Cultural Influence On African American Music

Music evolves through time due to different cultural influences. Since their unfortunate immigration through the trans-Atlantic slave trade into America, Africans brought their musical backgrounds with them to separate the western musical identity compared to European music. Once freed from oppression, African American culture and music diversified the sound of the Christian church. As the acceptance of African Americans increased, their music also was also accepted into white society and directed where music evolved. Without the influence of black culture, the progression and sounds of western music would have never been possible. The movement of African captives by Europeans to America and European countries was known as the trans-Atlantic slave trade, which “began in the 15th century” (Adi). Africans were enslaved to do difficult labour, such as building railroads and working on plantations, for little to no cost for their owners. Africans tried to hold

Jazz’s rhythm was influenced by the music of West Africa because of the use of contrasting rhythms in the music, known as polyrhythmics. Jazz also differed from European music because “European classical music achieved complexity in the harmonies of their music, African music developed very complex patterns in the rhythm of music” (Osborne). Vital for both jazz and blues was the use of improvisation, which shared relation to music created by Africans. In Africa, music was played or sung by ear, passed down from person to person, and was not transcribed very often. The sounds of blues and jazz gained popularity in America and especially down in the southern states, where there was a greater population of African Americans. Although blues and jazz were dominated by black musicians and singers, many white American musicians were also heavily influenced by the sounds of black