Racial Tension in the 1930's

               Since the early history of jazz, this art form and its development have been heavily talked about as being closely associated with issues of race. The Africans brought to America during the times of the Atlantic Slave Trade brought with them many key elements necessary to the creation of jazz, and the genre was widely considered a “black art form” and is still often associated with African American artists even today. Although this link between jazz music and race has always existed, it was not until the 1930’s that greatly tangible racial tensions began to arise in America, making race one of the most important aspects of the genre’s existence at the time.

               This flaring racial tension was built up largely due to the increasing popularity of jazz, which meant that there inevitably would be more and more financial gain possible for artists within this genre. While jazz was still looked down upon by high culture even into the 1930’s, the younger people of the time were becoming enthralled with this music, listening to it in dance halls and sweeping the nation with new dances to accompany it like the Jitterbug and the Charleston (Lecture, 2/14/13). By patronizing these dance halls and creating these styles of dance, young Americans were allowing jazz to assimilate progressively into their popular culture. Due to this rise in popularity, many jazz artists could not afford to be as concerned with the artistic value of their music; rather, they were forced to be concerned with the mass appeal and profitability of their musical endeavors (Lecture, 2/14/13). The impact of the Great Depression during this time only increased the need for a musician’s mainstream appeal as there was little money to go around during this era.

               With jazz becoming a widespread phenomenon with more and more artists involved in it, any given jazz musician had to truly stand out among the crowd in order to be well off financially. This was especially hard for African Americans, as they were not exposed to the same opportunities to play shows as whites were. For example, many big bands comprised of white musicians were able to secure places at concerts more easily than bands made up of blacks. Not only this, but the audiences of many concert and dance halls were racially segregated at the time, further polarizing the power within the genre (Lecture, 2/12/13). This polarization was strengthened even more by the fact that almost all jazz critics in the 1930’s were white (“Swing Changes,” 52). Whites being dominant as jazz critics meant that they were essentially able to dictate what was acceptable within the genre while blacks could say little in return. This imbalance of power contributed greatly to the racial tension brewing in the 1930’s.

                This tension can be further exemplified by looking at the career of Benny Goodman. Goodman advanced jazz in many ways and is remembered today as the “King of Swing.” In 1937, Goodman, a white man, squared off against Chick Webb, a black man, in a “swing battle” at the racially desegregated Savoy in Harlem. Although Webb is believed to have won this battle overall, Goodman is still called the King of Swing to this day, showing the imbalance of racial focus in jazz music at this time (Lecture, 2/14/13). Additionally, Goodman was one of the first to take the radio by storm as this new medium gained prominence in the 30’s. As Gioia puts it, “Goodman sent this apparatus into motion with a vengeance,” (129). This meant that mainstream America was becoming accustomed to jazz music on a large scale that was coming from white musicians, taking away from jazz’s influence as an African American art form. Goodman also advanced jazz by being the first jazz musician to play at Carnegie Hall in 1938. In this performance he also incorporated a few black musicians; this action can be seen as a step towards racial integration within jazz at this time (Lecture, 2/14/13). In other words, Goodman may have been responsible for both an increase and a decrease in racial tensions in the 1930’s.