all our discussions about Blues has got me wondering more about the origin of this genre. Most experts say that the basis of the Blues is in spirituals/slave songs. But to me (and I am definitely not an expert on African music!), those spirituals sound nothing like any traditionaly African music that i have heard. And they are nothing like the white music of that era. so it seems that these spirituals, the foundation for the Blues, came out of nowhere. This in itself is surprising, but even more amazing to me is how widespread the phenomenon was. it seems like the Blues was a prevalent musical type in the South very early in its origination, but how is that? did slaves really travel enough and interact enough with other slaves to be able to teach their music to them? or did music legitimately grow out of those trapped in the same type of life situation and just happen to be similar/the same? i just cant figure where exactly this music form come from!
Posted by palazzolocm at January 27, 2005 02:48 PM