Newport Jazz Festival

The Newport Jazz Festival has an upcoming book that details the two main phases of the it. The first phase covers the establishment of the Festival, ranging from 1954 to 1971. The second phase began in 1983 and has been continuing ever since.

The first phase of the Jazz Festival represents the culture clash that occurred in the United States in the 1950s and 1960s. The clash can be seen through its music, business and potilical operations, and the social behavior of the time period. The first clash actually started before the festivities were begun in the first place. This first clash was over various differences and tensions that existed between the middle class society and the upper class society. Elaine Lorillard, a middle class person from Maine that married into the upper class tobacco family of Pierre Lorillard, began the Festival. Her intentions were to help her become accepted into Newport society. Unfortunately for her, most of the upper class ignored her and claimed that the music was two bawdy and lower class for their standards. Furthermore, they did not want to mix with the musicians, especially musicians that were black.

George Wein has been the producer of the festivities since the first concert in 1954. Overall, since that first concert, the festivities have represented middle class values and practices, which can be seen through the music and the business and political operations. Duke Ellington performed in 1956 and changed the style to more broadly-based popular music through his emphasis on the beat that had become popular from rock 'n roll music of the mid-1950s.

George Wein and other producers noticed that they could expand their revenue by presenting a rock 'n roll performer. They chose Chuck Berry in 1958. As they expected, he drew a larger crowd, which consisted quite significantly, of younger people. This presented the second clash of cultures - this time between younger people and older people. This issues arose from the middle class having adopted a lifestyle after the war that was influenced by the corporate aspects of business, bureaocracy, suburbia, mass consumerism, and emerging technology. The younger people seemed to protest this lifestyle through many aspects of their lives, including their dress, language, social behavior, and music. One of the first riots between the youth and the "establishment" occurred in 1960, even gaining worldwide publicity. The riot went so far as to become a model for both the youth and the police in future issues durning the 1960s.

As you can see, even in the earliest days of the Festival, there were many cultural clashes that were of great importance.