What is Cajun and Zydeco MUSIC?
CAJUN MUSIC Cajun music is the music of the white French-speaking settlers of South West Louisiana. It is traditionally played on fiddle and accordion with the rhythm often being provided by acoustic guitar and triangle (‘tit fer), but some bands have introduced electric instruments and drums. The lyrics are usually sung in Cajun French
Zydeco Music The African-American and Creole people living in the same area adapted the basic Cajun music, by the incorporation of other rhythms such as Afro-Caribbean, Blues, Soul, Rock ’n’ Roll, etc, to provide a much more syncopated version. This music is called Zydeco, and is played on piano accordion or ‘punchy’ button accordion accompanied by electric guitars, with the rhythm usually being driven by drums and rub-board (frottoir). The lyrics are usually sung in English. The popularity of Cajun and Zydeco music was enhanced when it featured in a number of films such as ‘Southern Comfort’, ‘The Big Easy’, and ‘Passion Fish’. The music is very distinctive and is primarily for dancing
Historical Background The origins of the Cajun people lie in the French emigrants who, in order to seek a better life, sailed across the Atlantic in the 17^th century and settled in what is now known as Nova Scotia. Here they farmed the land in an area that became known as Acadia. Acadia was ceded to England in 1713, under the Treaty of Utrecht, but the Acadian settlers refused to swear allegiance to the British Crown. This resulted, in 1755, in what has been called the Grand Derangement when 16,000 French Acadians who had lived in Acadia for over a century were divested of their property and deported. After several years in scattered exile they became pioneers once again and began to arrive and settle in the prairies and bayous of Southern Louisiana, where they thrived by raising cattle and crops. The descendants of these pioneers became known as Cajuns (a corruption of the word Acadians). At the time when the Acadians arrived, Louisiana was under Spanish rule. Louisiana eventually became one of the United States of America and a policy was introduced by the Government to eradicate the French language. The Cajuns with their distinctive culture resisted attempts to assimilate them into the American way of life and maintained their identity and heritage through their unique food, music and language. From the 1960’s there was a resurgence of interest in Cajun culture which was boosted by the appearance of Dewey Balfa, a great Cajun fiddle player, at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1967.
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