Lawrence E. Anderson

Highland Bands – the Music of Scotland

November 3, 2013 by Lawrence E. Anderson Leave a Comment

Hardly identified as Americana, and certainly not indigenous to the new world is the music of Scotland. It is primarily exemplified by the music of bagpipes—the national instrument of Scotland—and drums.

Surprisingly, Scottish music, pipe bands and highland dancing has enjoyed an increase of interest and popularity in the past 20 years. This form of music has always been popular in the British Isles but its infectiousness has spread across the “pond” to the United States.

The Bagpipe

A Bagpipe consists of a bag, a chanter and several pipes to produce its unique tones. Air is blown into the bag through a blowpipe. The bag is a reservoir which holds the air and regulates the release of air into the pipes by squeezing it. The chanter is the melody pipe played with the hands like any woodwind instrument. The difference between it and other woodwinds is the chanter only has seven to nine holes. The Great Highland Bagpipe usually has three drone pipes. Drone pipes sound a continuous tone while the chanter plays the melody.

Pipe Bands

A pipe band consists of a number of bagpipes, snare drums, tenor drums and a bass drum. One of the pipers is called the pipe major, usually a senior member, highly qualified and proficient on the instrument. He frequently instructs the other pipers in technique and style of playing. The band is led on the march by the drum major who gives all the directions and signals for marching and starting and stopping of the music. The marching style of the drum major and the use of the baton or mace is very formalized, stylized and quite uniform among all drum majors. However, each drum major projects his own individual style as well.

It is truly amazing to realize how many pipe bands there are in the U.S. Many police and fire departments support a contingent of pipes and drums used for mostly ceremonial functions such as weddings, funerals, parades and many occasions both commercial and private.

The Edinburgh Festival

The granddaddy of all ceremonial events or meetings is the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, held each August in Edinburgh, Scotland. The term Tattoo is derived from the Dutch for “last orders.” In military parlance it was used to describe the last duty call and also a ceremonial form of evening entertainment by military music personnel.

This annual meeting of military bands, massed pipes and drums and other military units is so popular that it draws over 200,000 spectators each year on the esplanade of Edinburgh Castle. It has sold out in advance for the last decade. If one is fortunate enough to obtain a ticket, the military tattoo is performed every weekday evening and twice on Saturday through the month of August. A testament to its popularity is, it is televised in 30 countries and over 100 million people view it worldwide.

The preponderance of the performers is from the British Isles. They include: Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment); Royal Highland Fusiliers (Kings Own Scottish Borderers); Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment); The Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons) and The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.

In addition to these British units, many international regiments have performed over the years. The Royal Netherlands Grenadiers were the first regiment outside of the United Kingdom (U.K.) to perform at the tattoo in 1952. Since then many countries have sent representatives to perform. Each evening concludes with the massed pipes and drums joining the bands and playing Auld Lang Syne. The flag is lowered and they all march off to Scotland the Brave.

Scottish Games at Pleasanton

Locally we can enjoy a taste of this wonderful pageantry at the annual Scottish Highland Gathering and Games at the Pleasanton Fairgrounds. This gathering of the clans is held over the Labor Day weekend. For the past 148 years the Caledonian Club of San Francisco has presented this event—that is the largest gathering of its kind in the U.S.

This annual event draws thousands of spectators, many in kilts and traditional native costumes. Some highlights are viewing the bands, Scottish dancing, athletic events include—tossing the caber and competitive games of strength—and Scottish fiddling and piping.

At the conclusion of each day, the massed pipe and drum bands, dressed in their Scottish regalia, bring the ceremonies to a close with an incredible sound like no other. “There is nothing quite like the flurry of dancing feet, the humming bagpipes and the fierce, precise drum patterns, all performed by players in full traditional uniforms,” stated Jessica Novak in the article Pipe Dreams.

Speaking of uniforms, it is not inexpensive to outfit a performer. “Kilts can range in price from $400 to $600. Entire uniforms can cost $1,000 or more, and full military dress can cost upwards of $2500,” Novak reported. A set of bagpipes can be purchased from around $1,000 to $2500, depending on the make and quality of the instrument.

If you are planning a trip to Europe and specifically the U.K., August is a good month to go and enjoy the marvelous Edinburgh Festival. Be sure to reserve tickets well in advance. You won’t be sorry as it is definitely worth the time and effort to get there.

Not going to Europe in the near future? Then next September drive to Pleasanton and see the mass pipes and drums in their awesome pageantry. Once you’ve been you’ll want to return. My good friend, Lyle Seeband, who took up the bagpipes 50 years ago said, “I’m going to do this until I drop.”

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville Community Band.

The Bells at Berkeley

October 4, 2013 by Lawrence E. Anderson Leave a Comment

Campanile: a bell and clock tower

One of the most historic, visible and all-encompassing landmarks in the Bay Area is most certainly the Campanile, on the University of California, Berkeley campus. It is one of the most enduring and well-known structures in Northern California.

The Carillon

Inside the tower is a musical instrument called a carillon. The carillon is a set of bronze-cast tuned bells that are cup-shaped in construction. They are attached to a keyboard with levers and wires to activate a metal clapper inside the bells. The performer or carillonneur, or a more contemporary title – carillonist, can alter the intensity of the sound by the force applied to the key. The carillonist usually plays the keys by a loosely closed fist. The keys, that are stick-like, sometimes called batons, are arranged like a piano keyboard. The large and heavier bells are usually played with the foot-pedal keyboard.

The smallest bell weighs 19 pounds and the largest, called “The Great Bear Bell,” weighs 10,500 pounds. Some of the larger extant carillons can weigh as much as 100 tons. Obviously, the structure that houses the weight of these bells must be very strong and massive.

Sibyl Marcuse, in her book, Musical Instruments, defines a carillon as “A set of tuned bells hung dead, i.e. stationary, in a tower or church belfry played from a keyboard, automatically by clockwork or by an electrically controlled pneumatic mechanism.” The difference between a carillon and a bell-chime is merely one of compass; any set of bells of more than one and a half to two octaves is considered a carillon.

“In the 15^th through the18^th century carillons became extremely popular and achieved a high degree of perfection in the low-countries of Belgium, Netherlands and northern France. In the 19^th century they spread to England and then to America,” according to the Harvard Dictionary of Music.

The Campanile

The proper name of the Berkeley Campanile is Sather Tower, named for its benefactress, Jane K. Sather. She gifted the tower to the university in 1914, along with the first set of 12 bells that are still housed today in the Campanile. The bells are inscribed with Sather’s name and year of the gift. She also gave the university the classic ornate gate that is named for her husband, Norwegian-born banker, Peder Sather. It is the formal south entrance to the campus, called Sather Gate.

Sather Tower is a Campanile designed by John Galen Howard, founder of the College of Environmental Design, to resemble the Campanile di San Marco in Venice, Italy. The tower is 307 feet tall. At this height it is the third highest bell and clock tower in the world. On the eighth or top floor, is the observation deck that houses the enclosure for the keyboard and foot pedals of the Carillon. When one goes up in the elevator to the observation deck ancient fossils and other artifacts can be seen on various floors. The fossils are from the Department of Integrative Biology and include many from the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles.

Berkeley Bells

The bells were first installed in October 1917. The delay was due to World War I. The original 12 bells were not enough to play many tunes including The National Anthem. It took many decades to remedy this dilemma until, in 1978, the class of 1928 decided to make a gift to enlarge the carillon to 48 bells. The new carillon, with the 12 original bells, was installed in 1979.

Another generous gift to the university came about in 1983. Jerry Chambers, a member of the class of 1928, and his wife, Evelyn, (and the class of 1928) gave an endowment for the enlargement of the instrument to 61 bells making it a fully chromatic five-octave concert carillon. With the endowment for the instrument, money was set aside for two practice keyboards and a full-time position for the university carillonist, who is presently Jeff Davis. The entire carillon program is funded by the Chambers endowment.

The UC carillon program is reputed to be one of the most active and complete programs, not only in the United States, but in the entire world. The instructional program offers both private and group instruction through the department of music. There is a professional staff and four artist performers plus advanced student performers.

You can hear the carillon performances daily on the Berkeley campus. For performance schedules, admission prices and other information, go to http://visitors.berkeley.edu/camp/

Go hear for yourself the beautiful sounds of this historic and famous carillon at UC Berkeley. It is well worth a visit to the campus and I’m sure you will enjoy hearing this wonderful musical treasure.

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net

Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville

Community Band.

The Banjo

September 1, 2013 by Lawrence E. Anderson Leave a Comment

Some historians and musicologist refer to the banjo as the iconic American instrument. In America, it dates clear back to the 17^th century. In actuality its origins are found in Western Africa, probably Senegambia, where it existed under the name “Bania,” many years before its arrival in the American colonies.

Origins

Ironically, as distasteful and despicable as the slave trade was, the banjo’s introduction to the Americas was through the slaves brought to the new world. They constructed crude instruments that were patterned after indigenous instruments from their African region.

The first use of these instruments in America was from the black slaves who reproduced the early African instruments. In 1781 Thomas Jefferson said, “The instrument proper to the slaves is the ‘Banjar’ that they brought hither from Africa.” “When Africans and Europeans came together in North America, there was enough similarity in their ideas and attitudes about music for a new musical synthesis to occur, despite the dramatically unequal status of black and white populations,” wrote Bill Evans in, A Brief History of the Banjo.

Minstrel Era

In the early 1800’s white musicians became interested in the “new instrument” and started playing and performing on the banjo. Joel Walker Sweeney, an American minstrel performer from Appomattox Court House Virginia, was one of the early pioneers of the minstrel era. It was reported that Sweeney was the first white man to perform on the banjo in a show in the 1830’s.

Sweeney and his Virginia Minstrels were a very popular form of entertainment during that era. The show was performed by white men in black face who would play and sing and carry on in a comical fashion. Minstrelsy was important in popularizing the banjo and making it an instrument of both white and black populations.

In addition to banjos the minstrel shows had a fiddle (violin), a bones player and a combination of drum and tambourine players. Sweeney and his group were very popular in the United States and introduced the banjo to Britain in the 1840’s, where it became very popular in English music halls.

“Along with the fiddle, the banjo was the most popular instrument in African-American music in the United States through the 18^th and into the 19^th century,” according to Bill Evans.

Black face minstrelsy, once a popular form of entertainment, saw a decline in popularity due to the negative aspects of depicting slaves in the south. Some of the acts were completely inaccurate in characterizing the life of a slave. However degrading, black face minstrelsy was, it had the redeeming value of popularizing the banjo and making it an instrument played by both black and white performers.

Because the instrument became so popular, the 1840’s saw the appearance of the first instruction books published with exercises, teaching techniques, fingering positions and more. This period also produced the first factory made, mass produced instruments.

Obviously, banjo playing was definitely on the rise and here to stay.

Today, minstrelsy has faded into the distant pass and largely forgotten by the vast proportion of the population. But the banjo itself has not been forgotten and is increasing in use and popularity. Modern day banjo playing is usually related to folk, country, traditional Irish and blue grass music but jazz musicians have been known to also use the banjo.

Many will remember the 1972 film, Deliverance, noted for the opening theme sequence “Dueling Banjos” that won a 1974 Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance.

Famous banjo players include Earl Scruggs, Burl Ives, Bela Fleck, Roy Clark and comic, Steve Martin – just to name a few. But, Eddie Peabody (1902-1970) was the celebrated “King of the Banjo” during his career which spanned five decades. Peabody was a vaudeville performer and recording artist as well as an officer in the United States Navy where he often entertained the troops with his amazing abilities on stringed instruments, the banjo being his favorite.

In contemporary America, and many other countries, banjo playing and banjo music is, thankfully, alive and well for future generations to enjoy.

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net

Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville

Community Band.

Movie Music

August 1, 2013 by Lawrence E. Anderson Leave a Comment

Going to the movies is as American as apple pie, mom and baseball. Movies have the power to arouse every human emotion in some form or another. We all have laughed; cried; been scared; felt sad; happy; elated; deflated; excited and emotionally stirred watching movies. But what greatly enhances these emotions is the music that goes with the action or drama in the movie.

Film researchers have conducted test trials showing a film without the musical background to a test group. The same group is then shown the same film with music. The reported results are exactly what one would expect. The screening with the music had a much greater emotional impact on the test group than the same film without the music. Film makers have known this simple fact for years and consequently spend a great deal of time, effort and money hiring top film composers to enhance their productions.

In some form or other motion pictures have been around for over 100 years. It wasn’t until the 1920’s that the first sound-tract was introduced in film production. It was a tremendous breakthrough in the industry. They were called “Talkies” replacing the printed subtitles that were interspersed on the screen. Sound was a revolutionary development in film-making. Actors were heard speaking for the first time and a musical background was introduced.

The evolution of music in films is a long and interesting story. In the 1920’s some early movie theaters did not have a separate projector enclosure. The projector was set up in the room where the audience was seated. Believe it or not, music was used to cover-up the sound of the projector!

Early silent films, where music was introduced, often included an orchestra, an organist or pianist positioned under the screen in the theater. Music to accompany films became so important that books and lists were provided to the musicians with ideas for particular scenes on the screen. For example, love scenes, action, comedy and dramas.

In the 1930’s it was common to use western European classical music as a mainstay in films. Then film-makers gradually began using original music composed specifically for a film. Max Steiner, in 1933, wrote an original score for the film King Kong. This is thought to be one of the very first original musical scores of early filmdom. The 1940’s saw a refinement of this and more original scores were used in film production.

Many children and adults were first exposed to great classical music through cartoons at their local neighborhood theaters. Fans of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and many other cartoons owe a lot to composer, Carl Stalling. During his 22 years, from 1936 to 1958, as a composer for Warner Brothers’ animated shorts, Stalling invented the musical vocabulary of cartoons. Stallings compositional genius and uncanny ability to borrow a tune helped make cartoon characters silly, funny and entertaining.

Until the 1950s film music was almost entirely symphonic in nature. This meant many musicians were needed to create the full orchestral sound. As jazz and pop music was introduced into movie music, at an increasing rate, fewer musicians were needed. This greatly reduced the payroll of the music budget. Obviously, producers were very much in favor of reducing expenses for production of the film.

The 1960s and 70s saw more jazz and other musical experiments, including a rock sound-tract of the 60s, continuing what began in the 50s. The 70s saw the emergence of a phenomenal film composer, John Williams. There are literally hundreds of noted film composers but it is generally acknowledged that John Williams is the most famous. Williams has won five Academy Awards, four Golden Globes and many other awards, including many Grammys, so far. His compositions include: Star Wars; Jaws; Jurassic Park; Indiana Jones; Saving Private Ryan; Superman; ET; Schindler’s List; Harry Potter; Olympic Themes; War Horse and Lincoln. He works with Steven Spielberg and George Lucas almost exclusively. Williams’ career has spanned six decades.

Other great film composers are: Maurice Garre; Elmer Bernstein; Klaus Badett; Hans Zimmer; Miklos Rozsa; Henry Mancini; Dimitri Tiomkin; Franz Waxman; Leonard Bernstein; Aaron Copland and many others too numerous to mention.

The 1980s and 90s saw the introduction of synthesized music, created by computers, often produced by a single person. Contemporary rock music became the basis for entire film scores. With these electronic innovations composers have the ability to create any sound they want, enhancing the film’s plot, characters and theme.

Through decades film music has drawn from classical; jazz; rock; pop; blues; new-age; ethnic and other world music styles. Composers usually enter in the production period near the end of shooting a film, collaborating with directors and producers about specific requests for the music. As one can imagine, timing is extremely important.

It is a well-known fact that music can be a major part of the success of any film. Without music to help create the action or drama, the end result would not be the same.

“Hooray for Hollywood” and great movie music!

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville Community Band.

Patriotic Music through the Ages

July 3, 2013 by Lawrence E. Anderson Leave a Comment

There’s nothing like the sound of a rousing Sousa march, or a touching patriotic song, to bring out pride of country in the hearts of the American people. On July 4^th our great nation celebrates the founding of our country. Celebrations would not be complete without the playing and singing of patriotic music. The month of July, 237 years ago, was a landmark time in our nation’s history. Our founding fathers had the foresight to establish the colonies into a central republic called the United States of America. Music played an important part in the beginning of this great nation.

History

Early American patriotic music usually grew out of some form of war and the outcome of the conflict. This music was used to inspire and motivate people to enlist in the military, promote valor in the field and cheer on our fighting forces. The power of music was a strong motivating force in building patriotism and love of country. It inspired emotional fervor and nationalistic pride in early times, as it does today.

Throughout history governments have empowered composers to write songs to move and motivate the populace.

Before American independence in 1776 some music classified as patriotic came from British origins. The tune Yankee Doodle was an example from this pre-independence period before the American Revolution. British soldiers mocked Americans by singing Yankee Doodle. Yankee was a negative term for Americans and Doodle meant fool or simpleton

Patriotic music first appeared in America during the Revolutionary War. Then followed the War of 1812, American Civil War, Spanish American War and the two World Wars. All of these wars contributed to a musical history of the American Republic. Some patriotic music was semi-religious in character due to the Puritan ethic of the early settlers. This form of music flourished in the 19^th Century during and after the Civil War. After this war, music focused on rebuilding America to produce a unified front.

Composers and Their Music

The Star Spangled Banner, our National Anthem, is the most famous patriotic song in America. Most people think of Francis Scott Key (1779-1843) as the writer of the anthem. Key only wrote the poem – not the music. The tune was an old English song written by John Stafford Smith (1750-1836) an English organist and composer. It was officially adopted as our National Anthem in 1931. E.E. Bagley (1857-1922) wrote the National Emblem March using part of the Star Spangled Banner in the tune. The words “…and the monkey wrapped his tail around the flagpole,” were added later to the tune.

Stars and Stripes Forever, America’s National March, is one of the most famous patriotic pieces ever written. The revered American composer—the incomparable John Philip Sousa (1854-1932) was known as the “March King.” Sousa composed Stars and Stripes Forever in 1896. The melody came to him on a sea voyage returning from Europe. “When we reached the shore, I set down the measures that my ‘brain-band’ had been playing for me, and not a note of it has ever changed,” Sousa wrote. He also composed: Washington Post, El Captain, Semper Fidelis and The Liberty Bell, among many other great songs and marches.

America The Beautiful, with music by Samuel Augustus Ward (1848-1903) and the poem by Katharine Lee Bates (1859-1929) is one of our country’s favorite songs. The words for America or My Country Tis of Thee were written by Samuel F. Smith and added to an old German tune. This music was adopted by the English for their anthem God Save the Queen.

The great song, God Bless America, (America’s unofficial national anthem) was written by Irving Berlin (1888-1989) and popularized by songstress, Kate Smith in the late 1930’s. This song has become a traditional favorite played and sung at the seventh-inning-stretch in major league baseball games in America.

George M. Cohan (1878-1942) popularized patriotic songs with You’re a Grand Old Flag, Yankee Doddle Dandy and the famous World War I song, Over There.

Other memorable patriotic songs include: When Johnny Comes Marching Home, This is My Country and God Bless the USA.

The Battle Hymn of the Republic was the rallying anthem of Union soldiers. The source of the title, for John Steinbeck’s book, “Grapes of Wrath” was found in the first verse of the poem “Battle Hymn of the Republic” by Julia Ward Howe in 1862.

Many patriotic songs owe their existence to national or international conflicts. If one examines the words of these songs they illustrate, in music and words, a history of the Republic. Throughout our country’s existence change as been a hallmark of our culture but the sentiments, pride and hope found in this genre of music remain a steady constant through the ages.

Patriotic music has influenced our military, our country’s leaders and the common man. The power of music in our country’s heritage is alive and well and will live forever in the hearts and minds of America’s citizens past, present and future.

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net

Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville Community Band.

The Piano & Cousins

June 1, 2013 by Lawrence E. Anderson Leave a Comment

“Music is enough for a lifetime but a lifetime is not enough for music.”

Sergei Rachmaninoff

Today, in many homes, one will find the piano residing in the living room or other location. Whether the instrument is played by a family member or just an elegant piece of furniture the piano is important to many. Have you ever wondered how the piano came to be? Obviously it just didn’t appear in its present state of construction one day in the past. It, like almost everything, has an origin and a history of its ancestor’s evolution to its present day form.

Piano

How does it work? The piano, a stringed-percussion instrument, produces sound by hammers striking metal strings that are stretched across a soundboard when the black and while keys on the keyboard are depressed. The piano was originally known as the ‘Pianoforte’ that literally means “soft-loud.”

Bartolomeo di Francesco Cristofori (1655-1731) is credited with the development of the modern piano we know today, in 1709. He was a harpsichord maker from Florence Italy. The early piano was first produced because an instrument was desired that had a better dynamic range (degree of loudness) than the harpsichord. The new hammer action could produce gradations of loudness that was lacking in the harpsichord. Finally performers were able to have a better mechanism to provide musical expression and varying degrees of dynamics, contrast and nuance.

Around 1720 the original piano action was improved upon and went virtually untouched for the better part of a century. Even with modern improvements during the last 300 years the modern version is very similar to Cristofori’s piano of the 18^th century.

“From 1790 to the mid-1800’s, piano technology and sound greatly improved due to the inventions of the industrial revolution,” wrote Mary Bellis in The History of the Piano. “Tonal range increased from five octaves to seven and more.”

The modern piano is so versatile it is used as a solo instrument, an ensemble instrument an accompanying instrument for vocalists and other instrumentalist in both classical and other genres. It is currently manufactured in upright and grand piano formats.

To establish a link to the piano’s present-day construction, appearance and function one must go back several hundred years to the late medieval through the renaissance, baroque and classical eras. Many string and keyboard progenitors preceded the piano; prominent among these are the clavichord and harpsichord that led to the invention and construction of the pianoforte.

Clavichord

The clavichord can be defined as a stringed keyboard instrument housed in a rectangular case. In order to produce a tone, the strings are “struck” by a mental wedge called a tangent. The name “clavichord” comes from the Latin word clavis meaning key and chorde which means string. The Harvard Dictionary of Music states the clavichord produces a very soft sound and at first hearing is often thought as disappointing. Variations in the force with which the keys are struck produce changes in loudness although not to a great extent. The instrument is limited in the range of its sound therefore it is a very sutbtle sounding instrument best heard in small intimate settings as opposed to a large concert hall or outdoors.

One of J.S. Bach’s sons, Karl Philipp Emanuel Bach, was an important composer of the most idiomatic music for the clavichord. Today there are numerous clavichord societies around the world keeping the instrument and its music alive.

Harpsichord

A rudimentary definition of a harpsichord is: a keyboard instrument similar to the piano. The strings are ‘plucked’ by a quill rather than struck by a hammer like the piano. “The harpsichord is descended from an instrument called the Psaltery; a hand-held stringed instrument played with a plectrum: a piece of quill, ivory or metal used to pluck the strings,” explained Cynthia Reeser in The History of the Harpsichord. “In the late 14th century a keyboard was added; this development soon led to the harpsichord in the early 15th century.”

Some of the early instruments, especially those made by the Italian makers, circa 1521, were somewhat small and lightly constructed. It is reported that they have a characteristically pungent, immediate, almost at times percussive tone. The Flemish style instrument from the early 17th century was more solidly constructed than their Italian cousins. Two sets of strings and two manuals (keyboards) were common and they had a fuller sound.

In general, harpsichords were used for both solo work and as an accompanying instrument in chamber groups as well as larger ensembles. It was much in favor in the Baroque period as a ‘continuo’ or bass part in numerous compositions. In the late 18th century the harpsichord was gradually displaced by the piano.

So the piano, the instrument in many of our homes, has a long and storied history. It just didn’t happen – it came about through many prototypes and the genius of talented instrument makers of the past, for whom we are so grateful.

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville Community Band.

The Music of American Graffiti

May 6, 2013 by Lawrence E. Anderson Leave a Comment

The hit movie, American Graffiti, filmed in Modesto and Petaluma, California is one of the most influential of all teen films. It depicts multiple characters going through a coming of age, dealing with decisions to attend college or reside in a small town in the early 1960’s. Songs and music greatly influence the movie and are at the heart of the film as Dee Jay, Wolfman Jack, spins records of 41 tunes from various artists on the radio throughout the film.

George Lucas wrote each scene with a particular song in mind as its musical backdrop. The cost of licensing the 75 songs Lucas originally wanted was one factor in United Artists’ ultimate decision to reject the script; the studio also felt it was too experimental — “a musical montage with no characters.” Lucas co-wrote and directed the film that was finally produced by Universal after several other film producers turned it down. This was the first time a feature film of recorded musical selections (due to a low budget) was made. (United Artists also passed on Star Wars which Lucas shelved for the time being.)

American Graffiti depicts teenagers’ relationship with hot rod cars and their obsession with radio. Disc Jockey, Wolfman Jack’s broadcasts, with his mysterious and mythological faceless voice, ties the film together. Richard Dreyfuss’s character catches a glimpse of the mysterious Wolfman in a pivotal scene in the movie.

Prominent in American Graffiti was “cruising the strip.” This brought back memories when I was in high school in the fifties. On Friday and Saturday nights, we would “drag the main,” in our “cool cars,” blasting music on the radio, on Main Street in Walnut Creek. It was a ritual that lasted for many years – part of a rite-of-passage, as depicted in the film.

Some of the, now-nostalgic, songs played in the film are Rock Around The Clock by Bill Haley & the Comets; 16 Candles by The Crests; Runaway by Del Shannon; Why Do Fools Fall in Love by Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers; Fanny Mae by Buddy Holly, At the Hop and She’s So Fine by Flash Cadillac & The Continental Kids; The Stroll by The Diamonds; See You in September by The Tempos; Surfin Safari by The Beach Boys; The Great Imposter by The Fleetwoods; Almost Grown by Chuck Berry; Smoke Gets in Your Eyes by The Platters; The Book of Love by The Monotones; The Great Pretender by The Platters; Little Darlin by The Diamonds; Peppermint Twist by Joey Dee and the Starlighters; Ain’t That a Shame by Fats Domino; Johnny B. Goode by Chuck Berry and I Only Have Eyes for You by The Flamingos.

In its purest form, Rock & Roll music has three chords, a strong, insistent back beat and a catchy melody. Early Rock & Roll drew from a variety of sources, primarily Blues, Rhythm & Blues, Country, Gospel, Traditional Pop, Jazz and Folk. These influences combined in a simple, blues-based song structure that was fast, danceable and catchy. The first wave of rock & rollers were chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Holly, Bo Diddley, Bill Haley, Gene Vincent, The Everly Brothers and Carl Perkins, among many others. These rockers set the template for Rock & Roll that was followed over the next four decades.

As the late fifties gave way to the early sixties, the rockabilly stars of the previous decade – the Everlys, Elvis and Roy Orbison, to name a few, were still having hits, but the older pop-music stars were fading away as they struggled to find material that would click with this new and energetic generation of kids. Pop music gradually became controlled by new young vocal groups, taking their power from a combination of the performer’s charisma along with the songwriting talents of the production team, who operated behind the scenes. Eventually rock artists came to be expected to write and even produce their own songs, becoming responsible for everything about how their records sounded.

The music of the late fifties, as with society in general, morphed into the early sixties without too much alteration. The films’ 1962 setting represents nearing an end of an era in American society and pop culture.Rock & Roll music as well as the teen culture of the late fifties and early sixties was obviously very different than it is today. In just a few short years the society we knew then was about to change, rather drastically, never to return to those relatively halcyon days of the past. Growing up in suburbia (Lafayette) I was a teenager in the fifties and a young man in the sixties. At times it was rather disconcerting going from the calm fifties to the sometimes tumultuous sixties that occurred during my high school and undergraduate college days.

The advent of the 1960’s ushered in a new era in contrast to the comparative quiescence of the 1950’s. A new president was elected, the first president born in the 20^th century. The hopes of many were dashed three years later with the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The Vietnam War unfortunately split the country almost in half and prompted many anti-war marches and rebellious acts. The counterculture movement was just around the corner.

Locally, the first onset of the free-speech movement was being acted out on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley by Mario Savio and others. It quickly spread across the country. It didn’t take long for some people to start calling Berkeley – “Berserkly.” These things and more had a lasting effect upon the country, socially and culturally. Thus, modern music today reflects a lot of this change.

The music associated with American Graffiti will live on in the annuals of modern American music and in the hearts and minds of those who experienced it live – and hopefully for generations to come.

Mark your calendar for the Danville Community Band’s Annual Spring Concert, Sunday, June 2, 2013 at 4 p.m., Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek. For reservations call 925-943-SHOW (7469)

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville Community Band.

The Music of American Graffiti

May 6, 2013 by Lawrence E. Anderson Leave a Comment

Mark your calendar for the Danville Community Band’s Annual Spring Concert, Sunday, June 2, 2013 at 4 p.m., Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek. For reservations call 925-943-SHOW (7469)

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville Community Band.

San Francisco Symphony Maestro Honors Famous Grandparents – Boris Thomashefsky: A Pioneer of “Borscht Belt” Entertainment.

March 29, 2013 by Lawrence E. Anderson Leave a Comment

An important and vibrant part of the early American Yiddish musical and theatrical productions was virtually forgotten until recently brought to life by none other than the eminent maestro of the San Francisco Symphony, Michael Tilson Thomas.

Tilson Thomas, the award-winning conductor, is also the primary researcher and conservator of his famous grandparents, Boris and Bessie Thomashefsky’s memorablia.

The Thomashefskys were prominent leaders of the American Yiddish Theater in the lower east side of New York City during the last of the 19^th and early 20^th centuries.

As a young boy growing up in Los Angeles, Tilson Thomas listened to his grandmother, Bessie, relate stories and sing Yiddish songs from her days as a prominent star in the Yiddish Theater. He was intrigued by these early beginnings and what was to become an important element in early musical and theatrical productions. Years later Tilson Thomas, as a tribute to his grandparents, produced The Thomashefskys: Music and Memories of a Life in the Yiddish Theater.

The Ukrainian-born Boris Thomashefsky (1868-1939; there is some disagreement that it was either 1866 or 1868) was a Jewish singer and actor who immigrated to America when he was 12 years old. As a young teenager, he almost immediately made a name for himself and was credited with one of the first performances of Yiddish theater in New York City. He was a pioneer of “Borscht Belt” entertainment.

“Bessie (aka Bessie Baumfeld-Kaufman) Thomashefsky, (1873-1962) was a turn-of-the-century superstar,” said Dan Pine, a staff writer for J Weekly. “With her husband, Boris, the Jewish immigrants were the Richard Burton and Liz Taylor of the lower east side, pioneers of a tradition that helped evolve into the Boardway musical.”

The Thomashefskys did much to shape the world of modern theater from the follies to Broadway and gave a start to many actors, composers and producers who then went on to start and own theaters and movie studios. Even the Gershwin brothers had their start with the Thomashefskys.

Boris and Bessie met in 1887. She was enthralled with the handsome 19-year-old Boris whom she saw in a Baltimore production of a Yiddish touring company. Bessie soon ran away from home to join Boris’ company. Sparks flew between the two and they married in 1891. They made a team that was virtually unmatched in Yiddish theatrical and musical productions. It should be noted that they were not the only producers of Yiddish Theater but certainly the most noted and famous. “The Thomashefskys were, without a doubt, among the most important producers of popular Yiddish culture in North America,” said Steven Zipperstein, History professor at Stanford University.

“The music of the Tilson Thomas production is captivating, warm, beautiful … is not simple music, but so well composed,” said Israeli-born soprano, Ronit Widmann-Levy. “The texts are about love, waiting for love and looking for love. The possibilities are limitless,” said singer/actor, Shuler Hensley. “It is part of New York history, not just Jewish history and the music is so outstanding and was lost for so long.”

The music was reconstructed by Tilson Thomas and it is an orchestral sound not heard in New York for many years. Older repertoire represented in the production is about 120 years old. The newest music is from circa 1920.

At the turn of the 20^th century and beyond, the Thomashefskys gave to New York and the burgeoning Jewish immigrant population, a Yiddish music and theater scene unheard of before their influence. This segment of the population was starved for entertainment and the Thomashefskys filled that need and then some.

To great acclaim, they staged original drama, comedies, their own Yiddish translations of Ibsen and Shakespeare and above all, music. So pliant was his (Boris) voice, sometimes he played women’s roles and Bessie, also was known for doing “trouser-roles” – women playing young men, according to Dan Pine.

This dramatically shows the great versatility and wealth of talent of Boris and Bessie Thomashefsky. The Tilson Thomas production recreates the rich heritage, both music and drama of a ground-breaking couple that helps to restore them as progenitors of an art form so important in early 20^th century America.

Don’t forget the Danville Community Band’s annual Blackhawk Museum Concert “Americana” Sunday, April 14, 2013 at 2:00 p.m. Free concert with museum entrance fee. Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net

Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville Community Band.

Circus Music

March 6, 2013 by Lawrence E. Anderson Leave a Comment

One of the greatest entertainment vehicles of the late 19th and early 20th centuries was the traveling circus. When the circus came to town, everyone came out to see this spectacular show. It was a major form of entertainment for many years, hence the slogan, “The Greatest show On Earth!” It still exists today. Circus music is a mainstay and is absolutely indispensible to the varied acts of the show. The music became almost a genre in itself.

The Circus Parade through the town streets offered an exciting preview of all the glories to come in the Big Top. This parade soon became a tradition in America’s smaller towns and cities. One of the most ornate and decorated wagons was the horse drawn band wagon. The musicians would play while the parade advanced down the street. The band wagon, along with the elephants and big cats, became a major attraction in the parade.

After the Civil War ended in 1865 there was a plethora of military band musicians looking for work and most of the circuses were looking for excellent musicians to fill their bands. Many of these military musicians found gainful employment with circuses.

The years 1870 to 1880 saw the size of the band increase from just several musicians to a full instrumentation concert band. Prior to 1870 very little special music was composed for the circus. After 1870 music specially composed for enhancing the entertainment aspects of the show and even certain acts like animal, trapeze and clowns were becoming the standard. By 1890 the music directors were part of the planning of the circus acts. It was obvious that by the last decade of the 19th century music had become a critical part of the circus.

The “Center Ring Concert” often occurred prior to the beginning of the show. It became so popular that people would come early just so they could hear a concert of fine music and it soon became part of the total circus entertainment. Of course, the time period was long before mass-produced recordings, radio or touring ensembles were common-place like today. In small towns this concert of classical and theatrical show music from Europe and Broadway was possibly the cultural highlight of the year in rural America.

“The Great Merle Evans” (1891-1987) called “The Toscanini of The Big Top,” was the most famous director of circus music. He conducted and wrote for the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Band from 1919 to 1969 – 50 years! He was, without a doubt, the dean of circus band directors. Evans directed over 18,250 performances without ever missing one.

Music for circus performance was at its peak around 1900. Some of the most notable composers were from the first two decades of the 20th century. Russell Alexander (1877-1915) and Walter “Woody” English (1867-1916), two very famous circus composers, were musicians in the Barnum & Bailey Band at the turn of the century.

Karl King, Fred Jewell, Charles Duble, Henry Fillmore, J.J. Richards, Al Sweet and P.G. Lowery were other famous circus music composers and musicians. These men were all leaders around 1900 to 1930, “The Golden Age of the Circus.” Many others, too numerous to mention, all contributed to the wealth of circus music.

Some of the most recognizable tunes from these great composers include: Ringling Brothers Grand Entry; Barnum and Bailey’s Favorite; Entry of the Gladiators; The Circus Bee; The Flying Trapeze; The Billboard March; Bravura; Jewells Triumphal; Lassus Trombone and Colossus of Columbia.

As more and more railroad companies came on the scene, the circuses immediately saw the advantage of using the train to transport the circus including the animals, cast of entertainers and equipment from town to town more rapidly than ever before. Special rail cars had to be built to accommodate elephants, big cats, horses and other animals that were part of the show.

In the past, the circus went to their winter quarters in Sarasota, Florida and some stayed in Peru, Indiana, the boyhood home of the famous song-writer, Cole Porter. Both places have circus museums and in Sarasota they often present live performances for visitors. Check the internet for information on these well-visited attractions.

After 1930, the circus saw a decline commensurate with the early days of the great depression and the on-set of radio and mass recordings. To learn more about circus music, history and lore contact Windjammers Unlimited, Inc. at www.circusmusic.org. The Windjammers is a society of enthusiasts who play and preserve the heritage of traditional circus music. Many thanks to Dr. Patricia Wheeler, a member of Windjammers and a flutist in the Danville Community Band, for making available resources to research this article.

Please submit your questions and comments to banddirector01@comcast.net
Visit our website at www.danvilleband.org for up-to-date information about the Danville Community Band.