Hi readers! In this post, I’m going to give a brief and abridged synopsis of the first roots of music within colonial America.
During this time period, many different ethnic groups were present throughout colonial America as migration to the New World occurred (mainly the British, Spanish, and Native Americans). These groups brought their culture with them as they settled, which included musical traditions and religion. Within these groups, religion was a major influence on their music’s purpose within society, style, and topics.
Native Americans, who had resided within North America, used music within religious practices. For example, music was used to enhance rituals and ceremonies, when working to pass the time, when courting or professing love, or to please the spirits. Also, different songs had different “powers,” such as healing or good luck. Music would be used in these practical manners in daily life, and wasn’t created for entertainment; additionally, natives believed that music was received in a vision or dream, and was owned by someone. The style of these pieces were influenced by religion since a group would be participating in the singing most often, or a solo voice; because of this, there was usually one line of melody, and vocables were commonly used. The topics of music were influenced by what people were doing when the song was being played; if the music was used in a particular ceremony, it would relate to the ceremony’s topic, or if a song accompanied a specific task, it would relate to the task.
Many British settlers, especially those in the New England colonies, came to America seeking religious freedom from England. The main religion of these settlers in the New England region were Puritans. Puritans broke away from the Church of England for many reasons and differences, one of the differences being the role music played within church ceremonies. In Europe, complicated pieces were played during mass, specifically at Catholic Churches; Puritans believed this detracted from the message of the music, which was to worship and focus on God, so Puritans used simple songs. Another debate between many religious groups was whether religious songs could be composed, which were called hymns, or had to have the message directly taken from the Bible, which were known as Psalms. Simple songs with little instrumental accompaniment were used during church services so that the congregation, which composed of illiterate, uneducated people, could easily understand the song’s message and be able to sing along easily; because of this, similar or the same melodies would often be used between music in church services with the words being changed. Similar to the Native Americans, music was viewed as having to have a practical purpose; however, settlers would sing hymns or variations of hymns outside of mass as well for general enjoyment at home with guests.
Religion also affected the music within Spanish societies in the Americas. When the Spanish were conquering and settling throughout the southern part of North America, they were trying to convert Native Americans to Christianity, specifically Catholicism. At missions, alabados, or Spanish hymns, would be used to teach and promote Christianity to the Natives; evidence of this at missions remained since instruments and written hymns were found at abandoned sites. In alabados, the rhythm would conform to the words, showing that the message from the songs was important.
Although music was heavily influenced by religion in the past, it varies in the present. Some popular or well-known songs reference or have obscure religious meaning; however, it varies by genre. For example, the Christian-rock genre of music is completely influenced by religion. Country music also has more influences of religion than some other genres, like rap or hip-hop, since the culture of country music and artists of the genre generally grew up in areas or regions where religion was an important aspect of life.
Overall, American music is extremely eclectic, and is characterized by these cultures and many more. The developments in well-known styles like jazz, rock, and pop music all have been heavily influenced by one or more cultures, and this trend of borrowing continues throughout the progression of American music from its beginnings.
In the future, I might do a couple more of these music history posts, so let me know what you think! And remember to keep feeling those good vibes!
SBR
Good Vibes 