Cajun and Zydeco Music: Flavors of Southwest Louisiana
Lesson 2:
Rendezvous in Louisiana: Migration and Location
Who are the people behind the music, and where did they come from?
The First Cajuns, painting by George Rodrigue. Life & Legacy Foundation & Art Tour.
Rendezvous in Louisiana! Migration and Location
MUSIC MAKING
HISTORY & CULTURE
MUSIC LISTENING
30+ MIN
30+ MIN
30+ MIN
Wallace Gernger - Rubboard, Paul Me Zei - Accordion, photo by Chris Strachwitz. Arhoolie Records.
Rendezvous in Louisiana!
Component 1
30+ minutes
Louisiana Bayou, photo by JamesDeMers, via Pixabay.
Multicultural Louisiana
Louisiana has always been a hub of multicultural exchange within the United States.
First inhabited by Native Americans (Attakapas, Chitimacha, Coushatta, Houma, and Opelousas Tribes), this land was colonized by the French in 1682.
Two Chitimacha Indians, by François Bernard. {PD-Art|PD-old-70-expired}, via Wikimedia Commons.
Louisiana Land Disputes
Before the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, which solidified much of Louisiana as United States territory, this region was greatly fought over and changed hands between the French, the Spanish, and the British.
Louisiana Purchase, by William Morris. CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Discussion Question
Take a look at this map . . . think about Louisiana’s location within the United States:
Why do you think this area became an important landing place for European settlers and such a heavily fought over region?
Louisiana Location Map, by Alexrk2. CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The Port of New Orleans
Being located on the coast of the U.S. and at the base of the Mississippi River, Louisiana was perfectly situated for trade routes.
Many colonists, from all over Europe, arrived in the New World via the Port of New Orleans.
MSC Marina docked at Port of New Orleans, by Gnovick. CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Exploring Cajun History: From Canada to Louisiana
Cajuns, the descendants of people from the region of Canada known as ACADIA, arrived in Louisiana in the late 1700s.
The word CAJUN comes from the word "Acadian"– mispronounced and misheard as 'Cadian' or 'Cadjin' and gradually morphed into 'Cajun', like a game of telephone.
Acadians 1754, by Klaus Mueller (Mikmaq). via Wikimedia Commons.
Text
In 1755, the British (Protestant) forcibly exiled the French-speaking (Catholic) Acadian people from their homeland, in an ethnic cleansing operation now known as 'Le Grand Derangement.'
‘Le Grand Derangement’
| A View Over Grand-Pré and Minas Basin, photo by Stephen J. Hornsby. Canadian-American Center, University of Maine. |
Acadia (the original home of the Cajuns), was first colonized by the French, until the British took over in the aftermath of the French & Indian War.
Acadia (the original home of the Cajuns), was first colonized by the French, until the British took over in the aftermath of the French & Indian War.
Between 15,000–18,000 people were relocated from the area and forced to find new homes.
Although many Acadians returned to France, some gradually made their way to the French territories in the Caribbean and to Louisiana.
The largest group of exiled Acadians eventually settled in southwest Louisiana's Bayou Country, near the banks of the Mississippi River–what we now call "Acadiana."
Generally Speaking .....
‘Acadiana’
Acadiana
New Orleans
Mississippi River
Louisiana Map, base map courtesy of the University of Texas Libraries. Additional drawings by author.
Although the Cajuns were encouraged to migrate to Louisiana because of its French colonization/remaining culture, Louisiana was actually being ruled by SPAIN at the time of their arrival.
The Spanish permitted them to settle there, primarily due to their CATHOLIC faith.
Generally Speaking .....
The Acadians and Religion
Deportation grand-pré, by George Craig. Wikimedia Commons.
Generally Speaking .....
The Acadians and Music
Acadian ballad: "La Reine de la Salle" by Odile Falcon
Like all people who migrate from one place to another, the Acadians brought with them their music traditions.
Acadian fiddle tune: "The Mad Reel," by Michael Doucet and Dennis McGee
Let’s listen to two short samples of this music:
The Acadians were known primarily for their ballads and fiddle tunes.
Whereas Cajun heritage (associated with Cajun music) is relatively straightforward, Creole heritage (associated with zydeco music) is much more difficult to define.
Most often, the term Creole is used to describe some combination of African, Caribbean, Native American, Spanish, French and Portuguese heritage.
Generally Speaking .....
Exploring Creole History
Creole in a Red Turban, by Jacques Guillaume Lucien Amans. the Historic New Orleans Collection.
Many of the enslaved Africans who arrived on these ships spent most of their waking hours working on farms and plantations.
Generally Speaking .....
Enslaved Africans in Louisiana
The main cash crops during this time were tobacco and indigo (a plant that produces blue dye).
The first slave ships arrived in Louisiana in the early 1700s (most in the 1720s).
Maroons
Some of these people were able to make a life for themselves in the swamps of Louisiana (sometimes with the help of Native Americans in the area).
Great Dismal Swamp Fugitive Slaves, Virginia, painting by David Edward Cronin. {PD-Art | PD-old-95}, via Wikimedia Commons.
The term “maroon” refers to a runaway slave – someone who managed to escape from their owners.
Additionally, there was a class of “free people of color” (especially in New Orleans); people of mixed African, European, and sometimes Native American descent who were not enslaved prior to the abolishment of slavery.
Generally Speaking .....
Free People of Color
Free Woman of Color with daughter NOLA Collage, unknown artist. {PD-Art | PD-old-100}, via Wikimedia Commons.
“Antebellum” is a term often used to describe the time period before the Civil War.
In 1804, the first and only successful slave revolution in Haiti ended with approximately 10,000 Haitian refugees descending upon the port of New Orleans – doubling the population of the city.
Many of these refugees also ended up migrating to the western part of the state, on the bayous near the banks of the Mississippi.
Generally Speaking .....
Haitian Refugees
Many of these refugees also ended up migrating to the western part of the state, on the bayous near the banks of the Mississippi.
Toussaint l'Ouverture, Haiti, by William H. Johnson. Smithsonian American Art Museum.
In 1804, the first and only successful slave revolution in Haiti ended with approximately 10,000 Haitian refugees descending upon the port of New Orleans – doubling the population of the city.
At the end of the Civil War (1865), the Bayous in Southwest Louisiana were populated with a mixture of Cajuns, former enslaved Africans, Free People of Color, Creoles, Native Americans, German, French, and Irish immigrants.
Generally Speaking .....
Rendezvous in Louisiana
A Musical “Gumbo”
Over time, the influence of the music brought to Southwest Louisiana by different migrant groups got all mixed up in the bayous and marshes . . . Which led to the creation of the unique musical GUMBO we now call Cajun and zydeco.
The Balfa Brothers, "Lacasine two-step," photo by Diana Jo Davies. Smithsonian Folkways Recordings.
Zydeco musicians Wallace Gernger on washboard and Paul McZeil on accordion.
Ideas for Extension Activities
-
Research and discuss the French colonization of Canada, the US, and the Caribbean.
-
Research and discuss the French and Indian War.
-
Research and discuss the Louisiana Purchase.
North American, Spanish, French, and British territories circa 1700, unknown artist. Ambrose Video Publishing Inc.
Learning Checkpoint
- In what ways did migration affect the development of Cajun and zydeco music in Southwest Louisiana?
End of Component 1: Where will you go next?
Exploring Traditional Song Types
Component 2
30+ minutes
Nine positions of the waltz, unknown artist, {PD-Art | PD-old-100}, via Wikimedia Commons.
Music and Migration
Along the Road, by Elemore Morgan, Jr. Arthur Roger Gallery.
When people migrated to (and settled in) southwest Louisiana, they brought their music with them.
Many different traditional song styles influenced the development of Cajun and zydeco music as we know it today.
Acadian Ballads: Listening Activity
What are your first impressions of this song?
- Think about instrumentation, time/beat/meter, timbre, song structure, language, etc…
What do you think the song is about?
Listen to an excerpt from this recording of an old Acadian ballad.
Acadian ballad: "La Fille de Quatorze Ans," performed by Mdme. Daniel Bourke
About Acadian Ballads
- Early Acadian settlers in Louisiana brought with them traditional songs they learned in Canada from ancestors who originally brought them from France.
- These narrative songs provided a means to share love stories and humorous tales.
- Ballads were ritually sung at weddings and funerals and sung informally for small groups of people at house parties as the food cooked and young children played.
About Ballads
Ballads are traditionally sung “a cappella" – only voice, no instruments.
Because the story is paramount, ballad singers usually do not dramatize the story with facial expressions and vocal effects . . . they do not want to distract from the story.
Optional: Watch a video clip that illustrates this idea.
The End of an Old Song, film by John Cohen.
More About Ballads
Ballads usually consist of many verses or stanzas, using the same melody for each. Each verse tells a different part of the story.
- This type of song structure/form is called STROPHIC (AAA).
Ballads are often humorous tales or love songs. The topics of love songs are often sad.
- "La fille de quatorze ans" is a tragic recounting of estranged love between a young girl and a man who goes off to war.
Reels and Contredanses: Listening Activity
Listen to excerpts from these two tunes:
- Think about instrumentation, time/beat/meter, song structure, etc.
What similarities and differences do you notice?
What do you think this music was for?
Reel: "La reel a Fruge," performed by Dennis McGee and Sady Courville.
Contredanse: "Contredanse de Doucet," performed by Michael Doucet & Beausoleil.
About Reels and Contredanses
-
The reel is type of traditional dance tune that originated in Scotland and Ireland.
-
The contredanse is a French country dance song that became popular in France in the 1600s.
-
The Acadians learned many traditional reels and contredanses in Canada and France, and continued to be influenced by these dance tunes once they arrived in Louisiana.
-
While traditional reels and contredanses are seldom played anymore, you can hear their influence in the Cajun two-steps of today.
Both reels and contradanses usually have TWO PARTS (Binary form, AB song structure).
Both reels and contredanses are typically in 4/4 (duple) time.
Both reels and contredanses tunes were traditionally used in a social context for dancing.
Generally Speaking .....
Analyzing Reels and Contredanses
Listen to excerpts from these two waltzes:
- Think about instrumentation, time/beat/meter, song structure, etc.
What similarities and differences do you notice?
What do you think this music was for?
Generally Speaking .....
The Waltz: Listening Activity
Traditional European Waltz
Old Louisiana Waltz
The waltz, a style of music and dance that originated in Europe, was extremely popular worldwide, particularly in France, Germany, and Austria. Waltzes were found in the high society of Paris, in orchestral compositions, as well as in the countryside and in folk traditions.
- "Valse" is the word for waltz in French, and you still see many Cajun tunes spelled this way.
- A waltz is always in triple meter, typically 3/4 time.
- Unlike other dances (such as the reel and contredanse), the waltz is still danced in Cajun country today.
Generally Speaking .....
About the Waltz
Watch two videos of waltzes and have the class clap/tap along with the beat (and subdivisions) during both.
Discuss the similarities and differences between the European waltz and the Cajun waltz.
Generally Speaking .....
Optional Extension Activity: Comparing Waltzes
Video 1: Viennese/European Waltz
Optional Extension Activity: Comparing Waltzes
Video 2:
Cajun
Waltz
African-Derived Rhythms & Chants: Listening Activity
Listen to excerpts from these two recordings:
- Think about instrumentation, time/beat/meter, song structure, etc.
What similarities and differences do you notice?
What do you think this music was for?
Caribbean Dance Song
Shout Song (Southern United States)
-
Both songs featured only the human voice and rhythmic instruments (a drum or clapping). The voice itself also acted as a rhythmic instrument.
-
Both songs featured a similar syncopated, driving rhythm.
-
The second recording utilized call and response form.
-
Both songs had simple, repetitive lyrics.
-
Both songs were most likely used for group celebration and dance.
African-Derived Rhythms & Chants: Comparison
Although the first recording comes from Haiti (in the Caribbean islands) and the second recording is an example of a secular slave chant that would have been sung in the Southern United States, both are examples of African Diaspora music.
- Diaspora is a term that describes being dispersed from your original homeland.
- The term African Diaspora refers to the involuntary movement of Africans and their descendants to different parts of the world.
African Diaspora Rhythms & Chants
- African-influenced musical characteristics (e.g. driving rhythms, syncopation, form, lyrics, instrumental and vocal style, etc.), have heavily influenced music in Southwest Louisiana.
African Diaspora Rhythms & Chants: Creole Connections
- In fact, Creoles had a genre similar to the shout song you heard earlier, called juré.
-
As zydeco music emerged as a distinct genre, it was also influenced by popular genres created by African Americans, such as R&B and the blues.
Class or Small Group Discussion
Think about all the styles of music you heard today.
- What do they have in common?
- In what ways are they different?
- How do these musical styles relate to Cajun and zydeco music today?
- Consider writing down (or journaling about) your observations.
Discussion Points
-
Most of these styles were originally types of dance music or used in the context of social dancing, primarily couples dancing. This holds true for both Cajun & zydeco music today.
-
Many of the types of music featured either the fiddle or the accordion as the primary instruments, which are the “stars” of Cajun music.
-
Most of this music was either in 2/4, 4/4, or 3/4 time: The primary time signatures found in Cajun & zydeco music.
-
Most Cajun and Creole dance tunes have two alternating melodies (ABAB), although some have only one, and others have more than two (ABCABC).
Discussion Points Continued
- All of the song types covered in this lesson migrated to Louisiana–where they blended and influenced the development of Cajun music and zydeco.
- However, it should be noted that many of these musical styles also influenced one another in Europe, Canada, and the Caribbean before they arrived in Louisiana.
Learning Checkpoint
- Can you describe some characteristics of the music that traveled to southwest Louisiana along with migrant groups (e.g. ballads, reels, contredanses, waltzes, and African-derived rhythms & chants)?
End of Component 2: Where will you go next?
Combining Musical Influences
Component 3
30+ minutes
Cajun Musical Instruments, by Firefly Design, Ana. Etsy.
Combining Influences
The influence of fiddle tunes and ballads of the Acadians, the rhythms and chants from Haitians, Africans, and Native Americans, Reels from the Irish and Scottish, Polkas from Germany, and French Country dances, were all mixed up in the bayous and marshes to create the unique musical GUMBO we now call Cajun and zydeco.
As people migrated to the land we now know as Louisiana, they brought their music with them.
Activity: Arrange a Familiar Tune
Within the next activity, you will use your new knowledge about the ways in which musical styles can migrate from place to place and influence each other as you create your own unique arrangement of a familiar tune.
Activity Instructions
-
On your “combining musical influences” worksheet, identify three genres of music that you like or that have personally influenced you (Examples: rap, hip-hop, rock & roll, jazz, country, folk, opera, classical, pop, Broadway Latin, etc…)
-
Define characteristics of these music genres, related to: Time/meter/tempo, rhythm/melody, instrumentation, vocal timbre, structure.
-
Choose a familiar tune (try to choose one that you think many people would recognize . . . (Examples: Happy Birthday, Twinkle Twinkle, Row Your Boat, Old MacDonald, etc…)
Activity Instructions Continued
4. Change (arrange) this song based on the characteristics of the musical genres you previously identified.
For example, you could rap “Twinkle Twinkle” to a rock beat played on conga drums and maracas.
5. Practice your arrangement.
6. Perform it for others.
Learning Checkpoint
- Did a new musical “flavor” emerge when you mixed musical styles in order to create your own arrangement of a familiar tune?
End of Component 3 and Lesson 2: Where will you go next?
Lesson 2 Media Credits
Audio courtesy of:
Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
Images courtesy of:
Ambrose Video Publishing Inc
The Arhoolie Foundation
Firefly Design
The Gibbes Museum of Art
Louisiana Digital Library
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage
Université de Moncton
University of Maine
© 2022 Smithsonian Institution. Personal, educational, and non-commercial uses allowed; commercial rights reserved. See Smithsonian terms of use for more information.
This Lesson was funded in part by the Grammy Museum Grant and the Smithsonian Youth Access Grants Program, with support from the Society for Ethnomusicology and the National Association for Music Education.
For full bibliography and media credits, see Lesson 2 landing page.