Tin Pan Alley and the Birth of Manhattan Mass Culture - 3/30 Malgeri Seminar
The Parlor and the Public: Tin Pan Alley and the Birth of Manhattan Mass Culture
- Author: Samuel Backer, Johns Hopkins University
- Comment: Jeffrey Melnick, University of Massachusetts – Boston
Tuesday 30 March
5:15 PM
Free Virtual Event
During the late 19th century, the upstart sheet music firms known as Tin Pan Alley developed a revolutionary approach to publishing, constructing a system able to sell songs at a previously unimaginable scale and rate. Relying on New York’s central role in national performance networks to disseminate their compositions, this industry was defined by the tension between publishers’ attempts to create mass-marketing commodities, and the fast-moving, alcohol-drenched urban environments in which their products were required to thrive.
The Dina G. Malgeri Modern American Society & Culture Seminar invites you to join the conversation on Tuesday 30 March at 5:15 PM. The seminar brings together a diverse group of scholars and interested members of the public to workshop a pre-circulated paper. After brief remarks from the author and an assigned commentator, the discussion is opened to the floor. All are encouraged to ask questions, provide feedback on the circulated essay, and discuss the topic at hand. Our sessions are free and open to everyone. Register above to attend, and you will receive a confirmation message with instructions for attending this virtual session.
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