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| Big Band Performing |
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Big Band Era
The 1940's music scene was very complex. In the late 1930's
the big band era was just about to take off and land in the 1940's. Benny Goodman had his own big band. The dance to the big bands was swing
dance. Benny Goodman was named “King of
Swing.” Benny Goodman’s band defined the
term “big band.” He required his band to have many rehearsals. This all paid off when his band got a spot on
the late night radio show. This radio
station was a national radio station called Let’s Dance. Goodman also had the best drummer in the land
named Gene Krupa. Krupa was known as the
glue to the band. Goodman set the tone
for all future big bands and he set the standard high for upcoming artist. The way
they got the big band era name was because many of the bands had around ten or
more people in the group thus giving it the big band era. People from the
1940's said "It don’t mean a thing, If it aint got that swing." The
big bands of the 1940's consist of artist such as Duke Elllington, Cab
Calloway, and Dizzy Gillipsie just to name a few. These big bands were composed
of many different instruments such as saxophones, trumpets, trombones, piano,
and the drums. This is not a full list of instruments but you can get an idea
on how many sounds made up the music. When
America got involved in World War II which began in August 1st, 1942 many of
the artists that were in big bands were sent off to war and this was the
beginning of the fall for the big bands.
With some artist in the bands being sent off many off the bands then
fell apart. Big bands that traveled had
a hard time performing because the tax on gasoline was very high, this is due
in part of World War II. The government made
the tax on gas higher because they needed majority of it for the war. This also played a huge part in the on the
fall of the big bands. A combination of
this lead to the big bands being unpopular also and the demand for big bands
were constantly declining. With the fall
for big bands, it created an opening for a new type of music known as Bebop. Bebop would later explode on the music scene.
It also gave way to vocal artist such as
Frank Sinatra.
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I was wondering why they were called big bands. Having ten people in a band seems like it would be pretty big! I’m sure the shows would be so cool to go to. It would have been sweet to be in the first big band ever and being able to be on the first radio show “Let’s Dance” would be so fun! Knowing you were the best drummer, singer, etc. in the land would be such an honor. It’s funny to see how music has progressed over time to where it is now. Now bands have three people in them and the radio is a common thing where songs are heard.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't think of drums when I imagine a big band. I am surprised to know that they were in there. I've seen big bands in movies, but never a live performance. I also remember people swing dancing while they performed. It makes sense that the government would apply a heavy taxation on gasoline during the war in order for there to be more for them. Sadly that made big bands take a turn for the worst. Just as I studied in the film industry, with many of the famous stars enlisting, big band members went off to serve our country as well.
ReplyDeleteSwing dancing was invented in this era? I did not know that. Benny Goodman’s big band was a great band to swing dace to and benny was known as the king of swing. I wonder what he did to be considered the king of swing. These bands had many people in their groups. About ten or more people is unheard of today. Today’s bands have about five or six people in their bands. These people in the bands must have been really good to all sound good together. The war affected these people in the bands as well as the other people in the United States.
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