Is There a Southern Cadence?
What does Southern Music sound like? Can you describe it?
It seems like we all have an idea that when we hear Southern Music, we know it. But what is “it?” Suppose a British musician wrote a song, and she wanted to record it in a specific way so that it sounded Southern. What kinds of things would be necessary for her to make a non-Southern song sound Southern?
Here’s another way to approach it. Suppose someone found a tape that they claimed to be a long-lost Lynyrd Skynyrd song that had never been released. What would you need to hear in that tape to be convinced that you were listening to a genuine Lynyrd Skynyrd song? Also, would there be specific things that might be missing to convince you that it’s definitely not a Lynyrd Skynyrd song without them?
Consider this similar event. Beethoven died in 1827, yet the highly popular piano piece of his called Für Elise was not discovered until 1867. What was the process to determine its authenticity, and could a similar process exist for Southern Music? Not just one specific composer, but for the whole enchilada. A checklist of ingredients for a Southern sound.
Is there a “Southern Cadence” in music?
Yes, I can confidently state that there is a distinct musical presence that I call the "Southern Cadence" that is prevalent in Country, Rock, Gospel, Blues, and Jazz music. The most iconic part of the Southern Cadence is a relaxed, rhythmic groove, often with syncopation and a prominent backbeat, and it is an integral part of the South’s unique sonic landscape. Every Southern song does not contain all elements of a Southern Cadence, but every Southern song contains enough of a combination of them to qualify.
The Southern Cadence is a concept that does not exist in musicology, so far as I’m aware, and I’m kind of making this up as I go. Everyone and anyone may feel free to add, subtract, amend, adapt, suggest, correct, and reject any part of this that needs attention.
So far, here are some key elements of the Southern Cadence that I have identified:
Slow tempo: Southern songs often have a slightly slower tempo compared to other genres, creating a laid-back, mellow feel. To put this into perspective, consider two different types of “relaxing.” First, there’s simply sitting quietly and relaxing. And then, there’s sitting in a rocking chair on a front porch on a warm evening with a glass of sweet tea watching lightning bugs and listening to distant thunder.
Rhythmic groove: The rhythm is typically very pronounced, with a strong backbeat and syncopation, often using shuffle rhythms. Even in songs with a faster tempo, the shuffle feel still gives a laid back feeling to the beat. Also, by “groove,” I’m referring to the technique of NOT following strict divisions of the beat, which allows the rhythm to be imperfect (speed up and slow down).
Simple melodies: The melodies are often simple and catchy, with a focus on repetition and hooks. Southern songs tend to stick in your head easier than other songs. Also, Southern melodies freely use “blue notes,” which are pitches that are somewhere in between exact scale notes, and help contribute to the lazy aspect of the song. The inflections represented by blue notes tend to follow the speech patterns of the spoken Southern accent.
Vocals: The vocals are often warm and expressive, with a Southern drawl or twang. If you were to randomly select any Rock ‘n Roll song from the 1950’s, you’d be listening to a Southern accent. The various elements of the many varieties of Southern accents are dominant in the presentation of the melody, whether it’s vocal or instrumental.
Modal harmony – typically mixolydian instead of major or dorian instead of minor.
Instrumentation: The instrumentation typically includes guitars, bass, drums, and keyboards, with occasional use of banjo, pedal steel guitar, fiddle, and harmonica.
The Land: many Southern songs are about the land instead of dreams and ideals.
It seems to me that the Southern accent is the most obvious driving force behind the elements of the Southern Cadence in music, which has many unique characteristics, as follows:
Drawl: the Southern drawl is arguably the most distinctive feature of the Southern accent, and involves the lengthening of vowels within words. The relaxed, melodic cadence found in the Southern drawl gives the illusion of speaking slower.
Pronunciation merger: the alteration of vowels gives the Southern accent a quality of pronouncing words differently from standard pronunciation.
Non-rhotic: The "r" at the end of words is often dropped.
Monophthongization: diphthongs, or two-part vowel sounds, are often flattened into single vowel sounds.
Vowel breaking: single vowel sounds are split into multiple syllables, further reinforcing the illusion of speaking slower.
Unique vocabulary: Words like "ain't", "buggy" (shopping cart), "coke" (any soft drink),"tote" (carry), “mash” (push), or “tump” (drop off). This also includes grammatical variations, such as using "y'all" as a plural second-person pronoun, "fixin' to" meaning "about to", or "might could" for "might be able to."
Syllable stress: Words like “cement”, “umbrella”, and “police” are spoken as “CEE-ment”, “UHM-brella”, and “PO-leese.” In linguistics, this is called “prosodic dissonance,” and helps lead directly to unique rhythms and inflections in Southern music that are never found elsewhere.
Each sub-dialect of Southern English has its own distinctive melody and rhythm, often influenced by regional music and culture. The Appalachian Southern accent is different from the coastal Southern accent, which is different from the Delta Southern accent, and so is the music. The regional Southern accents influenced the music, and the regional music influenced the various Southern accents. The two are closely connected.
The Appalachian Southern accent reflects the traditional sing-songy ballads of the region. Country Music projects the hillbilly, farming, and ranching traditions of Southern life, and its singers were often from working-class populations. Their twangy vocal timbre was a part of the sound, and as my colleague Joe Stromberg excellently explained, if you sing a Country song without the Southern accent, then it ain’t a Country song.
I know a lot about music, but very little about linguistics, so I have much to learn in this area in order to make the connections that I suspect are waiting to be discovered. In other words, there is a LOT more to come. Are there connections between Southern food and Southern music? Southern literature? Southern architecture?
Stay tuned.