveying newspaper and magazine articles, archival interviews, and photographic sources, combined with audio and film analysis, it is clear that drummers navigated a path to the maturation of the pattern.

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Ce mémoire aborde la récupération de la musique à des fins politiques en interrogeant le rapport ambigu entre propagande et diplomatie musicale pendant la Guerre froide. Centrée principalement sur la production musicale aux États-Unis dans les années 1950, l’étude s’attarde aux stratégies adoptées, autant par des musiciens jazz que classique, pour critiquer et dénoncer les politiques discriminatoires d’une chasse aux sorcières communistes lancée par le sénateur républicain Joseph R. McCarthy (1908-1957). Elle montre également comment les dirigeants des États-Unis ont cherché à encenser les valeurs américaines en promouvant internationalement le jazz comme symbole démocratique, en particulier contre l’Union soviétique. Les deux premiers chapitres servent à camper le décor : le premier chapitre brosse par une mise en contexte un portrait politique et historique de la Guerre froide – en partant du postulat que celle-ci trouve ses racines dans la Révolution d’octobre 1917 –, et introduit le contexte sociopolitique des années 1950 en mettant l’emphase sur l’importante influence qu’a eue le maccarthysme, conception politique anticommuniste du sénateur McCarthy, sur la vie américaine. Le deuxième chapitre, également de mise en contexte, établit les différences entre les politiques culturelles américaines et soviétiques. Ce chapitre présente le Cultural Presentations program, le programme d’échanges culturels subventionné par le département d’État, de même que les relations culturelles officielles entre les États-Unis et l’URSS de 1958 à 1985. Les deux derniers chapitres présentent des études de cas afin d’illustrer l’impact sociopolitique sur la vie et la production musicales des années 1950. Le troisième chapitre analyse la présence du jazz au sein du Cultural Presentations program et retrace le parcours de quatre grands musiciens jazz ayant pris part au programme pour faire rayonner le jazz à l’international, tout en soulignant l’ironie d’utiliser des Afro-Américains comme représentants de la démocratie d’une Amérique ségrégée. Le quatrième chapitre traite spécifiquement du genre lyrique américain et des critiques du maccarthysme inscrites dans certaines œuvres de ce répertoire. Une attention particulière est portée à l’opérette Candide de Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990), en raison de l’engagement politique notoire du compositeur et du propos explicitement politique de l’œuvre. Cette recherche vise, en somme, à faire un état des lieux de la récupération politique de la musique en mettant en relation deux visions différentes de son utilisation aux États-Unis / This thesis addresses the subject of the political employment of music by questioning the ambiguous relationship between propaganda and musical diplomacy during the Cold War. Focusing mainly on the musical production in the United States in the 1950s, this study examines the strategies adopted by both jazz and classical musicians to criticize and denounce the discriminatory policies of this communist witch-hunt embodied by Republican Senator Joseph R. McCarthy (1908-1957). It also shows how U.S. leaders have sought to promote American values by internationally promoting jazz as a democratic symbol, particularly against the Soviet Union. The first two chapters serve to set the stage: the first chapter provides a contextualized political and historical portrait of the Cold War – starting from the premise that it is rooted in the October 1917 Revolution –, and introduces the socio-political context of the 1950s by emphasizing the important influence that McCarthyism, the anti-communist political conception of Senator McCarthy had on American life. The second chapter, also contextualizing, establishes the differences between American and Soviet cultural policies. This chapter introduces the Cultural Presentations program, the cultural exchange program funded by the Department of State, as well as the official cultural relations between the United States and the USSR from 1958 to 1985. The last two chapters focus on case studies to illustrate the socio-political impact on music life and productions in the 1950s. The third chapter discusses the presence of jazz in the Cultural Presentations program and traces the journey of four great jazz musicians who took part in the program to promote jazz internationally, while highlighting the irony of using African Americans as representatives of democracy in a segregated America. The fourth chapter deals specifically with the American operatic genre and the criticisms of McCarthyism in some works of this repertoire. Particular attention is paid to Leonard Bernstein’s (1918-1990) operetta Candide, due to the composer’s notorious political commitment and the explicitly political purpose of the work. This research aims to take stock of the political usage of music by linking two different visions of its use in the United States.