[Dixielandjazz] Jazz in Russia and other east European countries.

[Bert Brandsma]

Jazz in Russia in the 1920´s in not so strange. Tommy Ladnier was succesfull there as well.There was no Iron curtain at that time, and they had record players and long distance radio as well.Traveling through Europe became more difficult for African Americans after say 1935, when the Nazi regime in Germany became more powerfull.For white musicians it was possible at least till 1940 to tour.Jack Hylton´s band had to leave Coleman Hawkins behind, when they had a tour through Germany, for example. Hawkins played a lot in Belgium, France, and Holland till those countries were occupied. Also in Switzerland. (never occupied)

What I also learned when touring Dresden (former Eastern Germany) and Poland was that also during the time the Iron Curtain was effective, (that started really after WW2), there always have been bands playing jazz in those countries. Dresden had a big trad jazz festival long before the curtain dissapeared. This was possible since one influential person there loved it and said that jazz was the music of the poor African American slaves. So music from the people, not the American government.In Dresden they even invited Western European bands. There is a story going that the Major of Dresden once asked a musician from the UK if they had ever been in that town before.The trombonist didn´t want to answer, since he had been there dropping bombs from an airplane, during WW2.

Also in Poland there always were jazz bands active, kind of underground from the publicity, but it was not really secret in places like Warszawa.

Even during the war in Germany jazz was played. Certainly in the first years, simply because the USA entered the war later, so until 1941 it was not too big an issue.After that there came (impossible and strange) rules, English titles were forbidden, so the musicians simply made up their own translations of the titles. The music stayed the same.Also drum solos longer than so many bars were forbidden. When I remember correctly, drum solos longer than 2 bars in Negro style were forbidden. An imitation of this was allowed not longer then 4 bars. So look out while doing a drum solo!

Another aside, jazz was liked by many German people during WW2. Many listened secretly to the USA and UK radio. Even many nazi officers.It only were the rules by government and Kulturkammer that officially forbade it. That didn´t mean it wasn´t there.

Traveling through Europe became more difficult the longer the war lasted for all civilians. Jazz music was still being played, only by local musicians, and less public.A reason was that there was not many demand for music and in the last years no money to pay for musicians. Europe was a big mess then, people were simply hungry and had lots of problems, one issue was simply how to find food.When the war ended there suddenly was demand for music without end. Every person able to play two notes had a gig. Certainly if you knew the newest jazz tunes.
Kind regards,

Bert Brandsma

www.dixielandcrackerjacks.com




On Jul 9, 2010, at 8:15 PM, Jack Mitchell wrote:[Verberg aangehaalde tekst]Stephen G Barbone wrote:"In 1962, Ms. Sherrill was the singer in a band assembled by BennyGoodman that performed throughout the Soviet Union. The Goodman tour,sponsored by the State Department, was the first by an American jazzensemble behind the Iron Curtain."Quite true, but I think it relevant to this group to mention that an Australian dixieland band the SOUTHERN CROSS JAZZ BAND played in Moscow in July, 1957, recorded a 10" LP there that was released in Australia, and appeared in a Russian movie. Travelling across China and Russia in the trans Siberian railway, they entertained appreciative crowds at every stop along the way.Yep and  relevant to mention that the first jazz concert in Russia took place in Moscow on October 1, 1922. The band  "The First Jazz Band of the Republic" was Russian and led by dancer, Valentin Parnakh. They were later employed by theatre director, Vsevolod Meyerhold, in one of his plays where the sounds of live jazz represented "Western reality." It included piano, saxophone, clarinet, trombone and drums.  BTW, Pablo Picasso painted a portrait of Mr. Parnakh.The first American jazz band to perform in Russia was drummer Benny Payton's Jazz Kings in 1926, with the legendary Sidney Bechet on clarinet.  This hot New Orleans-style band spent several months performing in theatres and ballrooms in Moscow, Kharkov, Odessa and Kiev; Bechet had to extend his Soviet visa for a while, because he needed a few weeks in a hospital to recuperate from drinking too much Russian Vodka. That same year, London-based  Sam Wooding Orchestra toured Moscow and Leningrad as part of European musical revue Chocolate Kiddies. The band also consisted of African-American musicians, but, according to historical sources, was less hot than the Jazz Kings.And, In September 1957, Louis Armstrong, a few days before his scheduled departure, cancelled a US State Department concert tour of Russia because of events in Little Rock saying: "The way they are treating my people in the South, the government can go to hell". So much for his Uncle Tom image. <grin>Cheers,Steve Barbonewww.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband 		 	   		  
_________________________________________________________________
Express yourself instantly with MSN Messenger! Download today it's FREE!
http://messenger.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200471ave/direct/01/