Twenty-second International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities

Abstract

‘the Americanist’ is a musical album and essay. Set in the interwar period, the album features orchestral works arranged for solo piano by George Gershwin, William Grant Still, and Maurice Ravel. The partnering essay places the composers within a larger context of American cultural aims and production. More importantly, it credits the cultural brilliance of the age, as well as the success of a globally recognized American sound, to the guidance and inspiration of the philosophies of the transcendentalist and New Negro movements. Confirming this achievement was the positive reception from the American public, in which this ‘American accent’ was widely accepted as a sonic representation of a shared American identity. Crucial to this development was the cultivation of local inspiration as it was assimilated into a global expression. Among many of the tools that could illuminate philosophical insight, I called forth the myth to articulate this story. The implicit inquiries within this narrative showcase the necessity of the myth; how vital philosophical coordination is for virtuous civic attitudes; and the startling differences in cultural production when that philosophical coordination is present versus when it is not. In the essay, I compose an “American cultural myth,” capturing the sentiments and dualities of an American cultural heroine, as she stands alongside the sole American myth, the American Dream.