In the Hispano Music and Culture of the Northern Rio Grande: The Juan B. Rael Collection through the Library of Congress, there are many song recordings and song transcriptions. During the 1930’s, Hispano music consisted of Waltzes and Religious hymns. Religious music was the most popular and through different variations of song lyrics, the ongoing themes were about ending suffering or asking for forgiveness. Waltzes were created for weddings and were considered to be celebratory. Religious hymns are referred to as “Alabados” 1 and are typically worship songs that were most popular in New Mexico and Colorado. The featured Alabado is typically performed during a Holy communion and translates to “The Lord Gave us his body”. Religion plays an immense role during this time period and offers insight on the different thoughts Latino immigrants had during this time period. Although most Alabados are worship hymns, a majaroity of them are about ending suffering and asking God to be able to go to heaven. Aside from Alabados, waltzes offered an entirely different perspective because they were more upbeat and played during festive time periods. Valse De Cadena 2 was a waltz in which dancers would often switch partners all while holding on to each other to form a chain. Most waltzes are instrumental and rarely offer any lyrics. This Valse De Cadena was performed by a dad Mr. Anaya and his two daughters. Mr. Anaya learned to play instruments on his own by listening and watching from afar.
Music in the 1930’s was more religious, and if it was upbeat, there were rarely any words but more instrumental values. While analyzing these songs, it reminded me of Benjamin Filene’s piece on Mastering the Cult of Authenticity where he states that “folk culture challenged the status quo: it challenged dissatisfaction with the emptiness of mass culture”. 3 That statement felt to have followed my journey while diving into this collection because of the uniqueness in the creation of each piece. Most pieces were created by individual families as opposed to one main artist. In Morris Dickstein’s How song, dance, and movies build us out of the Great Depression, he discusses how “The engine of the arts in the ‘30s was not escapism, as we sometimes imagine, but speed, energy and movement at a time of economic stagnation and social malaise.” 4 Dickstein states that emerging in the arts helped Americans reflect, while giving them to opportunity to engage and find their inner voice of creativity. Overall, being able to experience music through text is revolutionary because it gives you a concise experience. While reading, forming conclusions and ideas is normal, however being able to actually listen to what an author is trying to convey makes this a great experience. This is a great way to convey meaning and transport an audience back in time.
- Nos Dio su Cuerpo Hispano Music and Culture of the Northern Rio Grande: The Juan B. Rael Collection https://www.loc.gov/collections/hispano-music-and-culture-from-the-northern-rio-grande/about-this-collection/
- Valse De Cadena Hispano Music and Culture of the Northern Rio Grande: The Juan B. Rael Collection https://www.loc.gov/collections/hispano-music-and-culture-from-the-northern-rio-grande/about-this-collection/
- Filene, Benjamin. Romancing the Folk: Public Memory & American Roots Music. UNC P Books, 2000.
- Dickstein, Morris. “How Song, Dance and Movies Bailed Us out of the Depression.” Los Angeles Times, 1 Apr. 2009, www.latimes.com/la-oe-dickstein1-2009apr01-story.html.
