Ring Shout, Wheel About: The Racial Politics of Music and Dance in North American Slavery, by Katrina Dyonne Thompson (University of Illinois Press, 2014)
Reviewed by Dr. Thomas Hansen
Katrina Dyonne Thompson draws on her work over the years as a student and then a faculty member doing research on not only the role of African music and dance in the lives of Black slaves in the US but also on the impressions made upon White observers. The lack of the background music of slaves singing while picking cotton in the fields is an important factor in the scenery. There were 200 years of song and dance among the slaves. Some Whites clung to the stereotype of the “irrepressibly cheerful” Black man singing in the streets despite how “ragged or forlorn” he might actually be (p. 1). However, the days of the happy singing slave who had a natural talent for performing and appearing light-hearted (p. 2) were disappearing.
At the same time Blacks were becoming more successful financially as bondsmen, and as they connected with the entertainment world and more able to access highly successful careers in music and dance, the image of the docile Black who loved to sing and accept their abuse was fading quickly.
Already by the early 20th Century in America, White observers noticed a change in the thrill level of Blacks vis-à-vis their celebrations. Laments one White Georgian on this noticeable change in that they “…don’t sing as they used to… (p. 1) and telling the readers they should have seen the dancing “…of the old darkeys on the plantation.” This change in demeanor and enthusiasm was happening at the same time Blacks were beginning to speak up for themselves as a group.
The “New Negro” was threatening to the established order and some Whites were nervous, indeed. There were a lot of Black persons in the US by the end of the 19th Century, and the notion they were more and more of them unhappy was unsettling to many Whites. Lack of enthusiasm in their dance and movement was a strong and obvious reminder there were many Blacks who were losing their sense of humor.
Actually more a part of an “imagined South” with happy slaves singing in the fields, the music and dance with an African beat often celebrated not only the culture from another continent but also hidden meanings and realities among the slaves here in the US. Many readers have probably heard that the lyrics and melodies had a varity of “hidden meanings” (pp. 108-109). They could be used simply for relating information from farm to farm or in other cases making fun of the White owner being so down on his luck he could not contribute to the holiday celebrations of the slaves.
Still more well-known are the songs of chariots coming to whisk the slaves away to freedom. Ironically, it is some of these songs with the most dramatic lyrics that came to be the most well-loved. With great passion, the slaves sang and danced as they prayed for better lives—usually far from the often rapacious and abusive owners. Slave owners could break up families, selling different members to the highest bidder. Thus, slave auction days came to symbolize frightening events indeed to families with “marketable” workers and healthy children.
Regarding the more technical aspects of the book, Katrina Dyonne Thompson frames the story told here as a performance, dividing into steps the art to be revealed. The author organizes her work into six chapters and an epilogue: 1) The Script: “Africa was but a blank canvas for Europe’s imagination;” 2) Casting: “They sang their home-songs, and danced, each with his free foot slapping the deck;” 3) Onstage: “Dance you damned n’s, dance;” 4. Backstage: “White folks do as they please, and the darkies do as they can: 5) Advertisement: “Dancing through the Streets and act lively;” 6) Same Script, Different Actors: “Eb’ry time I wheel about, I jump Him Crow;” and Epilogue: The Show Must Go On.
Without giving too much of the content away, I will say the book provide a great deal of information in a short space and the author demonstrates the changes of a People as their lives, livelihood, and status change immensely.
The author does a good job of showing how the Blacks transitioned away from giving off images of the happy and irrepressibly cheerful slaves and embracing their roles as performers, becoming successful business people, and welcoming their new voice as they created a distinct sound. They had taken the complex patterns of the West African song and dance (pp. 23-24) of their past, tied to new styles of Native American and other rhythms, and developed a rich urban beat with stylized sequences and a completely new sound.
It is this great change in the origins of the music to something very modern sounding that makes this book a good candidate for use in courses and seminars on the history of the Black sound in the US.
A second use of the book is the connection of music, dance, and historical events.
A third use is the insight the book gives into cultural and linguistic changes of Blacks as they and their art moved away from plantations and into urban centers.
A fourth use of this book is a sort of guide for setting out some basics that could be used in interdisciplinary units and lesson plans in K-12 classrooms.
A fifth use of the book is background reading for educators contemplating making the connections among slavery as a social studies and history topic to other fields (e.g., music, movement, singing).
I recommend the book for these five uses and also for a clear candidate for professional development (PD) sessions. The book would work well in a basic reading course for discussion over 2 to 3 sessions. The book would also work well over 5 to 6 longer sessions during which lesson plans, assignments, and assessment instruments could be developed—whether on site or through a hybrid course structure.
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