Amy Winehouse Influence

Jazz music can be traced back to the times of slavery. In America slaves were not allowed to speak their native language and were forbidden to use their drums. Music became a means of survival.

This period of time was a post World War One movement from which jazz music emerged. Jazz is “a truly indigenous musical form based off of improvisation” which included “African American blues, ragtime, and European-based popular music” (Lapsansky 243). Its roots originated in the south, where it quickly spread north because of the Great Migration of African Americans. Famous musicians like Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith became famous because of their ability to improvise (vocally and instrumentally) and their exceptional performances in big cities like New York. Jazz was so important around this time that “It was a symbol of the Roaring Twenties” (Lapsansky 244). This was because it was a genre of music for people to come together and celebrate a huge cultural and traditional change. Jazz became so popular that it spread to Europe for millions more to enjoy. The Jazz Age bridged different races, and greatly influenced American culture to what it is

Miles Davis, one of jazz’s most influential musicians with career that expanded six decades. Davis was known for his always changing style, from bebop to rock. He had been part of the bebop, cool jazz, hardbop, modal, rock-fusion movements, and shortly before his death working with hip-hop fusion. Throughout his entire career, Miles Davis preferred the audience recognize him for what he was doing then, not what he had done in the past. Over his sixty-year career he had earned several nicknames: The Sorcerer, the Prince of Darkness, and the man who walked on eggshells. In this paper, I plan to examine the influences that Miles Davis had on jazz. Starting with the bebop era, when his career first began, to his final collaboration released following his death.

Jazz was born in New Orleans about 100 years ago (early 20th century), but its roots can be found in the musical traditions of both Africa and Europe. Jazz is a form of improvisational art that rewards individual expression and demands self-collaboration. It is a rich tradition that reflects all Americans. It originated in one of the most cosmopolitan and musical places in America. New Orleans was the perfect city for all of these elements to come together, as it was a port city, a meeting place for people of different ethnic groups, and a city with nightlife where musicians had the opportunity to play together, learn from each other, and blend all of these elements. Each ethnic group in New Orleans contributed to the very active musical environment

“Even before Jazz, for most New Orleanians, music was not a luxury as it often is elsewhere - it was a necessity” (“A New Orleans Jazz History, 1895 - 1927”). Without music, New Orleans’ culture would not be the same as it is today. Jazz was not only an immense part of culture in New Orleans, but in the rest of the United States as well. Eventually, Jazz even diffused across the oceans, where different cultures gave their own twist to Jazz. A large factor to many individual cultures, Jazz widely influenced the youth on what they are and what they could be. Jazz exhibited the morals of the young generation, and therefore was a significant influence in the 1920s, not only in the United States, but in Europe as well.

Tragic heroes are not only exemplified in fictional stories, but also in the existent world. A tragic hero is a person who is destined for great success; however, their personal flaw tragically demolishes their heroic destiny. Three main theories of the tragic hero are the Aristotelian model, the Shakespearean model, and the modern tragic hero. Each model has five defining characteristics, which are nobility, hamartia, downfall, anagnorisis, and suffering. In the Shakespearean mode of tragedy, the play Romeo and Juliet best models the tragic hero. For instance, nobility is characterized by being upper class and having elevated character. Romeo satisfies both these criteria through his position as

In life, there are few things as organic as jazz music. With its raw sound and scrappy roots, one cannot help but feel life head-on whilst witnessing players produce such a sound right before their eyes. Its origins and arch are a product of the United States’ national culture and identity. Jazz exists not only as a deeply rooted form of art but as a cultural marker, particularly during its commercial peak in the first half of the 20th century. Its impact transcends borders, and it is one of the most beloved musical genres worldwide. The history, popularity and influence of jazz on human culture make it the seminal American art form.

The “AMY” documentary recently announced as an Academy Award winning for Best Documentary Film; it’s a film that captures the true life of the legendary singer and songwriter Amy Winehouse whom she is recognized for her expressive unique voice, dramatic hair style, and over-exaggerated eye makeup that made herself stand out in the crowd. “AMY” was directed by Asif Kapadia by his side producer James Gay-Rees. Kapadia and Rees try to tell the story of

Jazz is most often thought to have been started in the 1920s as this explosive movement, but that is in fact not the case. Starting in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century many African American musicians have started to explore their taste in improvising, and where better to do that than New Orleans (Anderson). Before the 1920s these jazz musicians have already been going around sharing the unique sound, but up until then, jazz had remained majorly in New Orleans. Interestingly during this period, a common jazz band would consist of a cornet, a clarinet, a trombone, and a rhythm section when at this period of time the clarinet is not commonly associated with being a jazz instrument, it moved into being the saxophone rather. A big

Blues music as a genre and form was developed by African Americans in the south of the United States at the end of the 19th century. The genre has origins in many cultures such as in African music, African-American work songs and European-American folk music. Blues music incorporates field hollers, shouts, chants, etc. The blues form, found in jazz, rhythm and blues and rock and roll, is characterized by the call-and-response pattern, and also the twelve-bar blues structure, which is the most common feature.

Michael Jackson was a great singer in his time and one of Americas’ prolific singers to ever grace the music scene. From the time he graced the music scene, he would go on to become a great singer that inspired other great singers during his period and in the future generation. Music has got a unique element that is so unifying and touching depending on the type of music one could be listening. In the history of the United States, black musicians from way back in the early days of singers such as James Brown, Prince, and Smokey Robinson have had an influence on the music culture. There are many genres today that can be traced from black musicians who popularized

The genre of blues exploded into the blues craze during the 1920’s. During this time, white record producers saw the untapped goldmine that was blues music performed by people of color. Ma Rainey was one of them, and to some, one of the first, giving her the title, ‘The Mother of Blues’. The 1920’s was not only an era of continuing homophobia from the past (although that would change, briefly, into a mild form of acceptance until the more conservative 1930’s), but also of harsh racism. And yet, one singer, Ma Rainey’s, broke these restrictions. Her audience and shows flourished with both whites and blacks, peacefully mingling together to behold Ma’s performances. In this era taut with fear over race, both whites and black adored her.

Due to the reputation of Herbie Hancock, there are publications about him, ranging from books, journals, interviews to dissertations. Topics of these literatures cover almost everything about him from Herbie Hancock to his language of music.

Over all, the Evening of Jazz was good example of Blues and Jazz music genre, from the clothes to the style of songs chosen, without the clothes the Blues would not have felt Blues. The E.V.I., from the Big Band, was an unique instrument with a strangely pleasant sound for Jazz much like the Vibraphone, from the Jazz Combo, and this brought a different feel yet was able to keep the authentic tone to the genre by adding a

She had the crowd sing with her soulful and husky style of singing. The wider audience first known her as that croaky songstress side by side by Eminem on the hit single ‘Stan.’ It must be true that her appearance with Eminem allowed her to charm a wider scope of audience however, unknown to majority of worldwide music patrons, she is already a big thing in the UK.