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Book Review
Jan. 7th, 2011 09:31 pmSegregating Sound: Inventing Folk and Pop Music in the Age of Jim Crow
by Karl Hagstrom Miller
I really loved this book: it was quite fascinating. Miller looks at Southern music in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and examines how the musical color line was largely constructed by folklorists and the music business, creating a cultural segregation that did not reflect the real musical lives of southerners both black and white during this period. Miller shows that these southerners played all types of music - folk songs, blues, Tin Pan Alley tunes, ragtime, ballads, and popular hits - and that black and white repertoires were similar, reflecting a shared musical world. Miller also provides a strong critique of the motivations and practices of early folklorists and song-collectors. He argues that their desire to find isolated and idealized folk cultures caused them to distort and misunderstand the musical repertoires and practices of their informants.
Miller's information and thesis kept me engaged in and even glued to this book throughout its 368 pages. I gained a new and illuminating perspective on the history and practice of categorizing music into "Black" and "White", and learned a lot about how segregation affected art and culture in the Jim Crow era. I also finally have a grip on what minstrel shows were all about, and even acquired a new (and kind of head-exploding) understanding of what was up with that old country-themed variety show Hee Haw. I highly recommend this book to any one interested in American music and culture.
by Karl Hagstrom Miller
I really loved this book: it was quite fascinating. Miller looks at Southern music in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and examines how the musical color line was largely constructed by folklorists and the music business, creating a cultural segregation that did not reflect the real musical lives of southerners both black and white during this period. Miller shows that these southerners played all types of music - folk songs, blues, Tin Pan Alley tunes, ragtime, ballads, and popular hits - and that black and white repertoires were similar, reflecting a shared musical world. Miller also provides a strong critique of the motivations and practices of early folklorists and song-collectors. He argues that their desire to find isolated and idealized folk cultures caused them to distort and misunderstand the musical repertoires and practices of their informants.
Miller's information and thesis kept me engaged in and even glued to this book throughout its 368 pages. I gained a new and illuminating perspective on the history and practice of categorizing music into "Black" and "White", and learned a lot about how segregation affected art and culture in the Jim Crow era. I also finally have a grip on what minstrel shows were all about, and even acquired a new (and kind of head-exploding) understanding of what was up with that old country-themed variety show Hee Haw. I highly recommend this book to any one interested in American music and culture.
