Cajun Music Pioneer - Joseph Falcon The special atmosphere of a real "fais do-do," a Cajun country dance, is captured here on this live recording by Cajun music innovator, Joe Falcon. He made the very first Cajun recording back in 1928, of "Allons a Lafayette," a version of which can be heard here. Falcon was one of the very first instrumentalists to bring together accordion and the more traditional fiddle on rural Louisiana folk songs. Though the album's less-than-perfect recording conditions occasionally blur some of the lyrics, to have a document of a "fais do-do" from 1963 is a rare treat. Falcon, who died in 1965, had a plaintive, inimitable singing voice, as this album makes clear. His wife, Theresa Falcon, who is heard here on "99 Year Waltz" and "Le Traces de Mon Buggy," has the same timbre to her voice.
Cajun Music | Entries D.L. Menard, sometimes called the “Cajun Hank Williams,” is one of the best-known Cajun songwriters. Learn more » Cajun music is an accordion- and fiddle-based, largely francophone folk music originating in southwestern Louisiana. Instrumentation Cajun music is marked by its exclusive use of the diatonic accordion (zydeco musicians, in contrast, use either the triple-row, chromatic, or diatonic accordion). A typical modern Cajun band, performing for a public dance, includes accordion, fiddle, guitar, bass, and drums. Style In a public dance setting, most Cajun songs can be described as two-steps or waltzes, in accordance with the tradition's most common dance steps. Both early recordings and field recordings made by folklorists in the homes of Cajun musicians throughout the twentieth century point to a broader array of song types than those found in public dance performance—an older tradition related to, but distinct from, the indigenous accordion and fiddle based styles. Songs
Tejano music Tejano music or Tex-Mex music (Texan-Mexican music) is the name given to various forms of folk and popular music originating among the Mexican-American populations of Central and Southern Texas. With roots in the late 19th century, it became a music genre with a wider audience in the late 20th century thanks to artists such as Selena, often referred to as "The Queen of Tejano", Mazz, Elida Reyna, Los Palominos, Ramón Ayala, Elsa García, Laura Canales, La Mafia, Jay Perez, Emilio Navaira, Alicia Villarreal, Gary Hobbs, Shelly Lares, Stefani Montiel, David Lee Garza and Jennifer Peña. Origins[edit] In the 1850s, Europeans from Germany (first during Spanish time and 1830s), Poland, and what is now the Czech Republic migrated to Texas and Mexico, bringing with them their style of music and dance. At the turn of the century, Tejanos were mostly involved in ranching and agriculture. The 1960s and 1970s brought a new fusion of cultures and the first La Onda Tejana Broadcasters. Influence[edit]
Zydeco Zydeco is a musical genre evolved in southwest Louisiana by French Creole speakers[1] which blends Cajun music, blues and rhythm and blues. Origin of term[edit] Though disputed, it is commonly suggested that "zydeco" derives from the French phrase Les haricots ne sont pas salés, which, when spoken in the Louisiana Creole French, sounds as "leh-zy-dee-co nay sohn pah salay". Initially, several different spellings of the word existed, including "zarico" and "zodico". In an alternative theory the term derives from the Atakapa people, whose forcibly enslaved women were well known for forming marital unions with male African slaves in the early 1700s. Another possible root word for zydeco is as a West African term for Musicking. Musical style[edit] Early history[edit] Early Creole musicians playing an accordion and a washboard in front of a store, near New Iberia, Louisiana (1938). Post-war history[edit] More recent zydeco artists include Lil’ Nate, Leon Chavis, Mo' Mojo and Kenne’ Wayne.
Cajun Music History A great specialty of the folk music of North America is that, like the nation itself, it is derived from several different cultures. When the Europeans migrated to the newly found American continent, they took with them the music of their lands. The music that we hear in North American nations as of today, is an evolved form of the music derived from several European folk traditions. The origin of Cajun music can be traced back to the Acadian colonists, who had settled down in the province of Acadia. What is Cajun Music Cajun music cannot be simply defined as the music of Louisiana. History of Cajun Music In 1764, several French colonists and Acadians migrated to South Louisiana form Nova Scotia (Canada). A major boost to Cajun musicians came in the 1800s, when increasing trade brought in accordions to Louisiana. The first recorded song in Cajun music history is 'Let's go to Lafayette', which was recorded by Joe Falcon and Cleoma Falcon.
Introduction to Cajun, Louisiana Creole & zydeco music By Jim Hobbs Cajun, Louisiana Creole & Zydeco Music Search home Who are the Cajuns? What is Cajun music and where did it come from? The French colonized Canada beginning in 1604, with many settling in what is now Nova Scotia but was then called Acadie. The word Cajun comes from the word Acadian. Few Acadians stayed in the port of arrival, New Orleans. The music these people brought was simple. Alan Lomax described the music of Poitou, the region in France most Acadians came from, as: solo unaccompanied ballads, lyric songs with complex texts, unaccompanied air playing on fiddles and wind instruments, unison group performances of ceremonial songs, and dance orchestras where string and wind duos play tunes in unison or in an accompanying relationship. The earliest Acadian songs were long ballads originally from France. Cajun music is first and foremost, social music. Musicians wrote original songs telling of their life in the new world. Cajun music was first recorded in New Orleans in 1928.
Salsa music Conga drums, one of the foundational instruments of salsa music. Salsa is primarily Cuban son, itself a fusion of Spanish canción and guitar and Afro-Cuban percussion, merged with North American music styles such as jazz. Salsa also occasionally incorporates elements of rock, R&B, and funk.[6] All of these non-Cuban elements are grafted onto the basic Cuban son montuno template when performed within the context of salsa.[7] Salsa as a musical term[edit] "In 1973, I hosted the television show Salsa which was the first reference to this particular music as salsa. But promotion certainly wasn't the only factor in the music's success, as Sanabria makes clear: "Musicians were busy creating the music but played no role in promoting the name salsa Globally, the term salsa has eclipsed the original names of the various Cuban musical genres it encompasses. Issues of identity and ownership[edit] The Cuban origins of the music do not conveniently fit into the pan-Latino narrative. Lyrics[edit]
Rhythm and blues "R&B" redirects here. For the modern style of music also called "R&B", see Contemporary R&B. Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B or RnB, is a genre of popular African-American music that originated in the 1940s.[1] The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a heavy, insistent beat" was becoming more popular.[2] In the commercial rhythm and blues music typical of the 1950s through the 1970s, the bands usually consisted of piano, one or two guitars, bass, drums, saxophone, and sometimes background vocalists. R&B lyrical themes often encapsulate the African-American experience of pain and the quest for freedom and joy.[3] Lyrics focus heavily on the themes of triumphs and failures in terms of relationships, freedom, economics, aspirations, and sex. The term rhythm and blues has undergone a number of shifts in meaning. History[edit] Precursors[edit]