Zydeco Music: Cajun & Creole Influences
- Music History Hall
- 5 days ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
Bayou Country
South Louisiana is a diverse place with varied traditions, cultures, cuisine, and people. Those who are descendants of people from Louisiana before the Louisiana Purchase (1803) -- including original French and Spanish settlers, African free and enslaved people, and French-Canadian exiles (Cajuns) are considered Creoles. Creole people are often mixed race with a diverse and rich cultural heritage.
The Cajuns
The Cajun people of Southwest Louisiana are largely descended from French settlers who formed the first French colony in the New World in 1604 in what is now Canada. Their country was called Acadia, and the people lived a peaceful, pastoral life. In the early 1700s, the English won control of Acadia, and the Acadians were expelled from their community. They made their way down to Louisiana where they found acceptance among the French and Spanish. Their descendants are called Cajuns.
Cajun Music is a distinct folk music from Louisiana. It is a mix of the varied musical styles in the Cajun region – and includes French, Irish, German, and Native American influences. The fiddle is central to the sound, culture, and history of Cajun music. Sometimes two fiddles are included – one playing the melody and another filling in a background part. The French accordion is also a prominent sound in Cajun music. Songwriting in Cajun music is mostly in French - with English used as a secondary language.
Creole History
Creoles are people in Louisiana who descend from the French Colonial era. Many Creoles are of mixed ancestry, and some speak a distinct Creole language that mixes the French language with grammar closely related to African languages. During the period of the Code Noir – French colony rules regarding race – the Louisiana Creoles survived by creating self-supporting communities. A feature of the French Code Noir rules was that black people had the right to own land, something few black people in the English colonies or the American South experienced at the time.
Zydeco
Zydeco Music is a blend of Creole music, blues, and rhythm and blues - created by the indigenous and black Creole people of southern Louisiana. It has French, Spanish, African, and Caribbean influences. Zydeco is a syncopated upbeat music typically played with an accordion, fiddle, washboard, guitar, and drums. Lyrics are commonly sung in French and English.
Zydeco music crowned its king when Clifton Chenier signed with Specialty Records. Clifton Chenier’s first hit was called “Les Haricots Sont Pas Sales” which means The Snap Peas Ain’t Salty. This is a reference to being too poor to afford salt. This is also a translation of the word – Zydeco. Like the blues, Zydeco music was a form of expression for people to fight oppression and escape life’s hardships.
