Music connects cultures. Music builds emotion. Music creates beauty.
It is only obvious that the Cultural New Deal would use music to grow a national identity and urge depression relief. Unlike other projects the Music Project was well received, and while it was in operation received very little opposition. But not long after the Federal Music Project became wide spread in it’s influence some of it’s popularity was torn out of History. How could something so widely accepted as AMERICAN be just as quickly torn out of societal norms?
Unlike the controversial disbandment of the Federal Theatre Project the Cultural New Deal created the Federal Music Project. This project focused on education and national identity. Through the efforts of this project the glorious world of American Music was discovered. Folk music became distinctly American, and people found the new trend highly agreeable. the Federal Theatre Project did not present to the people a viable reason for it’s funding and distribution. It had educational programs and catered to a wide American audience.
The most widely accepted piece to come out of the Federal Music Project, accepted by the Republican Party, The Democrats, and even the Communist Party was the Ballad for Americans. 1
This incredibly unique piece gave America an image of their reviving country to grasp onto. Written by a gay man and sung by a black man it’s surprising that it was so widely accepted in an age when the people who created it weren’t accepted. The project included other pieces that built a more regional perception of American and cultural identity. The same broadcast that presented The Ballad for Americans presented an exotic image of Hawaii through The Hawaiian Pursuit of Happiness. 2
This music presents a picturesque image of America, and appeals to all who have fallen prey to the Great Depression. Several years later that all changes. Once anti-Communist sentiments settled in The Ballad for Americans legacy, and it was torn from the music books. The songs of the Federal Music Project, whether regional or wide spread, have the people of the 30’s a means form of art all could grab onto as their own, but the 30’s had to end some time. These overarching themes of a need for an identity shows the 30’s was a time of great rebuilding, and the Federal One Projects used all they had to rebuild the culture.
