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Musical
Future of New Orleans Uncertain |
Posted:
12.19.05
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In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, many wonder if the local music
scene can return to what it once was in the Big Easy.
Printer-friendly versions: PDF
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As Michael White returned to New Orleans to see what remained
of his home, the jazz musician had to wear a mask because of the
mold that grew after Hurricane Katrina flooded the city.
 In
his piano room, he had stored records, photos, sheet music and
a vintage collection of clarinets -- effectively, a museum of
New Orleans music -- now destroyed by water.
But like many other New Orleans musicians, White has moved away
from the region that helped build and feed his love of music.
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A history
set to music |
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Founded by French colonialists, early New Orleans brought together
many ethnic and cultural groups. Slaves from Africa and the Caribbean
brought aspects of their cultures to New Orleans, while the French,
and later Spanish, influences added to the city's diversity.
Later, when the United States bought Louisiana in 1803, many
American blacks streamed into New Orleans, adding to the city's
already eclectic mix of cultures.
As early as the 18th century, African drum and dance performances
occurred each Sunday near a downtown market known as Congo Square.
Brass bands, all the rage in America by the 1890s, were spiced
up in New Orleans, and soon ragtime piano and improvised, upbeat
brass bands became popular.
In the early 20th century, New Orleans birthed such musical innovators
as Jelly Roll Morton, the Creole Orchestra and the Original Dixieland
Jazz Band. King Oliver and his protégé Louis Armstrong
brought a significant influence to the music scene.
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Will New
Orleans have a second line? |
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But perhaps no event better typifies the passion and emotion
of New Orleans music than the traditional jazz funeral.
 In
the early 1900s, organizations called mutual aid and benevolent
societies were common among many ethnic groups in urban areas.
Many of these organizations had a uniquely expressive approach
to funerals.
On the way from the church to the cemetery, a marching band played
dirges and hymns, but after the burial service, a raucous dancing
celebration ensued, and the brass band let loose. Usually a "second
line" procession followed with exuberant dancing.
These spiritual transformations from death to rebirth personified
the determined, hopeful spirit of New Orleans and its music.
Before the storm, music pervaded life in New Orleans. At any
dance, parade, fish fry or church festival, you could count on
the presence of a standard New Orleans jazz band -- a cornet,
clarinet and trombone.
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A city devastated
but hopeful |
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A recent party at a leading music club Tipitina's revealed the
yearning among musicians who want to return home but are not sure
they have a home to return to. 
The Rebirth Brass Band played to a packed audience, but when
the show was over, the musicians disbursed to cities like Atlanta,
Baltimore and Houston, where they have been staying since Katrina.
Bill Taylor, who heads the Tipitina's Foundation, which offers
aid to musicians displaced by Katrina, says it's hard to convince
people to come back.
"What can we do to help give you some hope right now?"
he said. "If we don't stand up and say, 'we're here, we're
not going anywhere, then who would."
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin also wants the musicians back .
"We have transitioned from the rhythm and sounds of New
Orleans being military helicopters, and, you know, Humvee vehicles,
to now. The music is back. And when the music is back, New Orleans
is alive," he said at a scaled-down version of the city's
annual Voodoo Festival, a mix of rock and traditional New Orleans
music.
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New hope
for homeless musicians |
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Meanwhile, singer Harry Connick Jr. and saxophone player Branford
Marsalis are working with Habitat for Humanity, an organization
dedicated to building houses for low-income families, to create
a "village" for New Orleans musicians who lost their
homes to Hurricane Katrina.
 The
New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity says it hasn't decided on
a location yet, but $2 million dollars has been raised.
Musician Michael White said he hopes New Orleans can use music
to get past this period of sadness.
"I think one of the lessons of the jazz funeral for all
these years is ... we have to be optimistic and say, we have transitioned
into something else, but that something else is an opportunity
for it to come back and be great," he said.
"Be proud. Look for the good part. Express the pain and
sorrow through the music and keep going."
--
Compiled by James Yolles for NewsHour Extra
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I think we've been witnessing violence for years, whether in reality through the media or through video games, and I don't think that's a first-hand effect.
