What best describes the origins of the blues?
The blues originated on Southern plantations in the 19th Century. Its inventors were slaves, ex-slaves and the descendants of slaves—African-American sharecroppers who sang as they toiled in the cotton and vegetable fields. A decade or so later the blues gave birth to rhythm ‘n blues and rock ‘n roll.
Where did the original Blues come from what did it sound like?
Blues has evolved from the unaccompanied vocal music and oral traditions of slaves imported from West Africa and rural blacks into a wide variety of styles and subgenres, with regional variations across the United States.
How did the blues emerge from slavery?
The birth of the blues The majority of blues musicians had descendants from Africa who were transported to America in the slave trade and were forced to work on plantations in the South, and factories in the North. Enslaved people would sing work songs while working the plantations and religious spirituals in church.
What two continents influenced blues music?
Originating with the African-American communities in the 19th century “Deep South”, Blues music found its influences in the folk music of the European and American continents, as well as traditional African music and old spirituals and songs sung by slaves.
Why is blues called the devil’s music?
Because the early bluesmen and women were the downtrodden illiterate descendants of slaves who were not seen as skilled enough to work as servants or in other reputable functions, blues was not considered respectable. To most blacks, blues was the Devil’s music. …
Did blues music come from slavery?
Contrary to what some people believe, the blues is not “slave music.” Although it was cultivated by the descendants of slaves, the blues was the expression of freed African Americans. The beginnings of the blues can be traced to the late 1860s, arguably the most vicious and violent period in the United States.
When did the blues get popular?
1920s
Bessie Smith and Robert Johnson made the blues style very popular in the 1920s. By the 1940s and 50s, the style had developed further and included a range of other instruments. This style was called rhythm and blues, r’n’b, and was usually played on electric guitar and bass.
Where did Blues get its name ‘the Blues’?
Why is blues music called “the blues”? The name of this great American music probably originated with the 17th-century English expression “the blue devils,” for the intense visual hallucinations that can accompany severe alcohol withdrawal. Shortened over time to “the blues,” it came to mean a state of agitation or depression.
Which is music styles had been originated from blues?
Blues rock which is considered a hybrid form of blues also originated from blues where blues music was combined by various forms of rock and roll music to form blues rock which also become famous in the 1970s. Blues music genre has for long time served as the backbone of almost all the music genre and other music yet to be developed.
What is the history of the Blues?
The blues has deep roots in American history, particularly African-American history. The blues originated on Southern plantations in the 19th Century. Its inventors were slaves, ex-slaves and the descendants of slaves—African-American sharecroppers who sang as they toiled in the cotton and vegetable fields.
Where does blues music originate from?
Blues is a music genre and musical form originated by African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the end of the 19th century. The genre developed from roots in African musical traditions, African-American work songs, and spirituals.