STANLEY tells it all – Studying Sousa – style/1
An important part of musicality is the awareness and command of style. Always an interesting subject, which we can look at from different angles. Let’s start with the easy one. The uniform approach by the US military bands, which gradually evolved, is quite different from those in the European countries. John Philip Sousa played his part in this.
Sousa wrote in his autobiography ‘Marching Along’ a.o. about his concert tours in Europe. One of the remarks he made was related to the differences in style between the European bands. The German bands sounded German, the British, the French, the Italian, etc., well one can guess.
Apparently, Sousa didn’t like it at all. He promoted a more generic or universal style. Years later, several scholars explained this as Sousa’s way of creating Americanism in music. Was it? Is it possible Sousa liked to provoke a little here and there? E.g. in order to influence the discussion concerning?
Looking at the time period when Sousa lived, one would imagine he was used to hearing different styles. The number of nationalities of those coming to America in the second half of the 19th century was staggering. All brought their own history, culture and music, so one may expect and even assume of those born in America during that era to embrace this diversity.
Next to that Sousa’s father was born and raised in Spain, his mother in what is now called Germany. For his early music lessons, Sousa was taught by a musician from Italy. These are three of the most influential countries in the development of classical music. Different styles must have been a subject of his teaching, resulting in at least awareness and a certain level of command. Still, Sousa didn’t like it, or so he said. Maybe it had nothing to do with him being American, but all with his personal taste? Who knows? Maybe he wanted to mix things up and needed a narrative?
National sounding bands and orchestras as Sousa called them, are rare these days. This typical outing of 19th century nationalism has gone. Globalization plays a large role here. So in the end Sousa had it his way, although it took several decades to achieve. The abundance of American movies and tv-series brought the sound of the American studio orchestras in everybody’s ears. Since the mid 90’s this gradually lead to a change in tone color, overall sound and acceptance of this style, both in symphony orchestras and wind bands alike.
To be continued.
Stanley E. van Wel MM – Music Director
Posted on LinkedIn.com dated 15 February 2024