KPFA-FM Music Dept. ➔ Roland Young on the Development of African American Music, 2 of 2
Analog Audio
Event Type
Lectures and Panel DiscussionsOrigin
KPFAIdentifier
AM.1979.XX.XX.BProgram Length
65 minPart
2 of 2Dates
| broadcast| 402 | created
Description
A recording of a 1979 lecture by Roland P. Young, given at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. Young was, at the time of this recording, a musician, composer, KPFA program host, and aspiring musicologist, or sound philosopher. In this talk, which he entitled, “The Social, Political, and Aesthetic Development of African American Classical Music,” Young attempts to trace certain elements of jazz back to their roots in native African musical traditions. He begins his lecture with a description, augmented by musical excerpts, of the polyphonous vocalizations of equatorial rain forest pygmies in the Congo and surrounding areas. He then juxtaposes these field recordings with jazz solos by John Coltrane and Eric Dolphy, among others, highlighting the similarities in structure and tone. Young then turns his attention to the call and response pattern so typical of African music, and draws a correlation between its traditional practice and the patterns found in many free-jazz performances by such musicians as Roscoe Mitchell, George Lewis, and Albert Ayler. In addition Young discusses the challenges that jazz, and particularly free-jazz music, has had in claiming legitimacy from academic Western music critics, many of whom see its lack of formal notation and embrace of silence or minimalism as indications of a more primitive musical form, a criticism that Young ably deflects. While at times reminiscent of a college course lecture, this talk is both informative and provocative, and Young’s enthusiasm for the subject more than makes up for any dryness in its presentation.Genres
JazzMusical Selections
Jack-Ass Blues [excerpt] (2:00) -- St. Louis Blues [excerpt] (2:10) --[solo for trombone, excerpt] (ca. 1976) (0:30) / George Lewis -- [solo for saxophone, excerpt] (0:23) / Anthony Braxton -- [solo for saxophone, excerpt] (0:50) / Roscoe Mitchell -- [excerpt from the “Spiritual Unity’] (ca. 1964) (0:58) / Albert AylerPerformers
Sidney Bechet, sax and clarinet (Jack-Ass ; St. Louis)George Lewis, trombone (solo #1)
Anthony Braxton, saxophone (solo #2)
Roscoe Mitchell, saxophone (solo #3)
Albert Ayler, saxophone (Spiritual Unity)
Gary Peacock, bass (Spiritual Unity)
Sunny Murray, percussion (Spiritual Unity)
Subjects
JazzFree jazz
Jazz -- History and criticism
African Americans -- Music -- History and criticism
Acknowledgment
Funding for the preservation of this program made possible through a grant by the National Endowment for the Arts.Related place
San Francisco (Calif.) (was recorded at)Related Entities
Young, Roland P.Bechet, Sidney, 1897-1959
Lewis, George, 1952-
Braxton, Anthony
Mitchell, Roscoe, 1940-
Ayler, Albert
Peacock, Gary, 1935-
Murray, Sunny