Review: “Black Music, A British Story” at the V&A East

A graffiti-covered piano played by 1950s sensational pianist Winifred Atwell, the first black British artist to top the UK charts; Dame Shirley Bassey’s glittering Bond-esque dress, worn to perform “Goldfinger” at the 2013 Academy Awards; the iconic Union Jack vest worn by groundbreaking rapper Stormzy during his 2019 Glastonbury headline set. Browse your way through “The Music is Black,” and you’ll encounter some of the most fascinating and historically significant artifacts of the modern British musical story.

The exhibition, which opened in April, is the first at the new V&A East Museum, the East London-based offshoot of the venerable South Kensington institution (think of it as your cool sibling). “The Music Black” embarks on a passionate, ambitious journey through the history of Black British music, tracing the evolution of eight distinct genres that were created and developed in Britain: lovers rock, Brit funk, 2 Tone, trip-hop, jungle, drum and bass, UK garage and grime. In addition to analyzing their cultural significance and the relationship between certain subcultures, the exhibition reveals the roots of these sounds in the culture of the Jamaican sound system, jazz and traditional West African music.

“For Black British musicians, this is an affirmation of their worth. It emphasizes the importance of Black music but also how underappreciated Black British music was,” said Jacqueline Springer, lead curator of the exhibition. His background as a music journalist and academic led him to the early 1900s, which he identified as “when the media burst into the present. [with the creation of radio]… this gives you a quick way to tell you what’s going on in the world, and you can sing and spread these racist structures through this new media.”

In order to find the context for the renaissance of black British music of the 20th and 21st centuries, Springer and his collaborators decided to start the experience with a room that captures powerful moments from the first centuries of contact between Europeans and West Africans, starting in the 1400s. When entering “Black Music,” visitors are given a headset programmed to play different music for different parts of the show. You can stay with some music as long as you like, visit the one you were attached to, or enter a neutral place if you need peace and quiet; The fluid nature of the technology means that “Black Music” is something fun and engaging, but in control throughout.

Sadly, Act One begins on a tense, negative note as you see old, oppressive, influential documents, such as the legal document signed by King Charles II in 1672 to authorize the trade of enslaved people along the West African coast. This introductory section is kept short and very powerful in it, this history of violence and oppression gives more weight to the narrative of resistance and composition that follows.

“Music passes, and the oppressed and misrepresented always come, and that is one of the continuing achievements of Black music,” said Springer, whose goal was to connect the dots between different stories, spanning centuries of art and perseverance under the continuing influence of the British colonial project. Walking around, you’re encouraged to draw connections too: between the arrival of Jamaican jazz guitarist Ernest Ranglin in England and the creation of the 2 Tone ska movement in the late 1970s, for example, or, if you’re a geek (like me), the relationship between legendary producer Shirley 2000 and legendary 2 Wales producer DJ Spooky (used as a brass sampler “Goldfinger” is a cult classic).

Building on the work of this exhibition and providing an opportunity to highlight a range of artists not represented on the walls of the V&A East, an accompanying book by Springer entitled “The Music is Black” has been published, and an extensive program of talks and live music events have been taking place both at the museum and at the accompanying East Bank festival site from June until each week. of Black Britain on BBC Bitesize, and streaming related documentaries on BBC iPlayer.

Few shows in the UK evoke the development of such a wide cultural world. According to the V&A East’s artistic director Gus Casely-Hayford, “Black Music” aims to reshape the perception of English music on these seas and abroad, exemplifying that “this is our story, and one of our greatest contributions to the world.” It’s not just about changing culture and touching people emotionally; recent research suggests that Black music has accounted for 80 percent of the UK industry’s revenue over the past 30 years, and shows like this show that, finally, that fact is gaining wider recognition.

“That touches the heart [the exhibition] out, it has this wavular effect. But that’s Black music,” said Springer. That’s good because it emphasizes how important this is.”

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