New Orleans Jazz Funerals ...

 

I was talking to my work supervisor today, her trying to convince me I'd love Key West (no convincing needed!), and me trying to convince her she'd love New Orleans.

(She's an Anne Rice/spooky-book fan, so NO is a must-see then.)

New Orleans is the kind of city you either love or you hate. 

Me, I absolutely LOVE New Orleans (just NOT during Mardi Gras - too crowded/crazy).

Music and dancing everywhere, all hours of the day and night, the mix of cultures, food, religion, architecture - there's no other place like it in the United States. 

Then I started thinking of their famous jazz funerals and my previous posts on the death of my friend, Marian, and I looked up a bit of the history.

Most people focus on the second half of the funeral procession, the celebration moment after release of the body of the deceased at the cemetery, and not the mourning dirge part before, on the way to the cemetery, but here's a video with both ...

The funeral was for New Orleans Jazz singer, Juanita Brooks - "When I Die, You Better Second Line!"

(For what second-line means, keep reading.)

 

So why do they do this in New Orleans? 

So jazz funerals in New Orleans began after the emancipation of slaves, when people of color could now give proper funerals for their dead. The only problem now was, how to finance them?

Thus, "benevolent societies" such as "krewes" formed as social clubs were formed, pooling together funds to sponsor and finance proper funerals. Sometimes, more than 1 society or krewe will help finance it.

The man in this video does a great job of explaining the order of people, as well as the significance of the order of the instruments played ... 

It's not very long, but for those who don't have time to watch it, it goes like this ...

After the funeral, the grand marshal of the society or societies will signal the procession is about to begin by walking in front of the casket, while certain drums play in a certain order, signalling the beginning the mourning dirge march, leading the pallbearers to carry the casket to the hearse. 

As the first drums play, they will split into two groups to make way for the casket, with the men holding their hats down, umbrellas (usually closed) and down.  

Sometimes women of the family or close friends of the deceased will accompany the body out, umbrellas open but held down, stopping to each beat of the drum in a proud, sassy, almost defiant pose (as in the video above), which is better understood in the context of the below (in gold). 

As the casket is put into the hearse and the hearse is now in the street, other than the drummers and perhaps one or two trumpets or trombones, the band will otherwise split along both sides of the street, hats and instruments down, until the grand marshal blows the whistle grand marshal(s), when everyone is  positioned properly and ready. 

The band will reformulate after the hearse, picking up their instruments and fully join in the mourning dirge march, to which everyone marches slowly and sadly to the slow beat of the drums.

The "first line" - immediate family members - will follow just behind the hearse either in cars or walking - either behind or with the band. 

After release of the body at the cemetery, a trumpeter - or sometime a drummer - will play a little transition upbeat signal that it's time for the music transition.

At this point,  with the grand marshals leading, the "first-line" of immediate family follows just behind, either alongside or behind the hearse, sometimes interspersed with the band.

The signals plays the transition tune, the tempo picks up, as they change the tune to a brighter Dixieland Jazz tune, all umbrellas now are open and fully up, and the dancing begins.

The "second-line" now joins - friends, neighbors, onlookers, tourists, total strangers - are not just allowed, but encouraged to join behind them, dancing in the street, waving handkerchiefs to the sky, 

Everyone is invited to dance or march in a second-line -  those who knew the deceased or didn't, black, white, whatever - it's a sign you wish the deceased well. 

And the reason they're dancing?

I didn't realize this until today, that it's not just celebrating them in a better place ... it's more about release from slavery, freedom from the bondage of this life.  

I had just commented in my first post in this series about wondering how slaves could still sing about God in the fields, back then - and now I think I get it. 

It's about freedom from the shitty hand they were dealt in this life.

It's about hope for better - if not  like in this life, then the next -  or for their children and great grandchildren. 

And in predominantly Catholic New Orleans, it is common to fuse the Catholic belief of purgatory and appealing to saints for prayer for you with West African beliefs regarding spirits, passing loved ones around you that you can appeal to or appease for guidance.

When you look at it that way, release from the hell that is this life for some, you get it - because this life can be far from a party for many people - so they're celebrating release from darkness and bondage to this life.

😊

Pretty cool, right?

Tying this into my recent posts about Marian's death, in this life, Marian would've loved the music, but she would've thought it was weird 😂

Hoping she'll see the beauty of it now, if she can, from wherever she is.

And considering anyone can and should join second-line dances in a New Orleans Jazz Funeral as a sign you wish them well, next time I am in New Orleans, I will do exactly that - not only for the newly deceased, but for Marian - imagining she's dancing right along with me  🥲