Review of a minstrel show at Orchestra Hall in Chicago.1
This review published in Chicago, Illinois details the experience of someone who went to see the New York Syncopated Orchestra which became known as the Southern Syncopated Orchestra. Made up of 27 black musicians and 19 singers, this orchestra primarily performed jazz music as well as classical music, rag tunes, blues, and slave songs.2 They were primarily known for bringing black musicians to the United Kingdom.3 They introduced jazz to Europe “years before the music saw its heyday and even played at Buckingham Palace for George V.”4 They achieved great success in the UK and America.
Souther Syncopated Orchestra in the UK.5
The published review of this orchestra explained how this performance was not advertised, so the audience was rather slim. The reviewer explains that those in attendance had a good time and expects that the next time this orchestra is in town, the audience will surly be jam packed. The reviewer continues by detailing every instrument and performance the orchestra gave. As far as the quartets that sang, “not since the days of Fisk’s Cantors” had he heard anything quite as good, and the “timpany-boy” was a “revelation.”6 He details the quality of the performance as “distinctly good,” “the strings were in tune, and of fine tone,” and “pitch was the middle-name of all those who took part.”7 Overall, this reviewer had nothing but positive comments about the Southern Syncopated Orchestra.
The SSO achieved great success in their significant, yet short run. Only a few photos survived from their time, but their music was never recorded and “their legacy is now largely forgotten.”8 The SSO met an tragic fate while traveling from Scotland to Ireland, their ship crashed with two others and they lost eight members of their orchestra. The SSO only survived from 1919 to 1921, yet they were pioneers of American jazz music and were some of the firsts to bring it to the international stage.
Bibliography
“Good Minstrels.” Broad Ax, 1919, p. 6. African American Newspapers, Accessed October 4, 2023.
Dome, Brighton. “Jazz Pioneers: The Southern Syncopated Orchestra / Brighton Dome.” Jazz Pioneers: The Southern Syncopated Orchestra / Brighton Dome. Accessed October 4, 2023. https://brightondome.org/news_blog/southern_syncopated_orchestra/.
Rye, Howard. “Southern Syncopated Orchestra.” African American Studies Center, 2007. https://doi.org/10.1093/acref/9780195301731.013.47655.
“Southern Syncopated Orchestra.” London Remembers. Accessed October 4, 2023. https://www.londonremembers.com/subjects/southern-syncopated-orchestra.
1 Broad Ax. “Good Minstrels.” African American Newspapers, Accessed October 4, 2023.
2 Howard Rye, “Southern Syncopated Orchestra,” African American Studies Center, 2007, https://doi.org/10.1093/acref/9780195301731.013.47655.
3 Howard Rye, “Southern Syncopated Orchestra,” African American Studies Center, 2007, https://doi.org/10.1093/acref/9780195301731.013.47655.
4 “Southern Syncopated Orchestra,” London Remembers, accessed October 4, 2023, https://www.londonremembers.com/subjects/southern-syncopated-orchestra.
5 “Southern Syncopated Orchestra,” London Remembers, accessed October 4, 2023, https://www.londonremembers.com/subjects/southern-syncopated-orchestra.
6 Broad Ax. “Good Minstrels.” African American Newspapers, Accessed October 4, 2023.
7 Broad Ax. “Good Minstrels.” African American Newspapers, Accessed October 4, 2023.
8 Brighton Dome, “Jazz Pioneers: The Southern Syncopated Orchestra / Brighton Dome,” Jazz Pioneers: The Southern Syncopated Orchestra / Brighton Dome, accessed October 4, 2023, https://brightondome.org/news_blog/southern_syncopated_orchestra/.