Blues is a special musical form that reflects a person’s state of mind. Has a pronounced jazz foundation. Blues music originated at the end of the 19th century in the southeastern lands of America, in the "cotton belt". At that time, hundreds of blacks brought in by slave traders from the African continent cultivated the plantations. Work from dawn until sunset was difficult, everything had to be done by hand, and black slaves suffered. The emotional experiences of the slaves demanded a way out, and against this background the first and main variety of blues appeared - spirituals.
Blues is a true folk art, rooted in the very depths of human existence. Therefore, from cotton plantations to a new musical direction , a direct path to the stage was opened. The first spiritualists appeared. And since true art is never monotonous, parallel directions began to develop: soul, swing, boogie-woogie and others. The meaning of the word "blues" has become multivariate, all its new varieties have appeared.
New colorful music spread throughout America, gaining hundreds of thousands of fans. After some time, the blues was divided into two categories - the Mississippi Delta and Chicago. One style involved guitar accompaniment, the other preferred accompaniment of harmonics. Musical instruments organically complemented song vocals. The orchestra was attended by percussion instruments, double bass and trombones.
Soul direction
The blues manner “soul” (Soul) necessarily includes a group of wind instruments. For the most part, these are trumpets or saxophones. As the most striking example of Soul’s performance, one can cite Wilson Picket’s song “She's Lookin 'Good”, in which the dialogue of two guitars is complemented by the synchronous graces of four trumpets.
Soul performers, the most popular Aretha Fraklin and Anna King, do not allow themselves multi-layered instrumental accompaniment. Franklin has the same four trumpets and backing vocals, Anna King has a double crescendo in the middle of the composition. It's about the classic blues - "Night Time Is The Right Time" - in both cases.
Black-skinned slaves went to church on Sundays; it was a mandatory ritual. And since church services have become part of the life of the "Negro working people," music could not be avoided here either. Gospel appeared, an interesting direction in the blues. Gospel - these are church chants, mostly Christmas. They could be in choral performance or solo. The Christmas song "Silent Night, Holy Night" ("Silent Night, Holy Night") is considered a classic of the gospel.
Blues are the best way to have fun
But back to the black founders of the blues. In addition to working on plantations and Sunday church visits, people wanted to relax, have fun, and dance. Against the background of these simple human desires, another direction of the blues was born - boogie-woogie. The style is super-major, very expressive, and most importantly - perfect for dancing. Boogie-woogie was based on the repetition of six musical phrases of different layouts, but they were played in a strictly defined order. Thus the boogie-woogie formula was created. The blues are the best way to have fun, and the piano was immediately recognized as the best instrument for playing it, and it worked well on a jazz six-string guitar. Percussion instruments were also in place. Double bass organically complemented the entire musical picture.
Who performs the blues
By the middle of the twentieth century, the main blues performers were determined . These were black singers and guitarists. The peculiar syncopated rhythm of blues compositions required natural talent - it was impossible to learn. Meanwhile, they did not try to learn, there were always plenty of nuggets in music, especially in folklore. In the blues of talented performers, the ubiquitous impresario immediately noticed, offered contracts, and thus the art developed.
Blues is "sadness in the soul," if you use the exact translation from English. Melodies really sound sad and melancholy. But there are also blues compositions in the style of "rhythm and blues", which means "funny rhythms in the soul", and they sound joyful and serene. The variety of the genre is impressive. Blues is also a swing, which means “slipping away, running away”. Swing tunes can be heard endlessly, they never bother. Only experienced musicians can perform them.
Rockabilly
Following the classic blues in the early 50s of the twentieth century, the “rockabilly” style appeared , that particular kind of rock and roll that no longer corresponded to the “black” canons. However, the origin of the new genre was not in doubt - the source was the blues. Rockabilly played and sang mostly white, the most prominent performer of this genre is Wanda Jackson, a young singer, protege of rock and roll king Elvis Presley. Music critics described Wanda’s voice as “emery”, and perhaps you can’t say the other way. And the singer’s popularity surpasses even today. she ranks first in any musical rating.
Blues in the USSR
In stagnant Soviet times, blues seeped into the USSR with difficulty. Any Western music was banned. Homegrown Russian musicians tried to depict blues compositions using their instruments, but the results were more than dubious. This is understandable: if culture is alien to the Soviet mentality - how will you play here? However, gradually, young performers in the post-Soviet space managed to grasp the most important nuances of the blues, and many instrumental ensembles began to perform Negro music. Songs such as "Autumn Blues", "Night Blues" and the like sounded.
Mentality and music
Soviet performance did not stand close to the original, and in some cases was pure water profanation. How else? After all, for example, Ray Charles, the blues singer, would never have thought of performing the Russian folk song "In the garden, in the garden". There is a good proverb for all occasions: "Do not sit in your sled." Nevertheless, if the Autumn Blues performed by Russian musicians will bring joy to someone, this means that it can and should be performed. And skill will follow.
A whole layer of North American musical culture is the blues. Songs, ballads, Christmas and Thanksgiving. Blues, sad and reckless, youthfully perky and old-fashioned pensive. Blues is music in the grandest sense of the word.