An Exploration of Extra-Musical Issues in the Music of Don Byron

• Other Authors: Becraft, Steven Craig (authoraut)
• Format: Others
• Language: English; English
• Published: Florida State University
• Subjects: Music
• Online Access: http://purl.flvc.org/fsu/fd/FSU_migr_etd-1203

In 1992 Byron released his first solo recording, Tuskegee Experiments, and received Down Beat magazine's "Jazz Artist of the Year" award. Since then, he has produced nine more solo recordings that highlight his wide range of skills and interests, including classical, salsa, hip-hop, funk, klezmer, and every era of jazz styles from swing and bebop to avant-garde. His latest CD, Ivey-Divey, received a Grammy nomination for best instrumental solo and was voted "Album of the Year 2004" in Jazz Times magazine. Equally interesting, though, are the ensuing discussions of controversial issues that grow out of his musical choices and sociopolitical statements. Byron first garnered attention for his work as a klezmer clarinetist with the Klezmer Conservatory Band and later for his performances and subsequent recording of the music of klezmer humorist and bandleader, Mickey Katz. Klezmer music, the celebration music of Yiddish communities, was performed from the early 1900s until the 1950s by Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe who came to the United States. Byron, who is African American and not Jewish, was integral to the klezmer revival of the late 1970s and 1980s. Some of the revivalists have questioned the musical authenticity of Katz, and by extension, Byron, due to their pop parodies. Additionally, some view Byron as an outsider as they assert a Jewish ownership of klezmer music. By studying the music of Mickey Katz and the work of scholars and participants active in the klezmer revival, Chapter 1 explores the issues of authenticity and ownership. Chapter 2 addresses the complexities and controversial nature of musical categorization. By showcasing the swing era music of Raymond Scott, John Kirby, and the young Duke Ellington in the 1996 recording Bug Music, Byron highlights his affinity for their unique compositional styles, styles that jazz critics and historians often claimed were not jazz. The chapter considers the critics and historians' responses, as well as their possible motivations. Finally, since he began his solo recording career, Byron has infused his work with sociopolitical commentary. One of the topics he frequently addresses is racism. Using Byron's song titles and his statements in liner notes and information gleaned from interviews, Chapter 3 explores how he expresses his views and what he says about the contemporary manifestation of this highly charged social practice. === A Treatise Submitted to the College of Music in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Music. === Fall Semester, 2005. === September 26, 2005. === Jazz, Clarinet, Don Byron, John Kirby, Gunther Schuller, Stanley Crouch, John Hammond, Musical Categorization, Andrew Hacker, Shelby Steele, Dinesh D'Souza, Bernard Goetz, Tuskegee Syphilis Study, Racism, Sociopolitical Commentary, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Klezmer, Klezmer Revival, Mickey Katz, Ownership, Authenticity, Henry Sapoznik, Duke Ellington, Raymond Scott === Includes bibliographical references. === Frank Kowalsky, Professor Directing Treatise; Denise Von Glahn, Outside Committee Member; Jeffrey Keesecker, Committee Member; Patrick Meighan, Committee Member.