Music of Maryland

The most famous contribution from the music of Maryland is perhaps Francis Scott Key, who wrote the national anthem of the United States, "The Star-Spangled Banner". Famous musicians from Maryland range from pop punksters Good Charlotte and blues singer Billie Holiday. While much of Maryland is a suburb of Washington DC, its musical community has been largely independent. The city of Baltimore, though only thirty-five miles from DC, has had little connection to DC ^[1].

Music venues and institutions

There is a Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO), first formed in 1916 as the only major orchestra in the country to operate as a branch of the city's government ^[2]. In 1942, the orchestra was reorganized as a private institutions. The Orchestra claims that Joseph Meyerhoff, President of the Orchestra beginning in 1965, and his music director, Sergiu Comissiona began the modern history of the BSO and "ensured the creation of an institution, which has become the undisputed leader of the arts community throughout the State of Maryland". ^[3].

The Maryland Classic Youth Orchestras (MCYO) was formed in the 1946 to "nurture, develop and advance young talented musicians in a quality orchestral program" ^[4]. Beginning in 1964, the Orchestras began to offer new programs, such as a summer camp that eventually became the Maryland Center for the Arts ^[5].

Colonial era music

There is little historical record of music in Maryland prior to the 18th century; the Native Americans of the area left little or no trace of their musical life. A few instruments, such as drums and trumpets are known to have existed in the early history of the Maryland coloni, probably as a functional means "of calling the populace to church or to market, or in serving as symbols for sea captains and those from the military"; some folk dancing and ballad singing is also substantiated by the historical record ^[6]. The early colonists had little tradition of any performance art, due to the small number of individuals, their low standard of living and great poverty and disease ^[7].

With the arrival of large numbers of slaves, however, some white plantation owners earned enough wealth to invest in music and dance. The upper-class used instruments like the flute, violin and harpsichord and danced formal dances like the stately minuet or country dance, while the lower-clases preferred reels and jigs ^[8], accompanied by various kinds of guitars, drums, banjos, transverse flutes and recorders, as well as, more rarely, hammered dulcimers and harpsichords ^[9].

Local music groups during the colonial era did much to sponsor musical development. Annapolis, a major center for colonial music in North America, was home to the Homony Club and the Tuesday Club, while the Freemasons held balls and concerts across Maryland ^[10]. Unlike the northern United States, religious music did not prosper in Maryland, until the end of the colonial period, and then only in Baltimore in the German communities of Carroll, Montgomery and Frederick countries ^[11]. Tavern owners frequently sponsored dances and concerts during the colonial era. Beginning in 1752, theater became a major part of Maryland culture, for colonists of all classes; performances included light dnce and incidental music, ballad operas and the works of William Shakespeare. Aside from the cultural capital of Annapolis, the cities of Baltimore, Upper Marlboro and Chestertown, were major homes for Maryland theater, home to the debuts of the latest and most popular dances ^[12]. With the French and Indian War and then the American Revolution, soldiers brought back home to Maryland military band music, especially fife and drum ensembles.

Early independence and 19th century

Professional theater in Maryland died out during the Revolution, but was re-established by 1780, now with Baltimore having replaced Annapolis as a cultural capital in the state ^[13]. The Holiday Street Theater in Baltimore, opened in 1793, and was one of the first large theaters in the country, showcasing light theater, opera, and concerts ^[14]. In 1822, Arthur Clifton from Baltimore debuted his opera The Enterprise, while religious music flourished after the 1821 opening of the Catholic Cathedral in the country ^[15]. The African Methodist Episcopal churches in Maryland were home to singing traditions using the shape-note method ^[16].

By the turn of the century, the middle-classes of Maryland were holding regular dances featuring the cotillion, quadrille, schottische, polka and waltz. Eastern European dances were also popular, brought by immigrants from various countries. Many immigrants in Maryland moved to Baltimore, forming their own distinct neighborhoods with German liederkranz singing societies, Irish St. Patrick's Day parades and Jewish chants flourished among their respective communities ^[17]. Maryland was home to several folk traditions, including the work songs of rail and canal diggers and the crab- and oystermen of the Chesapeake Bay, whose repertoire varied from hymns to risque songs and Bahaman shanties ^[18].

By the middle of the 19th century, Baltimore was a major center of sheet music publishing, home to Joseph Carr, F. D. Benteen, John Cole and George Willig, as well as the piano-building businesses of William Knabe and Charles Steiff ^[19]. This period also saw the rise of blackface minstrel shows, featuring the pseudo-African American songs of composers like Dan Emmett and Stephen Foster.

During the Civil War, Maryland was a border state, home to people who sympathized with both sides of the conflict. Federal troops occupied Baltimore, and some people who wrote music that favored the Confederacy were jailed; these pieces included "The Confederacy March", "Stonewall Jackson's Way" and "Maryland, My Maryland!]]", the last later becoming Maryland's state song ^[20]. The Civil War left several lasting effects on American music nationwide, most importantly the normalization of white and black cultural mixing, especially in music, caused by the mixing of soldiers in multiracial units; military brass bands became a popular part of the music scene during and after the war, one of the first being the Moxley Band from Frederick ^[21].

Doo wop

Though doo wop can be traced to many urban areas across the United States, especially New York City, a 1946 band called The Vibranaires, led by Sonny Til, can be considered the first doo wop group, later known as The Orioles ^[22].

Rock

Baltimore's hardcore punk scene was overshadowed by DC's, but included bands like Law & Order, Bollocks and Fear of God ^[23]. The city also saw some New Wave action, including Ebeneezer & the Bludgeons and Null Set ^[24]. Later in the 1980s, emo bands like Reptile House and Grey March had some success and recorded with Ian MacKaye in DC ^[25].

References

• "The Beginning". All Doo Wop. August 26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
• "Baltimore Symphony Orchestra History". Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. August 26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
• Blush, Steven. American Hardcore: A Tribal History. 2001. Feral House. ISBN 0-922915-717-7
• "Study Guide for the "Music of Colonial Maryland" Program". Colonial Music Institute. August 26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
• "History of Maryland Classic Youth Orchestras". Maryland Classic Youth Orchestra. August 26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
• "Music and Theater". Maryland History and Culture. September 12. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)

Notes

• ^ Blush
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Colonial Music Institute
• ^ Colonial Music Institute
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ Maryland History and Culture
• ^ All Doo Wop
• ^ Baltimorehardcore
• ^ Blush
• ^ Blush
• ^ Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
• ^ Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
• ^ Maryland Classic Youth Orchestras
• ^ Maryland Classic Youth Orchestras