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Courtney Houston
World Music
October 20, 2015
Afro-Cuban Music and Big Jazz Band
When I think of big jazz band, I am immediately transported to New Orleans in the
1930’s. The sounds of Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald come
to mind. One of the main reasons that big band jazz spread throughout the nation was the radio.
As the United States entered the Great Depression, most people didn’t have the money to spend
on entertainment and in turn jobs for musicians became hard to come by. With the flourishing of
the radio in homes, people were entertained with the growling sounds of big jazz bands. The
radio gave musicians of different race an opportunity for their music to be heard without
