With Independence Day just around the
corner, I thought it would be fun to spend July looking at various composers
distinctly known for creating an “American” sound in their music. I use
quotations in this instance because, at the end of the day, I believe it is up
to you as the listener to decide whether a piece of music has musical qualities
unique to our nation.
I find it ironic that the first
American composer to make a living solely off of writing popular songs was born
on the Fourth of July. In honor of Stephen Foster’s 188th birthday
this week, let’s spend some time looking at his music and discussing the
obvious nostalgic qualities that emanate his work.
During the Industrial Revolution (c.
1820–1870), many Americans experienced feelings of nostalgia and longed for the
simple life of plow and hearth after their move to industrial centers. At the
height of the Industrial Revolution, Stephen Foster immortalized his own
sentiments in his songs, which struck a chord for many Americans. In Foster’s work,
listeners can sense the subject of nostalgia to include the longing for a
place, person, or time. The music, lyrics, and topics in many of these songs
represent one of two different types of nostalgia as defined by Harvard
comparative literature professor Svetlana Boyom in her book The Future of Nostalgia: restorative or
reflective. This week, let’s look at each type, mapping them on to a Foster
tune that exemplifies these particular sentiments.
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| Courtesy of wikimedia.org |
