Traditional music
It should come as no surprise to anyone, but Louisiana's musical tradition is singular in every way. Very roughly speaking, it can be divided into two families that have always existed side by side and intermingled: Creole music (from which Zydeco is descended) and Cajun music.
Cajun music is that of the Cajuns of southwest Louisiana. It draws its roots directly from old French folklore (that of Poitou, from which the Acadians are descended), full of wild rhythms played on diatonic accordion and fiddle. A unique aesthetic and French lyrics that, for a long time, were only transmitted orally. The old tunes of parents and grandparents were played by ear, and this is how the heritage was passed down through the generations. Originally typically Acadian, Cajun music has been enriched over time with country and blues accents, nourished by the Louisiana melting pot of Creoles, Italians, Spaniards and African-Americans. Each generation has brought its own touch to Cajun music, which has seen the birth of iconic musicians such as Dennis McGee, a pioneer, The Hackberry Ramblers, highly influential, and Dewey Segura, a seminal figure via the duo he formed with his brother.
Today, while Wayne Toups is the man to whom Cajun music owes its greatest commercial success, and Steve Riley and The Mamou Playboys are at the top of the bill, other equally high-profile artists embody Cajun music, starting with Michael Doucet (1951). A Scott-born violinist, he has worked for decades for the recognition and revival of Cajun music, of which he is considered one of the leading experts. Through his work, Michael Doucet has brought many old Cajun tunes back to life. In addition to his group BeauSoleil, he has collaborated extensively with the Savoy couple in the Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band. This is an opportunity to talk about another very important figure in Cajun music: Marc Savoy (1940). Born in Eunice, this accordionist grew up in a family of Cajun balls. A purist and defender of traditional Cajun music, the cultural center he opened in Eunice is a world-renowned stopping-off point for lovers of the genre, who come to jam or buy his accordions, reputed to be among the best in the world. Still among Cajun musicians, let's not forget to mention Zachary Richard, one of North America's most important Francophone artists, whose compositions are a true blend of Louisiana flavors.
A legend of Cajun music, Amédé Ardoin (1898-1942) was a great accordionist of his time, also considered a pioneer of Creole music, of which he made some of the first recordings in the late 1920s. Creole music arrived in Louisiana in the early 19th century, when tens of thousands of refugees, including freed ex-slaves, settled there from the West Indies - most of them from French-speaking Haiti. Louisiana Creole music developed on the plantations of French and Spanish settlers, steeped in the syncopated rhythms of African origin. A century later, around 1930, these Creole sounds, combined with Cajun music, blues and rhythm'n blues (and later jazz and country), formed the basis of zydeco. This exciting, unifying and joyful blend never leaves anyone unmoved, and owes its name to a distortion of the word "haricots" (" zarico "), in reference to a traditional song Les haricots sont pas salés. Notable performers in the genre include Clifton Chenier, the boss, Queen Ida Guillory, zydeco's first woman, Cedric Watson, a staple, or Rockin' Sidney Simien, who wrote My Toot Toot, the genre's big hit.
There's nothing like a live performance to savor Cajun and zydeco music - and a chance to see in action that curious object, the washboard (also known as a "scrubber") which, along with the accordion, is the main instrument of zydeco.
For a taste of Louisiana's Cajun soul, there are two not-to-be-missed events: the Festival Acadiens et Créoles in Lafayette, with its many concerts of Cajun and zydeco music every October, and the Mudbug Madness in Shreveport, now one of the most famous events in the Deep South, featuring all kinds of southern music (zydeco, Cajun, blues, jazz...). Otherwise, in Breaux Bridge, the famous Saturday Zydeco Breakfast at Buck & Johnny's is a must.
Jazz
What city better embodies jazz than New Orleans? For it was here that this great musical revolution, full of protest, was born at the beginning of the 20th century. Its origins can be traced back to three currents: African traditions (songs and percussion handed down from generation to generation), ragtime, a black music inspired by quadrille tunes, and the music of the marching bands that enlivened parades, funerals and balls.
If it's difficult to precisely define a genre as protean as jazz, it's even harder to pinpoint the origin of the name. Derived from the French verb "jaser" for some, from erotic slang (" jizz ") for others, there's no shortage of anecdotes to tell the birth of the term jazz. In New Orleans, we like to tell the story that when the word first appeared - in the 1910s - people used to say " I am goin' jazzing " (in reference to Jezebel, a biblical character) when they went to the prostitutes' district (Storyville). Since jazz was born in Storyville, it would have been called jazz music by derivation. In fact, it was in the neighborhood's cabarets that jazz achieved its first successes. When Storyville closed in 1917, musicians fled to Chicago and then New York. Thus began the jazz diaspora.
The New Orleans style reached its apogee in the hands of musicians like King Oliver and Sidney Bechet. This is the purest, most traditional form of jazz, respecting the aesthetics of its origins in the 1910s. Inspired by blues and ragtime, it takes the opposite tack from Chicago jazz, where the emphasis is on solos and fast tempos, and the saxophone is more prominent. Musically, in the New Orleans style, brass predominates, and the trombone accompanies the trumpet in an offbeat manner. Generally speaking, the trumpet is in charge of the melodic theme and variations. The trombone takes care of the bass, while the clarinet embroiders from low to high. The creativity of the musicians is frequently expressed in breaks that place them fleetingly in the position of soloists.
In the 1930s, jazz moved out of the intimate confines of cabarets and onto popular stages. It was synonymous with joie de vivre and carefree living. Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie innovated, adding new harmonies to the bebop movement of the post-war years. A real break with the original New Orleans style. Jazz was initially praised in Europe, where it was considered an art form, whereas in the United States it was considered " nigger music ". From 1960 onwards, blacks and whites expressed themselves on an equal footing in the same groups: jazz, a protest music, became universalist. It was a time of freedom, and free jazz, freed from all formal constraints, triumphed, led by giants such as John Coltrane and Ornette: John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman and Sun Ra.
A number of musicians from New Orleans played a key role in the development of the style, notably Jelly Roll Morton (1890-1941), born Ferdinand Joseph Lamothe, who quite simply claimed to have invented jazz in 1901. He composed an opera and ragtimes, and was the first to play his repertoire to jazz rhythms.
But if Morton is the first, the godfather remains the famous Bunk Johnson. William Geary Johnson, known as Bunk (1879 or 1889-1949), was born and died in New Orleans, but spent many, many years in New Iberia. A trumpeter who cut his teeth with Buddy Bolden, a pioneer in the field, he made a living not only from music, notably aboard the paddlewheelers that cruised the Mississippi, but also from odd jobs at the Tabasco factory and Conrad's rice mill. Rumor has it that he taught Louis Armstrong how to play jazz, but he certainly played a major role in the movement, and represents a milestone in the history of jazz. Fans of the artist visiting New Iberia should not hesitate to visit his grave(Bunk Johnson Grave) in St. Edward's Cemetery, the Bunk Johnson Jazz Collection Room, where you can consult documents, original scores and instruments that once belonged to him, or the Bunk Johnson Mural, a mural in his honor.
In the following generation, a number of local artists transformed the genre into a revolution. Starting with the giant Louis Armstrong (1901-1971). We won't insult you by introducing you to the world's best-known jazz trumpeter. After his international tours, the man nicknamed Satchmo (from satchel, "saddlebag", because when he blew his trumpet, it looked like he had saddlebags for cheeks) always returned to his hometown, where he distributed dollars and gifts to the underprivileged. A statue has been erected in the park that bears his name(Louis Armstrong Park).
Alongside him, Sidney Bechet (1897-1959) was the other key jazzman of the era, shaping the New Orleans style. Many discovered jazz thanks to this talented clarinetist. Although a Louisiana native, he lived in France, his adopted homeland, which he particularly loved. One of his greatest classics, Petite Fleur, was recorded there. Sidney Bechet lived a large part of his life in Garches, in the Hauts-de-Seine region of France, where he died surrounded by his family. A bust of him donated by France to New Orleans is also installed in Louis Armstrong Park. Let's not forget to mention another star of the era, Louis Prima, also a native of New Orleans, who brought the city's style to fruition with an Italian crooner tone.
In the next generation, Al Hirt (1922-1999) was the local big name. A trumpeter since the age of 6, he played in countless concerts across the country and around the world, taking jazz into more Latin, pop and classical territory. One of his companions, clarinetist and saxophonist Peter Fountain Jr. (1930-2016), was also a big name in New Orleans. This jazzman forged his own sound and his reputation continued to grow, playing with some of the best jazz bands in the country and, above all, opening his own jazz club, a New Orleans landmark for decades. In the 1970s, New Orleans followed the free-spirited trend of the genre with a few experimenters like the fabulous drummer Idris Muhammad.
After them, the city continued to cultivate jazz intensely, with each generation seeing the emergence of its share of exciting artists. The most famous is undoubtedly Harry Connick Jr. the famous crooner who never ceases to pay tribute to his city(The Marsalis Family: A Jazz Celebration, or Oh my Nola). But by far the most interesting (and adored) is Wynton Learson Marsalis. Known in France as the godfather of the Jazz in Marciac festival in the Gers region, this son of a pianist is the most eminent member of a jazz family, his brothers Branford (saxophonist), Delfeayo (trombonist) and Jason (drummer) also being renowned musicians. In short, the Marsalis family is a benchmark in jazz, and Wynton is widely regarded as a composer and trumpeter of genius. Less well known than the latter, Nicholas Payton is also part of this generation that experiments with the avant-garde while refusing to ignore the traditions of old jazz. This elusive, committed trumpeter-pianist-singer stands out for his brilliant, powerful playing.
Following in their footsteps, the younger generation of New Orleanians is looking for hybridization, on the one hand with Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah and his avant-garde jazz, a sorcery made of hip-hop, funk and electro, and on the other with artists looking a little more for sales like Trombone Shorty, who turns his city's jazz heritage into mainstream R&B, or Jon Batiste, spearheading a new pop-jazz scene.
New Orleans is criss-crossed with jazz clubs, and the hardest part is choosing from the plethora on offer. Among the must-sees, the Snug Harbor is a restaurant especially famous for its jazz scene, while the mythical Preservation Hall remains the most perfectly authentic setting for listening to New Orleans jazz. Last but not least, you can't beat Bacchanal for the quality of its concerts, or Le Bon Temps Roulé for its unique ambience.
As for festivals, Louisiana is known for two major events: firstly, the Jazz Fest(New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival), which has become one of the most important in the South, inviting the cream of American jazz (late April - early May), followed by the Lafayette International Festival. Usually held at the same time, the two festivals have many artists in common, except that in Lafayette, the festival is free. A good deal for music lovers passing through at this time of year. Less well known but just as good is the annual Satchmo Summerfest, held on the first weekend in August, offering two days of lectures, debates, screenings and, of course, jazz-themed concerts. You can hear everything from the local brass band to the more famous, nationally renowned groups.
Blues and R&B
Which American musical style has left the greatest imprint on world music? Very possibly the blues. It was born in the sugar cane and cotton fields of the Mississippi Delta. It's a style of music that's deeply connected to the emotions, since a joyful tune can suddenly tip over into the deepest melancholy! It wasn't until the mid-1950s that the term R&B (rhythm'n'blues) was coined, an evolution of the genre in which vocals were joined by a variety of instruments: guitar, trumpet and drums.
More electric, it was at this time that amplification was introduced. The genre also benefited from more varied structures, drawing on jazz, country and gospel. It began to invade the southern United States, then spread to the rest of the country and Europe. Many Louisiana artists launched the blues legend and were among the first to make recordings, from Huddie "Leadbelly" Ledbetter, a key figure in Southern blues, to Danny and Blue Lu Baker and boogie heavyweight Champion Jack Dupree. The contribution of Louisiana musicians, composers, producers and sound engineers was a major factor in the development of R&B throughout the country. As New Orleans-born Fats Domino became a national star with songs like Walking to New Orleans, record companies in New York and Los Angeles began sending big-name artists like Little Richard to record in New Orleans. Pairing them with local musicians meant national hits! Other musicians such as Smiley Lewis, Professor Longhair and Johnny Adams also contributed to the history of R&B. Today, this musical tradition is still going strong in Louisiana clubs, with legendary figures such as Irma Thomas, the queen of New Orleans soul music, often compared to Aretha Franklin or Etta James, the Neville Brothers, local R&B greats, and more recently Sarah McCoy. The latter, nicknamed the Punk Diva, has a powerful voice and a deep blues sound reminiscent of Tom Waits.
For traditional blues tunes, fans should head to the House of Blues. Even if the establishment is part of a chain (Chicago, Las Vegas...), the one in New Orleans has become a must-see in the city, offering some very good concerts in the field.
Rock, soul and funk
The richness and grandeur of Louisiana's black music history naturally extends to the rock and funk movements of the second half of the 20th century. In the first, two major figures emerged here: Jerry Lee Lewis (1935-2022), a singer and pianist known the world over for his hits Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On and Great Balls of Fire, as well as for his rock'n'roll private life. The other bayou legend is Dr. John (1941-2019), pianist, guitarist and singer whose work brought together blues, boogie woogie, zydeco, Cajun music and rock'n'roll.
As for funk, it's less well known that the town really did have a signature sound. The best way to realize this is to listen to the magnificent compilations by Soul Jazz Records, soberly entitled New Orleans Funk, which feature the city's sticky, sweaty funk and its emblematic artists: The Meters, Lee Dorsey, Eddie Bo and Betty Harris.
Gospel music
Deeply rooted in Louisiana, gospel music grew out of the songs of the first slaves, some of them in the Anglo-Protestant tradition. Spirituals were the first forms of gospel. Bringing their religious faith closer to their own existence and living conditions, the pre-war slaves used these songs to express their suffering and their hope for a better life in the hereafter. Gospel music still colors Louisiana's religious ceremonies with its a cappella vocal harmonies and highly rhythmic sacred songs. Every Sunday, from dawn to dusk, quartets deliver masterful interpretations accompanied by organ, guitar and drums. Gospel groups also perform in clubs and at Louisiana's many festivals. Gospel music can also be found in hybrid forms, incorporating blues, jazz, soul and rap.
One of the great ladies of gospel music was born in Louisiana: the famous Mahalia Jackson (1911-1972). Born in New Orleans, she made her debut at the age of 4 in a Baptist choir. Her first recording dates from 1937. Thomas A. Dorsey, a master of gospel music, became her mentor. She popularized over 400 songs, including the masterful Precious Lord Take My Hand. In addition to appearances on television and radio, she toured Europe, notably France, where she was acclaimed in Paris. At the 1964 Civil Rights March in Washington, she introduced Martin Luther King's speech and his historic I Have a Dream with a memorable spiritual I Been 'Buked and I Been Scorned. She attended his funeral and paid tribute with Precious Lord. The Mahalia Jackson Theater was named in her honor. It is located in Louis Armstrong Park near the municipal auditorium.
There's no shortage of opportunities to hear gospel music in Louisiana. Concerts open to the public are sometimes held, for example at St. Augustine Church, one of Treme's must-see venues. Alternatively, theAbita Springs Opry offers a year-round concert series featuring country, bluegrass and gospel.
The rap
It's not just East Coast or West Coast rap in the USA. Louisiana and the South as a whole played a major role in the field, establishing the style known as " dirty south " in the early 2000s. In the early 1990s, rapper Master P and his label No Limit Records began to establish Louisiana in the geography of global hip-hop.
But it was really at the turn of the 2000s that Louisiana rap exploded, first with rapper Juvenile, then with Lil Wayne, whom many (still) consider the best rapper in history. Signed at just 12 years of age by rapper Birdman to his Cash Money label, Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (real name) overturned the codes of hip-hop by imposing a new, slower and more intense way of rapping. His sixth album, Tha Carter III, released in 2008, sold over a million copies in the USA in its first week, establishing him as one of the stars of the genre, with timeless hits such as A Milli and Lollipop . Lil Wayne has sold over 120 million records worldwide, and was the first male artist to overtake Elvis Presley for the most chart hits. A phenomenon.
Since then, Louisiana rap has continued to thrive in the hands of a new generation, notably led by Baton Rouge natives Kevin Gates and YoungBoy Never Broke Again, or the more R&B Dawn Richards from New Orleans.
