Emilie Meyer
Tin Pan Alley was a hub of music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term Tin Pan Alley is said to have been coined by a newspaper writer named Monroe Rosenfeld, who used it to describe the cacophony of dozens of pianos being played at once in publishers' demo rooms. While Tin Pan Alley no longer exists in its original form, its influence on American music is undeniable, and it is often referred to as the birthplace of American popular music and the modern music industry.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Location | West 28th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenue in New York City |
| Time Period | Late 19th and early 20th centuries |
| Industry | Music publishing and songwriting |
| Music Type | Commercial music including ballads, dance music, and vaudeville |
| Products | Sheet music |
| Songwriters | George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Bob Dylan, etc. |
| End | Rise of radio, television, and sound films |
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What You'll Learn
The origin of the name 'Tin Pan Alley'
The name "Tin Pan Alley" is attributed to a newspaper writer named Monroe H. Rosenfeld. While staying in New York, Rosenfeld coined the term to describe the collective sound of dozens of pianos being played at the same time in publishers' demo rooms. He said it sounded like hundreds of people pounding on tin pans. During the years before air conditioning, New York City buildings had operable windows, and the demonstration cubicles lined the front and alley walls of the buildings. The sounds would tumble out into the street and bounce off the facing buildings. The term was used in a series of articles Rosenfeld wrote around 1900, and it eventually came to describe the American music industry as a whole.
According to another account, the name was coined by a journalist who was interviewing popular songwriter Harry von Tilzer about the area around 28th Street and Fifth Avenue, where many music publishers had offices. Von Tilzer had modified his expensive Kindler & Collins piano by placing strips of paper down the strings to give the instrument a more percussive sound. The journalist told von Tilzer, "Your Kindler & Collins sounds exactly like a tin can. I'll call the article 'Tin Pan Alley'".
By the fall of 1908, the name was firmly established, with The Hampton Magazine publishing an article titled "Tin Pan Alley" about 28th Street. According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, "tin pan" was slang for "a decrepit piano" as early as 1882, and the term came to mean a "hit song writing business" by 1907. Over time, the nickname came to describe the American music publishing industry in general.
Tin Pan Alley was a specific location in New York City, on West 28th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in the Flower District of Manhattan. Several buildings on Tin Pan Alley are protected as New York City landmarks, and the section of 28th Street from Fifth to Sixth Avenue is officially co-named Tin Pan Alley. The start of Tin Pan Alley is usually dated to about 1885, when a number of music publishers set up shop in the same district of Manhattan. The end of Tin Pan Alley is less clear, with some dating it to the start of the Great Depression in the 1930s when other forms of media supplanted sheet music as the primary driver of American popular music.
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The rise and fall of Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley was a collection of music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term "Tin Pan Alley" is believed to have been coined by newspaper writer Monroe Rosenfeld to describe the collective sound of many "cheap upright pianos" all playing different tunes, reminiscent of the banging of tin pans in an alleyway. The name also referred to the physical location of this collective, specifically West 28th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in Manhattan.
The start of Tin Pan Alley is usually dated to around 1885 when Willis Witmark, the founder of one of the first publishing houses to focus on popular over religious or classical sheet music, moved to 28th Street. The concentration of publishers in this area created a hub of songwriting activity, where composers could work in a potent atmosphere of creativity. Songwriters, lyricists, and performers laboured to produce music to meet the demand for sheet music, which was the most profitable commercial product of Tin Pan Alley.
Tin Pan Alley helped shape the music business in America by promoting and marketing sheet music to the buying public. They also established what became the American recording industry. Song pluggers, or performers who worked in music shops playing the latest releases, were hired to give the music exposure. Songwriters became publishers, relying on song pluggers to publicize songs using any means necessary.
The end of Tin Pan Alley is less clear-cut. Some date it to the start of the Great Depression in the 1930s when the phonograph, radio, and motion pictures supplanted sheet music as the driving force of American popular music. The growth of film, audio recording, radio, and television created an increased demand for different kinds of music, and Tin Pan Alley was rendered obsolete as other music-publishing centres arose to supply melodies for these genres. The sheet music business withered, and the music industry moved uptown with the new trends and changes.
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The location of Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley was a collection of music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was originally located on West 28th Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in the Flower District of Manhattan. The start of Tin Pan Alley is usually dated to about 1885, when Willis Witmark, founder of one of the first publishing houses to concentrate on popular music, moved to the 28th-street location from Manhattan's entertainment district.
The name "Tin Pan Alley" is attributed to a newspaper writer named Monroe Rosenfeld, who, while staying in New York, coined the term to describe the collective sound of many "cheap upright pianos" all playing different tunes, reminiscent of the banging of tin pans in an alleyway. The name was also used to refer to the specific location of the music publishers and songwriters in New York City. The term was first used in 1903, in an article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, although no piece by Rosenfeld that employs the phrase has been discovered.
By the early 20th century, the location of Tin Pan Alley had shifted to around Broadway and 32nd Street, and ultimately, by the 1920s, it was located on Broadway between 42nd and 50th Streets. During this time, the street became known as "Britain's Tin Pan Alley" due to its large number of music shops.
Today, the original location of Tin Pan Alley on 28th Street still exists, but the street is now filled with wholesalers and cell phone accessory stores, and the historic buildings are in a state of disrepair and at risk of demolition. However, several buildings on Tin Pan Alley are protected as New York City designated landmarks, and the section of 28th Street from Fifth to Sixth Avenue is officially co-named Tin Pan Alley.
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Songwriters and publishers of Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley was a collection of music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term "Tin Pan Alley" is attributed to a newspaper writer named Monroe Rosenfeld, who coined the term to describe the sound of multiple pianos being played at once in publisher's demo rooms, reminiscent of the banging of tin pans in an alleyway. The name was also attributed to popular songwriter Harry Von Tilzer, who modified his piano to have a more percussive sound, leading a journalist to say they would call their article about the area "Tin Pan Alley".
The start of Tin Pan Alley is usually dated to about 1885 when Willis Witmark, founder of one of the first publishing houses to concentrate on popular music, moved to 28th Street in Manhattan. The street became known as "Tin Pan Alley", with several buildings designated as landmarks, and the section of 28th Street from Fifth to Sixth Avenue officially co-named Tin Pan Alley. The music publishers and songwriters of Tin Pan Alley produced music in various genres, including ragtime, blues, jazz, folk, country, and Broadway.
Some of the notable publishers of Tin Pan Alley included Willis Woodard and T.B. Harms, who were the first companies to specialize in popular songs. Many Jewish immigrants also became music publishers and songwriters on Tin Pan Alley, such as Isadore Witmark, Leo Feist, Joe Stern, and Edward B. Marks. The publishers worked with songwriters, composers, and lyricists to create and sell popular songs to the American public.
Songwriters and composers played a crucial role in the success of Tin Pan Alley. They were often hired under contract, giving the publisher exclusive rights to their works. Some of the notable songwriters and composers of Tin Pan Alley included George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Victor Youmans, Harry Warren, and Charles K. Harris. Harris's song "After the Ball" grossed over $25,000 a week in 1891 and sold more than 5 million copies, becoming one of the biggest hits of Tin Pan Alley.
The end of Tin Pan Alley is less clear-cut, with some dating it to the start of the Great Depression in the 1930s when other forms of media, such as radio and motion pictures, supplanted sheet music as the primary source of popular music. However, others argue that Tin Pan Alley continued beyond this period, with its influence extending into various musical genres.
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The influence of Tin Pan Alley on the music industry
Tin Pan Alley was a collection of music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term "Tin Pan Alley" is attributed to a newspaper writer named Monroe Rosenfeld, who coined the term to describe the sound of dozens of pianos being played at once in publishers' demo rooms. The sound of the piano was said to be reminiscent of the banging of tin pans in an alleyway.
Tin Pan Alley was the popular music publishing centre of the world between 1885 and the 1920s. The genre of music that arose from Tin Pan Alley took on its name, being based on 28th Street between Fifth Avenue and Broadway in the early 20th century. The start of Tin Pan Alley is usually dated to about 1885, when Willis Witmark, founder of one of the first publishing houses to concentrate on popular over religious or classical sheet music, moved to 28th Street. The end of Tin Pan Alley is less clear-cut, with some dating it to the start of the Great Depression in the 1930s when the phonograph, radio, and motion pictures supplanted sheet music as the primary way people consumed music.
Tin Pan Alley helped to shape the music business in America by centralizing publishers, allowing them to amass power and influence in US politics to promote their business interests. This led to the formation of the Music Publishers Association of the United States in 1895, which is still active today. Tin Pan Alley also contributed to the creation of the "'song plugger'", a performer employed by a publisher to play the organization's most recent songs in public settings to increase interest.
Tin Pan Alley influenced various music genres, including ragtime, blues, jazz, folk, country, and Broadway. It also acted as an approach to modernism, incorporating influences from African-American culture and white high and middlebrow culture. The concentration of publishers and composers in Tin Pan Alley created a hub of songwriting activity, with composers like George Gershwin and Irving Berlin producing a large volume of songs.
While Tin Pan Alley no longer exists as a physical place, its impact on the music industry is undeniable. It helped shape the way music is created, marketed, and consumed, and its influence can still be felt in modern performing rights groups and the way music is promoted and played in public settings.
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Frequently asked questions
Tin Pan Alley was a collection of music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Tin Pan Alley was located on West 28th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenue in Manhattan, New York City.
The name "Tin Pan Alley" is attributed to a newspaper writer named Monroe Rosenfeld, who coined the term to describe the sound of dozens of pianos being played at once in publisher's demo rooms.
The end date of the Tin Pan Alley era is ambiguous, but some date it to the start of the Great Depression in the 1930s when the phonograph, radio, and motion pictures replaced sheet music as the driving force of American popular music.
While the golden age of Tin Pan Alley may be over, the physical location still exists as a group of buildings on West 28th Street in Manhattan, New York City. Several of these buildings are protected as New York City landmarks.
