How Musical Instruments Changed With Genres
This project is intended to explain how instruments evolved over time with technological advances and cultural/political influences.
ABOUT
This project was done by Rachael Loucks, Lydia Burton, and Katie Brooks. The research was divided among the group members evenly. The first eight genres' research was conducted by Katie using the Rockin' in Time book by Szatmary and notes taken from "History of Rock'n'Roll," a class taught by Dr. Snider at Berry College. The second eight genres' research was conducted by Lydia who used specific articles for genres including Country Hall of Fame website, Progressive Rock Archive website, Music Tech Student Website and Wikipedia to find her information on the genres. The final eight genres' research was conducted by Rachael who used Rockin' in Time, articles by Garofalo, and various different websites to develop her information. The information found by each of the members included general information, instruments used, how those instruments differed from previous genres and major artists who recorded music under those genres. During research, due to a lack of variation from one genre to the next, some genres were omitted because they showed no significant changes.
After research was completed, each project member uploaded their information to the Timeline used above. The Timeline tool does not have a spellcheck so some minor editing was done by Katie. Each project member uploaded their own media to each slide to provide some visual appeal to the timeline and clips were added so that each genre would be audibly represented. Finally, the final timeline was embed in this webpage by Katie and the page's design was created by all three project members.
ANALYSIS
Rock’n’Roll began with slaves having to change their native musical instruments because of slave holders rules. The drums that Africans had used at home were banned so they changed their instruments, using instruments like the diddley-bow or the banjo. The popularity of the guitar began during this time as the instrument became cheap enough for people to afford. The genre of Rockabilly which followed Rhythm and Blues was formed as people merged R&B with Western sounds of the guitar and appealed to the younger generation. Doo Wop was a genre focused on teens like Rockabilly had. These teens did not have money to buy instruments in some instances so rather they developed groups with multiple singers and they used their voices for the entirety of the music. Following this genre, guitars became popular again as beach music became widespread, the guitars had stronger strings here too so that they could bring back a blues rhythm but they continued to have multiple members in groups which had become popular during Doo Wop. Protest music emerged with artists becoming more experimental with their instruments, possibly as a way to rebel from the culture they were protesting. The British Invasion reintroduce R&B back into the United States with guitars still being used and drum kits.
Old school and Gangsta rap was technologically revolutionary because it was the first time records themselves were used as instruments. Politics and current events were also very influential in the artists’ lyrics in this genre. Hair Metal was very similar to Glam Rock in the way that they were both very concerned with appearance and being outlandish. Nu-Metal was a hybrid of the popular rap music of the time period and the pop metal sound of Hair Metal. Techno and EDM music was different from anything in the past. The use of technology made a completely different sound than any other of the previous genres and consisted largely of only instrumentals. Grunge music was different from previous genres because of its pessimistic lyrics and distorted sound. Britpop and Jam Bands acted as a rebellious force to the grunge movement and painted a rosier picture because of the now prosperous economic conditions in Great Britain. Hip Hop Pop and the Dirty South was an evolution from old school and Gangsta rap, but added a new component to the rap game – the south. It gave rap music fans a different outlet for music after the intense rivalry between the east and west coasts seemed to be getting out of hand.
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As musical trends changed through various cultural influences, so did the instrumentality used. Cultural influences and individual ideologies changed usage and music themes throughout musical history. Electronic instruments allowed for cleaner, crisper sound and amplifiers allowed music to be blasted to a larger audience. Music such as disco and heavy metal reveled in synthesizers, amplifiers, and electronic guitars. Some bands, such as punk and country rock, actively shunned newer instruments in order to preserve a more authentic sound and to make a statement against the materialism they intensely despised.