African American Vernacular Tradition Focuses on Spirituals Songs - Essay Example

Teacher English Literature 4th October African American Vernacular Traditions Regarding Spiritual Songs The African Americanhistory can be sketched back to the early European colonization period during which mass migrations took place, responsible for the multi-cultural and multi-national society currently flourishing in the region. The Africans were taken as slaves from their homeland and shipped to America for filling up the labor requirement gap. This proved to be the foundation for “white” and “colored” discrimination in the United States, which still thrives ceaselessly in the area. With immense African migrations, slavery was legalized in many regions of America (Zinn 23). The African Americans were referred to as “blacks” or “negroes” due to their dark complexion they inherited from their homeland environments. This discrimination proposed a widespread racial feeling of mixed emotions – hatred, contempt, pity or patronization (Zinn 23). Several conflicts have risen within the country due to this racism, leading to the Civil War of 1861. Even though attempts have been made to promote equalization of rights for all citizens alike, the cities are now divided into racially segregated segments. The term “Vernacular” refers to a traditional trademark, specifically associated with a nation. Hence the African American Vernacular traditions refer to their trademark characteristics that differentiated them from masses. African Americans are known to possess unique language skills and values. Their spiritual songs have been their primary source of inspiration since time unknown. Though their vernacular traditions have now been highly influenced by the modern cultures, attempts have nevertheless been made by the African Americans to save their traditions from extinction. Numerous African American literary writers have tried to preserve their vernacular traditions of written and oral communication; however, it is almost impossible to safeguard the latter. Writers like Gayl Jones, an African American lady writer, have attempted to keep the African American literary tradition alive in numerous narratives like “Liberating Voices” and “The Healing”. Indeed, “Omitting all quotation marks for direct addresses and dialogues, as well as erasing all specific time markers in identifying specific episodes, Jones constructs a complex text of characters and events whose authority and authenticity are occasionally undermined by its ambitious elasticity and heteroglossia” (Bell). This reflects the uniqueness of the African American Vernacular language from the Standard English of today. However, it has not been this simple for preserving oral vernacular traditions like spiritual songs. These were essentially conveyed from parents to offspring and down through the generations. The originality could therefore not be protected since the newer generations “… learned all their songs by ear, they often strayed into wholly new versions, which sometimes became popular, and entirely banished the other” (Higginson 160). Hence the oral vernacular tradition was heavily influenced by the cultural and environmental factors through times and has evolved in many stages into the forms and genres as we see today. The African Americans love their spiritual songs, and they continue to inspire them even today. Their deep respect for the songs stemmed from their relevance with the sufferings of Christ. When the African Americans toiled on plantations and labor in the capacity of slaves, many of them identified themselves as Christ undergoing the troubles and sufferings of his life, often asking God for help and the strength to overcome these problems. But the sufferings of the African Americans turned into their faith – a faith that found its solace in songs. Therefore the African Americans regard their spiritual songs in highest esteem. The African American Vernacular traditions are described as that “which refers to the church songs, blues, ballads, sermons, stories … hip-hop songs that are part of the oral, not primarily the literate (or written down) tradition of black expression” (Gates & McKay). This shows the subsequent evolution of the traditional black spiritual songs into the modern form of black music. Also, it shows that the oral tradition covers all areas of black music. The African American Vernacular traditions date back to the 18th and 19th centuries. A close dissection of the oral vernacular tradition reveals some facts identically identifiable in all spiritual songs. Firstly, the Vernacular tradition shows an evident disregard for rules of grammar and high style. This disregard has given birth to a different dialect of English, revered for its contributions to the language in the form of Metaphor and Similes, Double-Descriptives and Verbal Nouns. This language has given the Blacks their unique identity. The second particular aspect of the Vernacular is its call-response pattern and distinctive percussive dance-beat sounds. Repetitions by the preacher, coaxing other to participate in the song have been an essential of African American Vernacular Songs. Furthermore, the subject matter most often includes troubles and problems faced by an individual and the possibility of achieving their solutions (Hurston 24-31). As the Blacks were discriminated against since the beginning of their migration into American region, it became the topic of most spiritual songs. The origin of the vernacular spiritual songs can hardly ever be traced back to their makers. The producers themselves did not have any professional expertise; most of the pieces had been produced in raw form. The only means of transmitting these vernacular songs down newer generations was oral communication. Hence these spiritual songs have adapted the influences of environmental, cultural and “trendy” factors, constantly manipulating the original pieces. Alterations occurred both at the sender and the receiver ends, failing to preserve the genuineness of these songs. Earlier, the mode of producing new vernacular spiritual songs was primarily from three sources: improvising on a song already in existence, mixing up two or more songs to create an entirely different song, or creating a song from scratch including melodies and contents. Numerous variations were therefore developed of the older songs along with the introduction of new songs, contributing to the extensive library of vernacular songs of the African American base. The early era of African American Vernacular songs were focused on slavery. These songs can be dated back to the pre-migration period of the Africans. These songs were brought into America by the slaves. Several of these songs were modified versions of the early slave songs. The enslaved tried to keep their traditions regarding these songs alive by passing it down the familial hierarchy. With the induction of numerous people into slavery, the traditions were kept alive easily. However, these Vernacular songs can not only be traced back to Africa, but also to some of the adjoining areas. The subsequent era saw a heavy genetic crossing of older songs with new materials. These were heavily influenced by Biblical verses, since the Bible and Church sermons proved to be the closest, most influential thing on these slaves. These songs were often altered to fit the situation of the singer; the words of older songs were mixed with verses from the Bible and sermons. This not only resulted in the formation of an entirely new piece, but also altered the melody to fit the lyrics to such a great extent that the original melody could hardly be hinted. This era saw the crisscrossing of the old to form the new. Furthermore, the next era saw the formulation of entirely new songs with no inspiration from the past songs. These songs were often created during emotional moments in church sermons. These songs were taught to congregations by either the folk preacher or by the Deacon. Emphasis and repetition during a sermon caused a natural formation of a spiritual song when the congregation participated to compliment the preacher. These songs varied in rhythm and tempo, from upbeat songs to depressing sad tunes. The African American vernacular songs are regarded as “survival songs”. These songs are attributed with having healing powers as these are born from the deepest and the most essential part of one’s self – the spirit and the soul. As these emotions are released, one feels the inner self being healed of the pain of injustices and hatred occurring around. These vernacular traditions are revered as arts now and are therefore taught in numerous institutes by professional experts like Tillery. Several genres of African American music have now evolved with time. Blues, Jazz, Funk, Hip hop, and Gospel are some of the famous variations of the vernacular music. The Gospel music is unique from all other genres. It is a distinctive mix of early Blues and Jazz styles of composing and delivering music. It is believed to have originated in Chicago. Gospel music also differs in its highly percussive beats and polyrhythmic sounds. It seems to be one of the oldest Vernacular forms of Black Music. This type of music was more often influenced by religious scriptures like The Bible. The Blues are said to be the oldest traditional music of the Blacks. It was the most dominant form of music in 1920s and 1930s. It is believed to have originated from rural Southern regions of America in the late nineteenth century; hence it proved to be the first favorites of poor rural African Americans. Blues is considered to be primarily focused on lyrics, seconded by music. The essential parts of the Blues lyrics included the performer’s observation regarding his/her surroundings, along with the oral Black Music tradition. The Blues highly focused on personalized feelings and observations about one’s surroundings, and often reflected the injustices and discrimination practiced in the world and the resulting problems faced by the Blacks. The distinctive feature of the Blues was a single voice accompanied by an instrument or two. However, as the name suggests, Blues are mellow songs with a certain sadness entrenched on it. The Blues expanded their realms following the African American migration to Northern Regions. This saw the further formation of variations of Blues like Delta Blues, Chicago Blues etc. That second oldest genre of music that can be traced back to African American identity is Jazz. It is believed to be originated in New Orleans, Louisiana. New Orleans was then considered as the center for southern slave trade. New Orleans was a home to numerous musicians providing waltzes, polkas, schottisches, quadrilles etc. Jazz was identified being played by identifiable African Americans on Congo Square in New Orleans as memories of African regions. It is remembered as, “The music consisted to two drums and a stringed instrument. An old man sat astride of a cylindrical drum about a foot in diameter, and beat it with incredible quickness with the edge of his hand and fingers. The other drum was an open staved thing held between the knees and beaten in the same manner. They made an incredible noise. The most curious instrument, however, was a stringed instrument which no doubt was imported from Africa. On the top of the finger board was the rude figure of a man in a sitting posture, and two pegs behind him to which the strings were fastened. The body was a calabash. It was played upon by a very little old man, apparently 80 or 90 years old….[Another instrument] which from the color of the wood seemed new, consisted of a block cut into something of the form of a cricket bat with a long & deep mortise down the center. This thing made a considerable noise, being beaten lustily on the side by a short stick. In the same orchestra was a square drum, looking like a stool, which made an abominably loud noise; also a calabash with a round hole in it, the hole studded with brass nails, which was beaten by a woman with two short sticks” (Latrobe 23). This is the first account appreciating Jazz in its earliest phase. Jazz was thereafter continually improvised. Last but not the least, Hip-hop evolved in the 1990s, and continues to stay popular even today. It is believed to have evolved in an exclusively Black segment of New York City. Often referred to as Rap, Break dancing and Graffiti, Hip-hop genre of Black Music is the only form of music that was able to gain popularity across racial discrimination with the Whites. Surprisingly, the Whites liked the sounds of hip hop, and were played for in some parts of the country. However, a major part of the audience still remains to be the Black African American population across the country. In contrast with Blues, the Hip-Hop music originated from the Urban African American regions. Hip-hop is a distinct mix of Blues and Rhythm forms of early music. Hip hop seems to emanate a high level of energy from its heavy beats and typical black tunes. This clearly shows the alterations of the Traditional Black Music through ages. This reinforces the fact that most of the spiritual songs cannot to traced back to their origins. Most of the songs were heavily influenced by the demand of times, absorbing cultural and environmental influences. It will not be wrong to say that the original songs have not survived these changes and none of these exist anymore. One major reason for not being able to preserve the vernacular traditions could be the scarcity of resources and knowledge among African Americans. As the songs were vocally transmitted and preserved in human brains, the songs were heavily influenced by personal preferences and forgetfulness. There were no external mediums of recording the early spiritual songs. Even as the Americans advanced, African Americans, being deprived of the basic necessities of life and enslaved by birth, were not able to gain sufficient education and knowledge. Even as tapes came into existence, the African Americans were too busy fighting with the daily tortures in life. This does not mean that the African Americans stayed poor and illiterate. Some of the African Americans were able to meet the advancements of the time and obtain education. This small but distinguished percentage of literate and well-learned African Americans played a vital role in the Black’s liberation from slavery. Several notables of African American Vernacular traditions include Thomas Dorsey, Gertrude Rainey, Lemon Jefferson, Robert Johnson, James Brown, Curtis Mayfield and Little Walter etc. Recent hip-hop artists include 2pac, Outcast and Lauryn Hill. All of these artists are honored for keeping the vernacular tradition and its numerous variations alive. The Black Music is unique in all aspects; from the language to music, nothing resembles vernacular tradition of any other nation. The distressed Africans, who migrated from Africa to America as slaves or as desperate individuals in search of a better living, were clearly disappointed on reaching their destination. America was a heart of colonization then, with several colonial powers combating to gain control over the region. The labor force comprised largely of these African Americans, who bore all injustices and were readily slain during these combats. It is also reported that while the Africans were being brought into America, numerous died as a result of long journeys and travel sickness. Nevertheless, after having borne all massacres, the Blacks still contributed to the literary pool in the form of written and oral vernacular traditions. Today, though the discrimination against Blacks has not entirely vanished, we see prominent African Americans being celebrated by all Americans alike. Works Cited Zinn, Howard. “Drawing the Color Line”. A People’s History of the United States. 1980. Print. http://www.scribd.com/doc/46560343/A-People-s-History-of-the-United-States-Howard-Zinn Higginson, Thomas W. “Army Life in a Black Regiment”. Forgotten Books. 1960. Print. http://books.google.com/books?id=iHIQCxFOKUEC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false Gates, Henry Louis. McKay, Nellie Y. “The Norton Anthology of African American Literature”. W. W. Norton & Co. 2004. Print. http://www.uncp.edu/home/hickss/taal/overview/index.html Hurston, Zora Neale. “Characteristics of Negro Expression”. Negro: An Anthology. 1996. Print. http://books.google.com/books?id=C4e5kc5mtXMC&pg=PA24&dq=characteristics+of+negro+expression&hl=en&ei=_m2MTorUAufj4QSt7Y2tCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false Latrobe, Benjamin H. “First Appearance of New Orleans to a Stranger”. Impressions Respecting New Orleans. 1951. Print. http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=100702930# Read More