Far Away Places With Strange Sounding Names

The Heathen Chinee

1870

We begin this month's survey with one of the earliest, and ugliest, songs about people of the Orient. In the mid 19th century, the American west saw a huge influx of workers from the orient who were imported as cheap labor to help build the transcontinental railway as well as to work in the gold fields during the California gold rush. Just as today, hard feelings developed among American workers for jobs lost to cheap imported labor and that, combined with a lack of knowledge of Oriental people resulted in a great deal of prejudice and racism directed at the people. Though many of the people arrived at our shores from many Asian countries, to Americans, they were all Chinese.

This song is reflective of the hatred and racist views of the Chinese who came to America. Written by one of America's greatest authors of the period, it shows the ugly side of American music. Of course, we've explored the racist side of American music before in our acclaimed articles about Coon Songs and Racism in Music but even those articles don't tell the complete breadth and depth of the issue. Songs such as this one are threaded throughout American song, even to this day as evidenced by current trends in "Rap" and other urban hate music. As with most of Harte's novels, the lyrics of this song tell a tale of a card game in which a Chinese man feigns lack of knowledge of the game of poker yet takes all in a game where he is discovered to have been cheating. In a commentary about Chinese clothes, it was said the deceptive "Chinee" held twenty-four packs of cards up his sleeve. Of course, one of the other players, an American held Aces and "bowers" up his sleeve and little was made of that. The players were incensed that they had been out-cheated and suffered the wrath of the players. In my own opinion, this song represents an intentional twist of irony by Harte and behind the obvious is a clever and well disguised lesson about racism. I believe Harte knew exactly what he was doing and the song is a slam of the prevailing unfair stereotypes of the Chinese people.

Bret Harte

Hear this early "Chinese" work Printable sheet music (scorch format only)

listen to MIDI version

Lyrics

In The Land of Far Cathay

1903

Music by: J. Arndt Morris
Lyrics by: Mary Wood
Cover artist: H.B. Eddy

With is quite nice song, we experience an early attempt by a songwriter to create an Oriental sounding song. Using a staccato, choppy style using fifths combined with a flowing melody and bass chords songwriters tried to imitate the sounds heard in Oriental music. In some respects their efforts mimic some elements of Chinese music but only manages to use some stereotypical elements and create a similarity of the sound of Chinese music. We also find that at this time, all songs related to Oriental and Asian countries seem to take on the same sound illustrating the confusion and ignorance on the part of the west as relates to the differences between various countries in Asia.

Early Chinese music was defined more by religious and philosophic leaders rather than secular ones. Confucious believed that music should be used for education and that moderation should be applied. As a result, we see the development of a music that is rich in harmony, melody and metaphysical impact, yet simple in terms of fundamentals. As with much Western music, the Chinese system developed with the concept of the octave and 12 pitches within the octave termed the lü. The 12 lü are very precisely defined in mathematical terms as specific relative ratios that result in a series of perfect intervals that begin with a fundamental note, the huang-chung. Listen to the 12 lü scale. The Chinese pentatonic scale, the first five of the 12 lü, is the scale used that creates the unique "Oriental" sound that westerners are more accustomed to. Hear the pentatonic scale. Though not precisely the same as notes defined by Western scales, they are approximate to C-D-F-G-A.. As if all this were not confusing enough, a seven tone scale was also used in Chinese music. Hear the hepatonic scale. Once you've listened to all those, refresh yourself as to the more familiar octave scale used in our music. It is the pentatonic scale most often used to "imitate" the Oriental sound in western music.

J. Arndt Morris & Mary Wood are two of our many creative composers and lyricists whose life story has become so obscure as to be nearly impossible to find. This song appeared in the New York American and Journal on Sunday November 29, 1903 as a music supplement. As with most of our newspaper music supplements, it has deteriorated badly and soon will be nothing more than a pile of dust.

Enjoy this early "Chinese" hit Printable sheet music (scorch format only)

listen to MIDI version

Lyrics

I Like You

1903

Music by: Wm. F. Peters
Lyrics by: Richard Carle
Cover artist: Keller

In 1903, Richard Carle and Wm. Frederick Peters staged the musical operetta, The Mayor Of Tokio. Not a big hit, nonetheless, music from the musical was published and some songs became popular on their own. Later, in 1905, the operetta enjoyed a run of 50 performances (definitely not a hit) at the New York Theater, with Carle playing one of the leading roles. The New York Theater was built in 1895 and was the venue for many of the era's greatest stage works including Naughty Marietta in 1910 and Ben Hur in 1903. Interestingly, though the work carries a Japanese theme, there was absolutely no attempt by Carle and Peters to imitate Japanese music or oriental musical construct. What we have here is a plain and simple American song from an American stage play with a Japanese setting. A nice song, in the American Tin Pan Alley tradition.

Richard Carle ( b. Jul. 7, 1871 Somerville, MA, USA - d. Jun 28, 1941 North Hollywood, CA, USA ) Was a prominent producer, writer, lyricist and composer who is best known for his many musicals, musical revues and stage plays. He enjoyed a fairly long and productive career and staged many works from 1899 to 1930. Among his works are; The New Yorkers, 1930; Adrienne, 1923; The Broadway Whirl, 1921; The Cohan Revue of 1916, 1916; Jumping Jupiter, 1911; The Hurdy-Gurdy Girl, 1907 and Children of the Ghetto, his first staged work in 1899.
( Biographical data and play list from the Internet Broadway Database at http://ibdb.com/person.php?ID=8297 )

Listen to and see this "Japanese" song (scorch format only)

Listen to MIDI version

Lyrics

Hi-Ko, Hi-KO

1904

Touted as from "The Korean Opera, Sho-Gun," by Luders, we have here an excellent sectional composition for piano that from the cover, one would think is a genuine Korean dance. Whether it really is or not, is open for discussion. In my opinion, it is not. The title of the opera, Shogun, is our first clue that we have yet another composer who is confused as to Asian tradition, geography and terminology. Of course, I'm no expert but it seems that the term Shogun (or Sho-gun) is of Japanese origin, not Korean. According to the Encarta Encyclopedia, Shogun, was the title of the military dictators who ruled Japan almost continuously from 1192 to 1867. Secondly, the music, though again a bit oriental sounding, is not necessarily Korean in nature. On listening, if anything, the music sounds almost Native American. Of course we've said in our essay about Native American music that Native American music sounds as though it may have been influenced by Asian music (supporting the "land bridge" from Asia theory). In some respects, the music also has passages, particularly the "Billboard Dance" that sounds even middle eastern in style.

Korean music has its origins in court and classical styles with folk music rarely mentioned in historical accounts. According to the New Grove ( v. 10. p 192) there were seven distinct historical periods and music was classified into several styles. Those styles are aak (elegant music), chôngak (right music), P'ansori (vocal and theatrical music) and sogak (secular music). Most Korean music is based on tritonic or tetratonic models and there are eight different types of notation used. The scales or pitches used are different for aak and art songs. Korean music is quite complex with many different modes and scales used depending on the style of music. A typical scale for aak may sound like this and a scale for an art song may use this scale. Both scales are chromatic and as scales go, sound very modern. Here is a short excerpt from a Confucian ritual.

I think we could agree, here is another case of Asian confusion and misinformation in this work. Regardless, I think it is an excellent piano work and find it very entertaining.

Gustav Luders (b. Dec. 13,1865 Bremen, Germany d. January 1913, New York, NY.) wrote a fairly large number of musicals and stage plays from the period 1900 to 1913. After a long absence, he produced one work in 1930 and nothing after that. His work, Shogun opened October 10, 1904 at Wallack's Theater and ran for 125 performances (Internet Broadway Database).

Musically trained in Europe, Luders emigrated to Milwaukee, WI, in 1888, when he was 23 years old, and started conducting theater and beer hall orchestras. The eminent composer, Charles K. Harris (After the Ball) encouraged him to follow career in music publishing, in Chicago. He found work as an arranger, in the Chicago office of Isidore Witmark Publishing, but also continued to conduct theater orchestras there

In 1899, Luders' first operetta Little Robinson Crusoe opened in Chicago. It starred Eddie Foy. Henry W. Savage heard it and commissioned Luders to score the operetta 'The Burgomaster', which also opened in Chicago. At this time, Luders formed a team with Frank Pixley, the editor of the Chicago Times-Herald Newspaper, with Pixley writing text and lyrics. (From the Tunesmiths database, http://www.nfo.net/.CAL/tl6.html#Luders )

Hear this "Korean" dance

Listen to MIDI version

Lyrics (NONE, piano solo work)

Lotus San

1908

Music by: Edward Madden
Lyrics by: Dolly Jardon
Cover artist: Starmer

Featuring a gorgeous cover by Starmer, we find a song that has a clearly Japanese theme as far as the cover, but what about the music within? Give it a listen and compare it to the Hi-KO piece above, you'll probably hear some similarities, again probably due to the same confusion and lack of knowledge displayed in all our other songs this month. Regardless, it is a pleasant love song about a Japanese girl who fell in love with a soldier from the west.

A look at Japanese music finds similar attributes to the music of Korea and China that we have explored already. However, modern Japan, since 1868 finds Japanese music influenced greatly by Western traditional music and other international trends. The opening of Japan to trade and the modern Meiji restoration brought about changes in culture and music that have made Japan a cross cultural society. You find a great deal of interest in Western music, particularly classical music and popular song that seems to overshadow traditional Japanese music. As with America, Japan;s music evolved based on its social and political history. Traditional Japanese music has a great deal of relationship to Chinese music and the tonal systems, scales and modes are derived in theory from Chinese practices (New Grove, Vol. 9, p. 511)

Traditional Japanese music is similar to Chinese in that we hear most often the pentatonic scale. Here is an example of a traditional song from a stage play that illustrates the sound and often simple harmonies and instrumentation often found in Japanese music. Listen to it and decide for yourself, did Lotus San have authentic Japanese musical elements?

Not exactly, but still, it is a nice work. By this time we are seeing a standard set of riffs that composers are using to connote "Asian" music, be it Chinese, Japanese, Siamese or any other sort of "ese."

Edward Madden (b. 1878, New York City, d. 1952, Hollywood, CA.) was a charter member of ASCAP and a respected lyricist best remembered for a pair of moon songs"; By The Light Of The Silvery Moon, a 1909 collaboration with Gus Edwards, and Moonlight Bay (Scorch format) a 1912 collaboration with renowned composer Percy Wenrich Madden collaborated with a veritable who's who of American popular song composers including Theodore F. Morse, Harry Von Tilzer, Louis A. Hirsch and Jerome Kern. Madden was educated at Fordham University and was a writer for the great Fanny Brice and other singers as well. He founded his own publishing firm and enjoyed great success as a key member of the Tin Pan Alley inner circle. Maddens partner in this venture, Dolly Jardon is known to have composed a number of other popular songs including Her Little Soldier Boy, (1906). however, as with many of the women composers from the period, little else can be found about her.

Enjoy this great "Japanese" song (scorch)

Listen to MIDI version

Lyrics

Along The Road To Singapore

1915

Music by: Hans Von Holstein & Alma Sanders
Lyrics by: Richard W. Pascoe
Cover artist: "BST"

Though a song a bout Singapore and what lies there for a traveler longing to be with his "Hindoo Pearl", this song is pure American Tin Pan Alley fare. A delightful tune, upbeat with a good set of lyrics, we can only enjoy it for what it is..a good song about a far away exotic place. Though there are some interesting harmonies at the beginning of the chorus that are reminiscent of Asian sounds, once again we have a great song where the composer uses stereotypes or simply imagined passages that might make the listener think of South East Asia. Of course again, we have some confused writers and the music is nothing like that found in that region at the time and it seems he has even managed to misplace India's Hindu's into an area largely Muslim, Taoist or Bhuddist. However, in today's Singapore, some 4% of Singaporeans are Hindus, almost all Indian.

The music of Maylasia and South East Asia is some of the most diverse found in Asia, yet contains a number of common features that underlie the various styles. The music of this area embraces a wide area and includes Indonesia, the Phillippines, Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Maylasia and Thailand. Singapore, on the Maylay peninsula is now independent (since 1965) but when this song was written was a part of Maylay. Perhaps one of the most prominent musical traditions of this area are the gong-chime ensembles, often called gamelans, that consist of different types of gongs and slabs or keys made of bronze brass or iron. In ancient times, the slabs were actually made of tuned rock (called lithophones) which produce a soft, pleasant sound. The resulting sound of the brass slab and gong ensemble can be both pleasant or unpleasant depending on your point of view. Sometimes sounding cacophonous, the music is based on a number of different scale systems ranging from as simple as three tones to seven. The music of this area is more melodic than harmonic, that is, chords are not as important as the melody. Though that may be the case, the layering of melody within an ensemble, can create the perception of harmony but the New Grove describes it more as a stratification of instruments that gives rise to a rich harmonic structure. (New Grove, Vol. 17, p. 764). In addition, the quality of sound is described as homogenous, without the variety of differing tone quality and instrumental timbres which we are used to in Western orchestras and ensembles. Bali has perhaps the most world famous gong or gamelan orchestras. The music in my opinion is more an acquired taste, one I've not developed. Hear a 5 second gong ensemble in action (wav file, 80kb) and decide for yourself. Wav file courtesy of the website; Bali: The Online Travel Guide

Listen to this great old song (scorch format)

Listen to MIDI version

Lyrics

See our resources page for a complete bibliography of all resources used to research this and other articles in our series.