Dixie Music
Lasting from right after World War 1 until the mid 1930s, the Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement started by African Americans living in New york. In the Harlem Renaissance all forms of art flourished. “[T]he creative flowering that centered in a relatively small corner of New York City ”(Ryan) was an exciting moment in American cultural history, embracing African American literature, music, art, and politics.
One form of art that had a major impact on the Harlem Renaissance was music. Dixieland music also referred to as “Hot Jazz” began the Jazz Age. The Jazz Age was a movement in which “ jazz music and dance emerged” (Birchell) and many artists would show their talents . Popular Artist that performed here were Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Billie Holiday. They played Jazz and the blues. A popular theatre where artists performed was called the Cotton Club. The Cotton Club was arguably the most famous of the city’s nightclubs, and it provided an astonishing revenue for the most recognized jazz musicians.
Music also introduced the new age of dancing. “The Lindy Hop” dance craze had begun from Dixieland music and developed in Harlem. Other popular dances in this time were the foxtrot, jitterbug, waltz and swing. The music that was accompanied by these dances was jazz, it kept people on their toes. To create the buoyant sound, “ one instrument (usually the trumpet) plays the melody or a variation on it, and the other instruments improvise around that melody”(Dixie). Dixieland music usually had a variety of instruments to create the sound. The trumpet along with the clarinet, trombone, tuba, piano, and drums were necessary to compose the Dixieland tune.
Music also had an influence on...
