Blues gives clues

From the sweltering fields of the deep South, work songs, field hollers and spirituals sung by the slaves brought from Africa arose the blues. It has influenced nearly every contemporary American tradition, such as jazz, R&B, rock, country and hip hop. Understanding the development and progression of blues requires a look back at a dark time in American history, when the southern blacks expressed their suffering, heartbreak, religion and politics using whatever instruments available and soulful vocalizations.

Coming from the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., a musical production called “Blues Journey” tells the blues story through Willie Brown, a man on a quest to become a famous musician. “Blues Journey” will show at the Morrison Center Friday, Jan. 30 at 9:30 a.m., and also at 11:30 a.m. Student tickets are $5, and general admission is $7.

The play is based on a book by Walter Dean Myers, which provided the historical information. However, the book doesn’t have characters or a plot, so playwright Jerome Hairston had to adapt the book for the stage.

Education Director for the Morrison Center Karen Stucker recommends this event to Boise State students because of its relevance in our current national atmosphere. Black History Month is right around the corner, and Barack Obama has just been inaugurated the first black president in American history.

” This is a great opportunity to see a piece that explains what the social scene was like at one the ugliest times that created this music.” Stucker said.

Blues music is based on blue notes, which are sung or played at a lower pitch than the rest of the song, which creates the characteristic, usually melancholy, sound. The lyrics and rhythm follow a repetitive pattern, typically a 12-bar structure. But don’t be fooled by the obvious name of the music, blues music doesn’t always have to be sad.

According to the Kennedy Center’s Website featuring “Blues Journey”, “The blues isn’t just slow, mournful music full of bleak images of personal despair. The blues is a means of self-expression, a catharsis."

TERESA ARENZ
Arbiter Journalist

Related Posts:

1. Whites saved the blues
2. Another Round of Blues? No thanks
3. Aerosmith abandons schmaltz and
   gets back to their taste of blues
4. Oregon bluegrass comes to Blues Bouquet
5. Earnest Orange rocks Blues Bouquet