Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey and the Classic Blues (Two Parts)

The Classic Blues style was recorded, defined and spread during the 1920-30s by its two foremost proponents, singers and songwriters Bessie Smith, “The Empress of the Blues,” and Ma Rainey, “The Mother of the Blues.” They shaped an expressive, lusty, sobbing, growling "opera of the vernacular," inscribing their distinctive voices onto America’s musical culture.

This two-part lecture explores the life and times of several extraordinary blues divas including the first woman to sell a million blues records, Mamie Smith, the bawdy Creole chanteuse, Lizzie Miles and cross-dressing singer/pianist, Gladys Bentley. Each lecture features a dozen or more video and film clips including Bessie’s 1929 collaboration with composer W.C. Handy in the landmark movie-with-sound, “The Saint Louis Blues.”

During the last four decades Dave Radlauer has been telling tales of early Jazz, Blues and Swing on the radio, garnering six broadcast awards and authoring 200 articles for online and print publications. He has written interpretive online text and donated a large collection of unique music and photos forStanford Libraries. He teaches lifelong learning courses at UCLA, UC Berkeley, San Francisco State and Dominican University.

The Fifty and Better (FAB) program was designed for people ages 50 and older, seeking intellectual stimulation through university-level courses — without the pressure of grades — for the sake of learning and social engagement.

Register

Register by May 7, 3 p.m.