After discussions with my supervisor, I have decided to investigate the use of hymns and spirituals in Paul Robeson’s repertoire. This investigation will involve diving into ethno-musicology and auto-ethnography, as well as the cultural and political values held in his music. This is currently a very broad subject area but I intend to develop an argument/focus within it as I continue to read through primary and secondary sources. For now, some examples of sources that will aid me in getting to know Robeson’s influence and character are as follows:
- Robeson Spirituals. 1945. Paul Robeson : Internet Archive. [online] Available at: <https://archive.org/details/78_robeson-spirituals_paul-robeson-lawrence-brown-h.-t.-burleigh_gbia0003363/_78_by-an-by_paul-robeson-lawrence-brown-h.-t.-burleigh_gbia0003363c_04_3.3_CT_flat.flac> [Accessed 4 February 2021].
I will be using Robeson’s recordings and performances of his hymns and spirituals as primary sources first and foremost, as well as reviews, newspaper articles, interviews, and congressional hearings to provide surrounding context. This first source is an archive of some digitized and restored recordings of Robeson and a pianist. This is a useful source as, using my bi-musicality, I can dissect these performances and analyse the choices made to portray their meaning. This is just one example archived recordings that I can use.
- Hope-Wallace, P., 2019. Paul Robeson, singer, actor and civil rights campaigner, dies at 77 – archive, 1976. The Guardian, [online] Available at: <https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/jan/24/paul-robeson-singer-actor-campaigner-dies-1976> [Accessed 4 February 2021].
This archived newspaper originally published the day after Robeson’s death in 1976 is an example of a piece of source material that shows the reception of his music and politics on the wider world. The writer of this piece had a clear respect for Robeson’s talents in his early career and the power he held, however did not believe his strong political stances were beneficial and that he “wasted a lot of time and talent” on those who shared his views. Critically reading newspaper articles about Robeson, keeping in mind they are rarely objective, will aid me in analysing how reporters and editors, and ultimately society, perceived his actions and repertoire.
- Robson, Flora. 1957. “Paul Robeson”. The Times, , 1957. https://go-gale-com.ezproxy-s2.stir.ac.uk/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=Newspapers&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=SingleTab&hitCount=1415&searchType=BasicSearchForm¤tPosition=1&docId=GALE%7CCS118577316&docType=Letter+to+the+editor&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=ZTMA-MOD1&prodId=TTDA&pageNum=1&contentSet=GALE%7CCS118577316&searchId=R1&userGroupName=unistirl&inPS=true.
This letter to the editor of the Times published at the height of Robeson’s musical popularity, is further evidence of his wide-spread support. Although the author does not condone Robeson’s politics, much like my previous source, his fanbase in the UK was desperate for him to be able to perform here.
- Robeson, Paul, and Lloyd L Brown. 1971. Here I Stand. Boston: Beacon Pr.
I would like to use Paul Robeson’s autobiography within my research to gain insight ‘straight from the horse’s mouth’. I am currently waiting for this book to arrive and will be looking at reviews in the meantime. Although Gunn and Faire warn in their chapter on Life Stories and Historical Analysis (Chapter 7) that memory and memoirs can be unreliable when telling a life story. All stories are influenced and shaped by who the intended recipient/reader is. However, I still feel as though this source will enable me to get a wider sense of his character and the intention/context behind his performances.
- Olwage, Grant. “Listening B(l)ack: Paul Robeson After Roland Hayes.” The Journal of Musicology 32, no. 4 (2015): 524-57. Accessed February 6, 2021. doi:10.1525/jm.2015.32.4.524.
This source, along with it’s references, will allow me to dig deeper into the ethno-musicological theories of Robeson’s works and his inspirations. This will provide a good backdrop to his career.
- Todd Carmody. “MISSING PAUL ROBESON IN EAST BERLIN: THE SPIRITUALS AND THE EMPTY ARCHIVE.” Cultural Critique 88 (2014): 1-27. Accessed February 6, 2021. doi:10.5749/culturalcritique.88.2014.0001.
This source brings more information forward about Robeson’s international impacts and ideologies, specifically in Germany. I will endeavour to collate more sources that describe his visits and impacts around the world such as this one.
Well done, Aylie, on getting started on your bibliography!
Your last two sources are scholarship, and they should give you a good opening into both the topic and some of your scholarly fields, like (ethno-musicology). They may also help you start understanding the many locales, geographies and audiences Robeson performed for – and this brings us to the points you make in your discussion of your examples of your primary sources.
Precisely because Robeson performed in places that are unusual (in the Eastern Bloc, Wales, the Soviet Union, etc.), you will need to pay careful attention to his occasions, his audiences, and their politics. As any good performer, Robeson most likely actually got information/did research on his most likely audiences before his performances, to be able to tailor his repertoire to speak to their concerns, fears, hopes and dreams. Often these overlapped with his own general leftist class and racial consciousness and political positions. So in a way, you will want to figure out in which locales, geographies, and with which audiences he used his hymns and spirituals, and with what messages. Some of this may be on recordings, some not. For recordings, you especially also need to try to find recordings of live concert, where you can actually hear how Robeson speaks to the audience – how he introduces each song, explaining how to listen/understand them. This is absolutely key. Also key are any liner notes of any vinyl records you can find – some of these must have been digitized and available online. (You may find some Robeson enthusiasts, who may have posted some of this on their websites.) In this way, Robeson kind of lengthened his reach, even as his message may have become diluted through editorial decisions on what to put on on the record sleeve.
I would like to ask you to write a few sentences about what bi-musicality is, and how you hope to use it. While the two of us know this, it is useful for you to start discussing it here, so you develop a definition and explanation for your dissertation (documents).