Music, The Heart of New Orleans

Outer Journey 

I guess if I’m going to analogize Art as the circulatory system of New Orleans' being, I would be amiss if I didn’t applaud or at least encore its heart, that integral organ, without which the body of New Orleans would quickly die, Music. If art represents the circulatory system of New Orleans, then clearly music is its heart. If one were attuned enough and were to stand outside of the body of New Orleans and listen carefully, you could hear that exciting rhythm and pulse. Unlike our human body however, New Orleans’ heart has many beats and rhythms; Rock and Roll, Classic Country, Hip-hop, Cajun/Creole Zytago, Blues, and of course, the life blood of New Orleans itself, Jazz. 

Rock and Roll, Classic Country, and Hip-Hop are integral components and fluid in New Orleans, but no different than anywhere else in the country. Where New Orleans culture and tastes take a turn is when you consider the genomic variations inherent and specific to it. I learned about these disciplines on this particular trip to New Orleans. 

Zytago for instance. I had heard the music on many occasions in the past. I thought it was an interesting and unique blend of sounds. What I didn’t know was that it had an extensive history and following of its own. Mostly practiced by Cajun’s, who’s very culture revolves around improvisation and making due, the music is created using mostly fiddles, harmonicas, accordions and simple instruments that were improvised by the musicians that developed it. Such improvisations included paired spoons tapped against a leg or hand, wash boards that create an indescribable but complementary rhythmic pace, pots and pans, and almost anything that a musician could make sound with.

Blues, also referred to as “The Blues”, is a discipline of it’s own, but it influences every other form of music inherent to New Orleans. Blues is a form of music that began in the era of slavery. It incorporates spirituality, story-telling, folk music and sad flat melodies often punctuated with flat pitched transitions known as “blue notes”. There are many variations of Blues. In fact, there are probably as many variations of “Blues” music as there are human conditions.

Coming to New Orleans, the things I looked forward to the most was the food and the opportunity to enjoy real Jazz music, live and unadulterated. Now I don’t consider myself a connoisseur of music at all, much less the specialty of Jazz. I am a fan however and had my own ideas about its history and what it was supposed to sound like. After spending a week in the Big Easy, I learned that “Jazz” does not fit into the package that I carried it in. One thing I learned from this visit to New Orleans is that Jazz, like the Blues has evolved yet remained grounded in tradition all at the same time. Since its inception, probably near the beginning of the 19th century, Jazz has evolved to take on a life of its own. It is characterized mostly by brass instruments, pianos and drums taking on a jubilant pace with spontaneous rhythm and pitch changes. Jazz can be incorporated into any other discipline of music without loosing it’s own identity. I learned that first hand when traveling around Frenchman’s Street and the French Quarter. Struggling to find that certain tune and rhythm that I associated with Jazz, I learned that all of it was Jazz. Now, the traditional Jazz music that I associated with the genera is alive and well. In fact, it is preserved like a sacred religious order by a reverend sect of musical monks known as the Preservation Hall Foundation. They are headquartered in the French Quarter at a humbly renovated building known as Preservation Hall. Their goal is to protect, preserve and perpetuate the traditional foundation of Jazz through education and community engagement.

Preservation Hall

                                                         https://www.preshallfoundation.org 

Inner Journey 

Music is so important to human life. If there were no other form of expression, music could serve to communicate our intentions, feelings, hopes and regrets. I think that if there is a soul, music is its manifestation in our world. Not everyone is capable of expressing themselves musically. Well maybe they are capable, but not everyone is literate or gifted enough be mutually appreciated by any audience. My appreciation for those people who can do that has grown immensely during this trip to New Orleans. I humbly learned that my earlier perceptions of New Orleans and its music were askew and misinformed even though I spent so much time here as a young man. Before, I just took the music and party atmosphere for granted and didn’t consider its source. During this last week, I was provided with a perspective that I was either too immature or selfish to consider before. I now have deeper appreciation for and, if not extensive, education about New Orleans and its heart. I now at least have a new desire to learn and the humility to listen more closely. 

This week, with my newly evolving appreciation and open mind for this old culture and it’s music, I was able to enjoy the “Rag Time” music that may have been instrumental in Jazz’s evolution at “Fritzel’s European Jazz Pub” on Bourbon Street, I witnessed it’s influence on modern Rock and Roll at “30 degree / -90 degree” on Frenchman Street, and I felt the “Blues” at the “Balcony Music Club” on Decatur Street. As I said before, I was not ready to leave. I felt like I had just learned to see color and now had to go to bed for the night. 

As I said before, I fully intend on returning to New Orleans but next time I already know right where to go and what I want to experience. I can’t wait.