Identifier

etd-11102004-152234

Degree

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Geography and Anthropology

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

Bayou Boogie by Ryan A. Brasseaux outlines the evolution of Cajun music from 1928 to 1950. This thesis highlights obscure recordings by lesser-known Cajun artists to demonstrate how the Cajun-American discourse took place across Fredrik Barth's ethnic boundaries model. This study acknowledges the complexities of the Cajun experience by examining the regional and national socio-cultural contexts in which commercial Cajun recordings flourished. The birth of commercial Cajun music, John and Alan Lomax's 1934 Louisiana field recordings, and Cajun swing (Cajun inflected-western swing) are all discussed in detail to paint a picture of the complexities that shaped south Louisiana's fertile musical landscape between 1928 and 1950. Brasseaux uses music to illustrate the historical roots of the present-day Cajun-American discourse, ultimately concluding that Cajuns negotiated their ethnic and American identities without compromising their ethnicity to protect their cultural resources.

Date

2004

Document Availability at the Time of Submission

Release the entire work immediately for access worldwide.

Committee Chair

Jay Edwards

DOI

10.31390/gradschool_theses.2008

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