2/24/22
Black Musicians Unite
Musicians’ Protective Union Local 274, American Federation of Musicians was chartered on January 2, 1935 by Black musicians. Local 274 was one of more than fifty Black musicians’ unions established in the American Federation of Musicians. The first Black musicians’ union Local 208 was established in Chicago in 1902. In Philadelphia, Frank Thurman "Frankie" Fairfax, orchestra leader, composer and trumpeter, became a key figure in the movement to organize a musicians' union...
2/17/22
The Explosion of Philadelphia Jazz Clubs
By the 1920's, Black urban workers sought opportunities in the music industry as an alternative to high unemployment which plagued their community. With the continuation of Black migrations from the South to the North, there was a rise in African-American urban populations. These increases resulted in a demand for Black entertainment, which meant an increase in jobs in the music field...
2/10/22
Mass Unemployment, the Great Migration, and the Rise of Big Bands
By the 1920's, Black urban workers sought opportunities in the music industry as an alternative to high unemployment which plagued their community. With the continuation of Black migrations from the South to the North, there was a rise in African-American urban populations. These increases resulted in a demand for Black entertainment, which meant an increase in jobs in the music field...
2/3/22
The Social Stigma of the “Musician” Class
The city of Philadelphia, known as a cradle of jazz, has a rich and significant jazz history that goes back much further than most people realize. In the order to understand the emergence of jazz in the City of Philadelphia one must begin in the nineteenth century and trace black musical organization into the early twentieth century...