It is a musical genre whose origins come from other genres, specifically the gospel and the spiritual songs of the blacks subjected to slavery in the United States. Therefore, the blues has its historical roots in Africa. In this sense, black slaves who worked on plantations in the southern United States used to sing to lift their spirits and overcome their adverse situation.
Analyzing the particularities of the term
There are several typical elements of this musical style. In the first place, the blues is sung by a soloist, who interprets songs about daily life, while the spiritual songs are interpreted by a choir and its theme is religious. It is an a cappella style, with a high tone of voice and great rhythmic freedom. In addition to a cappella singing, blues music is often accompanied by two instruments: the banjo and the violin.
From a historical point of view, this genre became popular in the United States starting in the 1920s in the entertainment world starring African-American singers who were popularly known as bluesmen.
Blues songs can have various rhythms, but all of them express a melancholic tone. In fact, in English blues has two meanings, since it is a color and, at the same, a feeling of sadness and disappointment.
Main versions
There are several musical styles that make up the blues: the Texan style, the Piedmont or the Jug Bands. Texas blues is influenced by jazz and swing and became very popular when some bluesmen from deep America moved to the big cities during the Great Depression.
The Piedmont blues incorporated a new technique, fingerpicking (it consists of playing the guitar without a pick). The Jug Bands are made up of traveling groups that performed in variety shows and introduced the use of the guitar and improvised percussion instruments.
Etymological origin
In the United States during the eighteenth century, a popular expression, "blue devils", became fashionable. They spoke of blue devils or blue devils because it was stated that in moments of deep sadness people could see rare blue demons. This curious expression to communicate sadness and melancholy is the remote origin of the term blues understood as a musical genre.
Photos: Fotolia - Orlando Florin Rosu / Ivan Kruk
