The Jazz Age Essay - 1590 Words

The Jazz music of the Big Band Era was the peak of over thirty years of musical development. Jazz was so innovative and different that it could literally sweep the world, changing the musical styles of nearly every country. Big band Jazz that makes the feet tap and the heart race with excitement that it is recognized with nearly every type of music. The musical and cultural revolution that brought about Jazz was a direct result of African-Americans pursuing careers in the arts following the United States civil war. As slaves African-Americans has learned few European cultural traditions. With more freedom to pursue careers in the arts and bringing African artistic traditions to their work, African-Americans changed music and dance, not†¦show more content†¦Some of the notes dont even exist in European musical scales, so they were not recognized easily. The New Orleans bands of the late 19th century from which Big Bands evolved were varied. Some were social bands that played popular songs and music for dancing, some played marches and rags for weekend picnics and parties. Others specialized in their own variations on work and blues songs. Big Band Jazz had its start in New Orleans in 1898 at the end of the Spanish-American war. Military bands returned to the port to flood the city with used band instruments. And African-Americans interested in music quickly bought up hundreds of these instruments and began to form bands. Starting from square one, enthusiastic African American musicians taught themselves to play. This had two results: unconventional playing techniques and unconventional rendering of popular musical tunes. The playing techniques led to new and interesting sounds entering musicians vocabulary: trumpet and trombone growling sounds, wah-wah sounds, the use of odd household objects as mutes, and others. The unconventional rendering of popular musical tunes led to Jazz. An African-American playing a popular tune would play it adding some African musical traditions, different musical scales and different and complex rhythms. These early Jazz bands played music that was, to put it mildly, loosely structured. A soloist or an instrumental section of the band played the melody and theShow MoreRelatedThe Influence of the Jazz Age911 Words   |  4 PagesThe Influence Of The Jazz Age Was it the music that made everyone rebel or was it the beautiful arrogant people. In the 1920’s was it an age of miracles and change or just disaster. Such as, new technology, better things, love and leisure. Music just filled people’s spirits with lust and want. The radio/music had brought many people together like nothing ever before. Jazz music became popular everyone loved it. It made you want to do anything you wouldn’t normally do. Jazz became extremely popularRead MoreThe Jazz Age Essay1472 Words   |  6 PagesThe era of the Roaring Twenties, was a time of great societal change. Many of these changes were greatly influenced by jazz music. During this time, the country was coming out of World War I and the attitude of most people was dark and dismal. Dance and music clubs became tremendously popular in an effort to improve the quality of life for many people. After experiencing the death and destruction caused by World War I, young men and women were ready for a change. They wanted to forget aboutRead MoreTaking a Look at the Jazz Age1600 Words   |  6 PagesAmerica is rejoicing. The Jazz Age was a time of change and new beginnings for Americans. During the Jazz Age, the United States erupted in new musical and cultural changes. These changes can be seen through the shift in literature, from conservative to contemporary writings, by literary giants like F. Scott Fitzgerald and Bessie Smith. The Jazz Age was known as the Roaring Twenties, and is still popular today due to its infamous jazz music, flappers, and prohibition. The Jazz Age was an exciting, andRead MoreThe Jazz Age By Toni Morrison1700 Words   |  7 Pagesrefer to this time period as â€Å"The Jazz Age†. When jazz music was introduced to the public at clubs and dance halls it took off! People were either captivated by it, or appalled by it. Jazz was all about moveme nt; it was driven by syncopation and improvisation, and for some it was considered â€Å"the devil’s music.† The novel Jazz by Toni Morrison allows you to wonder down the seductive streets of Harlem where it all began. The book gives a sense of both the scandal of Jazz music and the history alongsideRead MoreThe Roaring Twenties, the Jazz Ages and the Age of Paranoia Essay537 Words   |  3 Pagestwenties, the jazz age, and age of paranoia. Flappers and bootleggers were found at this time. They smuggled rum in small flasks inside their boots; this is where they get the name bootleggers from. All of the men who smuggled the rum in their boots had a run-in with the cops; this is how the sport NASCAR came around. Flappers were women who cut their hair short and wear skirts about their knees. The well known things of the 1920s were the roaring twenties, the jazz age, and the age of paranoiaRead MoreThe Jazz Age : A Time Of Roaring Change1105 Words   |  5 PagesThe Jazz Age: A Time of Roaring Change The years following the United States involvement in World War I brought about social change and great fortune. The 1920s, also known as the Jazz Age and the Roaring Twenties, was a time of economic prosperity, automobiles, consumerism, music, film, fashion, and literature. All of this created a new American popular culture. The American economy flourished after World War I. The United States was involved in the war as part of the Allied Powers, and continuedRead MoreThe Jazz Age And Its Impact On American Society2652 Words   |  11 Pagesour nation was the nineteen twenties, which can likewise be alluded to as the Roaring Twenties or Jazz Age. The Jazz Age Positively affected American life and society because people were into this new style of music, jazz. Numerous other innovations during this period also changed the minds of the U.S. individuals, which basically modified the nations norms and ethics. It will become obvious how jazz music impacted life during the economically bloated roaring twenties. This paper will also talk aboutRead MoreEssay about Rapid Changes During the Jazz Age755 Words   |  4 Pagesafter WWI in the era called the Jazz Age. During the Jazz Age, Paris became the center of the artistic movement. Artists of all sorts from every corner of the globe traveled to Paris. Ernest Hemingway was there during this time, and his life in 1920s Paris is documented in his memoir A Moveable Feast. Along with Hemingway, F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso, and Cole Porter were all prominent figures in the artistic movement in the Jazz Age (Weber). Gertrude Stein hostedRead MoreFree Living in Fitzgerald ´s Echoes of the Jazz Age Essay544 Words   |  3 PagesFitzgerald does not associate the Jazz Age with jazz music, but he does associate it with free going men and women. Fitzgerald believes that the Jazz Age was a was a time of no care and living life to the fullest. He says â€Å"wherefore eat, drink, drink and be merry, for to-morrow we die†(16). This is showing that the people of the Jazz Age did not care what happened tomorrow as long as they lived today to its fullest. When he s ays â€Å"that something had to be done with all the nervous energy stored upRead MoreEssay on How Did American Culture Change During the Jazz Age?1140 Words   |  5 PagesWhat was the Jazz Age in America? Also known as the Roaring Twenties’, it was when American ways were beginning to modernize. Before the stock market had crashed and the Great Depression started, culture was booming in America. Dance was changing rapidly and new styles of dances were being created. Women began to wear shorter clothes, cut their hair, and some even had jobs, while the Flapper girls gave other young women an outlook of freedom. People began to go see films and movie stars became famous

Why President Hindenburg Gave Hitler Chancellorship in 1933 Free Essays

Throughout this essay, I will be aiming to explain why President Hindenburg appointed Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi party, as Chancellor in 1933. There were many factors that affected Hindenburg’s appointment however, from a behind-the-scenes power struggle between Germany’s leading politicians, the fear of Communism, and the fact that the Nazi’s were indeed the largest party represented in the Reichstag, having previously gained a large 37. 5% of the votes in 1932. We will write a custom essay sample on Why President Hindenburg Gave Hitler Chancellorship in 1933 or any similar topic only for you Order Now Under normal circumstances, Hitler would have been made Chancellor as he came from the largest party represented. However, backstage politics and a dislike towards him from Hindenburg stalled Hitler’s hopes of becoming Chancellor. But firstly, before going into detail into some of the factors, I will set the scene regarding the state of Germany and indeed the world, post WW1, leading up to 1933. Following defeat in WW2, and the abdication of the German Kaiser, Germany was in crisis, lacking leadership and support from its people. There was no support for the Provisional Government who had just signed the Armistice, despite the German people believing they were on the brink of winning the war, prompting the ‘stab in the back theory’. The following year, the new Republic, the Weimar Government signed the Treaty of Versailles, something else that angered the German people as it made Germany pay astronomical reparation sums in compensation and have its army drastically reduced to 100,000 men. Hitler used both of these stories in building support for the Nazi’s in the early 30’s. What followed was a period of hyperinflation in 1923 as Germany couldn’t keep up with the reparation demands of the Allies; many German people suffered with poverty and lost life savings. What followed however were years of prosperous fortune for the German people, known as the ‘Golden Twenties’. Gustav Stresemann led the recovery, restoring Germany’s international reputation, rebuilding a troubled economy, and seeking help from the US through the Dawes Plan in 1924, before his untimely death in 1929. 1929 saw Wall Street, the US stock exchange crash, kicking off the Great Depression. Germany was hit hard and faced mass unemployment, rising to 6 million people by 1932. It was around this time that people started taking Left Wing parties seriously, voting for the Communists and the Nazi’s. The conditions gave Hitler ammunition to gain support from the people. Hitler was a renowned public speaker and would make up any lie to please the people of Germany at any time, in any place. Coupled with his Nazi propaganda and the fear of Communism in Germany, Hitler had the perfect platform to gain votes in the Reichstag, and would soon be on his way to becoming Chancellor. Now, having looked at the history behind the years leading up to 1933, I can now look deeper into the individual factors behind Adolf Hitler cementing his position as Chancellor. In my opinion, the main reason as to why Hindenburg made Hitler Chancellor in 1923 was because the Nazi’s had indeed become the largest party in the Reichstag. As mentioned previously, the party had gained 37. 5% of the votes in the previous election, and although this wasn’t a majority politically, it had become a majority psychologically, in the fact that the Nazi’s could no longer be ignored as they had been in previous years. This was proven when Franz Von Papen, much to Hitler’s distress was given Chancellorship in late 1932. He was the leader of the Catholic Centre Party but as the Nazi’s controlled over a third of the Reichstag, he failed to gain full support. General Von Schleicher was in the same boat, as he also failed to gain full support. Enter Adolf Hitler, the only man who could truly get anything done, as he was the only man who could unite the Reichstag, making him the obvious choice for Chancellor. Another factor leading to Hitler’s rise to Chancellorship was the popularity of himself, the party, and the policies they promoted. The Nazi’s policies seemed to suit all of the German people, and he would even lie to the people in order to gain their full support. Policies such as rebuilding the army, abolishing mass unemployment, and his attitude towards ‘inferior’ races would not have gone un-noticed by Hindenburg, as he would have seen this drastic rise in support, as well as the rise in seats in the Reichstag. Coupled with the policies of the Nazi’s are Hitler’s inspiring, heart-felt speeches. Widely-regarded as one of the greatest public speakers of all time, alongside people such as Martin Luther King, he had the ability to tug on the heartstrings of people who didn’t even support the Nazi’s, especially when he spoke of making Germany great again and restoring a broken country to its former stature. This was a quality that President Hindenburg certainly wanted in his Chancellor, someone who could connect with the nation and address them with such power and belief, provided it could be controlled. Other factors leading to Hitler becoming Chancellor was the fear of Communism throughout Germany. In the years 1930-1932, the support for the German Communist party increased astronomically, due to support from the working class. It was also well documented that the German Communist Party was the largest in Europe (outside of the Soviet Union). However, not all people liked the Communists, and many large business owners and farmers chose to vote for the Nazi’s. In fact, many of the votes that the Nazi’s received were actually gained because people didn’t want to vote for the Communists and because of Hitler’s publicized hatred towards them. If the Communists had ceased to exist, many would question if the Nazi’s would have received many votes at all? In summary, there was very weak opposition to the Nazi’s, with the Democrats and Communists refusing to work together and stop the Nazi’s, no one offered a stern resistance and seemed more content with arguing than resolving Germany’s political issues. This would have also been recognised by Hindenburg, and even though he disliked Hitler he couldn’t afford to appoint a Chancellor that didn’t offer strong, effective leadership. Hitler seemed to be the perfect choice at that moment in time. Another considerable factor which helped Hitler in his rise to power was the Wall Street Crash of 1929, which eventually led to the Great Depression, something that rocked the entire world. Germany had been struck with its second economic crisis of the decade, and without Gustav Stresemann, the Weimar Government didn’t have the brain they needed to ‘steady the ship’. This led to mass unemployment, starvation, German Firms going bankrupt and people lost the confidence to invest. Mass unemployment left the Government short on money, as workers were no longer paying taxes; therefore they were unable to do anything to help the poor, making them extremely unpopular. Enter the extremist parties, and as unemployment figures rose over the coming years, so did the votes for the Nazi’s and by January 1932, the Nazi party had received 13. 4 million votes. In this time of hardship, Hindenburg had to go with who the people wanted. The Weimar Government had run its cause, and Germany needed a new Chancellor, someone who they could look at with optimism and belief. Hindenburg realised that this man was Adolf Hitler. My final reasons as to why I believe Hitler was made Chancellor in 1933, is due to the belief of Hindenburg and Von Papen that they could ultimately control Adolf Hitler, and act as puppet-master’s behind the scenes, having Hitler, the public idol, transfer their messages. They believed that if they conveyed their ideology through Hitler, the public would be more respectful of the decisions. At this point, only 3 of the 12 politicians who made up Hitler’s cabinet were actually Nazi’s, and with Von Papen as Vice-Chancellor, Hindenburg believed he could be controlled. In the following months, Hitler blamed the Reichstag Fire on the Communists and with the Presidents help, banned them from future elections and threw major Communist leaders into jail. He then forced the Nationalist party to join the Nazi’s and create a Coalition, giving him the majority he needed to pass the Enabling Law, which meant he could now do as he wished, and after President Hindenburg’s untimely death in August 1933, he became dictator of Germany. Although Von Papen and Hindenburg originally believed they could control him, Hitler had obtained way too much power over the course of 1933, in complete contrast to what they wanted him to achieve. Overall, I do not believe that there was one decisive factor that cemented Hitler’s position as Chancellor, instead, it was a mixture of a variety of circumstances that all seemed to fall in to place at the right time for the Nazi’s. Hypothetically speaking it was like a giant row of dominoes, with each domino resembling a factor, all toppling in unison. However, remove a factor, such as the Wall Street crash or the fear of Communism, and you break the chain that Hitler needed to become Chancellor. Therefore I believe that along with parts of political genius, Hitler also received numerous strokes of fortune on the road to becoming one of the most powerful leaders the world had ever seen. How to cite Why President Hindenburg Gave Hitler Chancellorship in 1933, Essay examples

Business Investments Price of Bonds

Question: Discuss about the Business Investments for Price of Bonds. Answer: Executive Summary The purpose of this paper is to design a portfolio for a High Net Worth Australian individual keeping his requirements in context. The portfolio will be designed doing the appropriate research and with a mix which satisfies all the clients requirements. The risk assessment of the portfolio has been done using proven methods such as standard deviation et all. The first section of this paper deals with the identification of the clients needs so that investment parameters could be defined. In the second section we shall construct the portfolio based on the parameters identified and by analysing various asset classes such as equity, debts, cash, bonds, property etc. Thirdly we will do a risk reward analysis in which we will calculate the absolute and the relative returns. In the last section of the paper we end with appropriate recommendations to the client based on the analysis done. Introduction Portfolio means a group of assets selected such that the risk can be diversified without losing on the returns. An investor seeking to build a portfolio is riddled with a lot of available choices. The choice has to be made based on the risk return characteristics of each individual security. Another contention is also to what weightage of his/her corpus to allocate to what kind of security. (Bodie, et al., 2014) We can summaries the process of portfolio construction into five steps as following: Setting objectives: The first step towards portfolio holding is setting objectives keeping in mind the investment horizon, individuals risk bearing capacity and his required returns. (Keel, 2006) Other factors to be kept in mind is the tax rate, current macro economic environment etc. Defining Policy: Once the objectives have been set, a suitable investment policy must be established. This step involves choosing the right mix of assets based on the portfolio objectives identified. Applying portfolio strategy: Portfolio strategy selection based on how proactively involved the investor wants to be in his investments. The two strategies at the opposite spectrums are active and passive respectively. While an active strategy demands higher participation of the fund manager and the individual the passive strategy allows the investor to have a passive stance. Active strategy involves being sensitive to interest rate changes and returns in investments even over a short period of time and hence changing the asset mix of portfolio based on the prevailing market conditions. Hence an active investor would go for more short term investments and less long term investments. For example, if an active investor has invested in an asset class which has shown a 4% loss rather than waiting for it to recover its price he/she might chose to take a proactive stance on it. Similarly if bond prices fall due to rise in interest rates the active participant would immediately sell the bonds while the passive investor whos more concerned about the coupon payments would stay invested. A totally passive strategy usually involves buying securities to match a preselected market index. For example a passive investor would rather invest in equity mutual funds than individual stocks because investing in individual stocks would require active involvement. Passive strategies rely more heavily on diversification to reduce risk. Rather than outperformance risk aversion is the desired attribute of the portfolio. In practice, many active funds are managed somewhere between the active and passive extremes, the core holdings of the fund being passively managed and the balance being actively managed by appointed fund managers.(Morgan Stanley, 2010) Asset selections: Once the strategy is decided, the next stop involves picking up assets individual assets in which to invest and how much to invest. For this purpose the portfolio might employ an well laid down process known as investment process. Again based on portfolio strategy asset selections would be done. Performance assessments: In order to study the performance of portfolio the performance can be reviewed at periodic intervals. For example for investment in equities the benchmark can be the SP/ASX 200 index. Setting Objectives The given individual is 58, has a corpus of 1 billion AUD. He wants his corpus to grow at CPI+2% plus annum and wants to take out 5 million AUD each year from his portfolio to pursue his interests. Since from 2006 to 2016 if we look at the historical CPI data as per the website of Australian Bureau of Statistics the growth from March 2016 to June 2016 has been 28% which is a compounded growth of approximately 2.5% year over the given 10 periods. (RBA, 2006)Since we too are looking at an investment horizon of 10 years we too can stick with same values for CPI especially considering the fact that of late Australian economy has been stable and key benchmarks such as the OCR, inflation, growth projections, AUD vs USD all have been more or less trading at very low volatility. The RBA too through the application of various mechanisms too intend to keep it that way. Hence we would need a growth of 5% post-tax on his corpus to satisfy all his requirements which are as follows: A drawing of 5 million annually. A growth of 4.5% on the initial capital invested. Considering the fact that he is in his late 50s and a moderately conservative investor we will try to construct a portfolio in such a manner that only does it give him the requisite returns but also is not very risky in nature. Defining Policy and choosing assets The various asset classes that we have taken as part of consideration for inclusion in the clients portfolio include cash instruments, equities, government bonds, Australian property, foreign equities and Australian fixed interest. To satisfy his requirements we will chose a mix which has all of this in the mix and gives a return in sync with the clients needs. Since the individuals portfolio strategy would be passive aggressive we stay out of complicated financial products like derivatives and commodity indexes. The table below summarises the returns on various asset classes described. Security Type Expected Return Pre tax Certificate of Deposits 3.2% 2-year bonds 3.25% 10-year bonds 4.25% Foreign Equities 10% Australian Equities 5% Property 9.5% The returns on Certificate of deposits has been taken from the site of Australia and Newels bank which states that for an investment of more than 50,000 AUD the rate of return is 3.2%, interest paid annually. The rate of return on Government bonds have been taken from Bloomberg. (Bloomberg, 2016) Long term bonds have a higher return than short term bonds because with an increase in time the risk increases for which the investors seek a premium.(AAII, 2008) Australian equities historic return has been 5%. (Damodaran, 2016)Through our own analysis we have also computed it to be similar. If we compare the SP/ASX 200 index over the 5-year period, we see that the index has climbed to 5433 FROM 4296.5 which depicts an annual growth of 5%. The data is as per the website of Australian Stock Exchange(ASX). Since we have already decided that we would have a passive stance our investment strategy would be to invest in an equity mutual fund with a reputable fund manager like Teradata or McQuarries which have consistently been giving higher than market returns. Even the portion in equities would be further diversified into 2-3 different funds such as small cap and mid cap funds. The rate of return on foreign equities especially those in emerging economies such as Indonesia and India has been found to be 10%.(Fair, 2016) The rate of return on investments in property has been found to be 9.5% over the last 20 years. If we look at short term returns have been even more lucrative but since we are looking at an investment horizon of 10 years we go with this figure.(ANZ, 2016) Portfolio strategy For the individual our portfolio strategy would be a mix of passive and aggressive with more affinity towards passive since he is already into late 50s and would rather pursue his charitable and artistic interest than being bothered about on a daily basis about his investments. Another factor why we opt for this strategy is because the minimum period for which he stays invested is given as 10 years.Keeping his strategy in mind the assets would be chosen accordingly. Asset Selection Since the individual is under the taxation slab of income of more than 180,001 AUD as per ATO hence effectively his income from his investments would be taxed at approximately 45%. Hence the effective returns that he requires on his portfolio would be 7.25%. We decide that 5 million AUD that the investor requires for his expenses and interests should never stop as a result of market and portfolio volatility and hence we would invest a part of his corpus such that 5 million AUD returns would be guaranteed irrespective of market and economic conditions. For that purpose, we would invest a portion of corpus in a risk free asset so that the 5 million AUD return is guaranteed at all times. Now an example of risk free asset would be government 2 year bonds and certificate of deposits in commercial banks. (Ernst and Young, 2015)Hence 10% of his corpus has been invested accordingly. Similarly keeping in mind his return requirements the rest of his corpus allocation has done. The table below summarises the allocation of the individuals corpus security wise. Security Type Expected Return Weight Weighted Average Return Certificate of Deposits 3.2% 5% 0.16% 2 year bonds 3.25% 5% 0.1625% 10 year bonds 4.25% 10% 0.425% Foreign Equities 10% 25% 2.5% Australian Equities 5% 25% 1.25% Property 9% 30% 2.7% Total 100% 7.1975% Performance Assessment The returns that have been calculated are base case which can be expected 80% of the times and hence we can break the returns on our portfolio scenario wise. Scenario Probability Expected Return Worst 0.1 8.4% Base 0.8 7.2% Worst 0.1 6% Hence we calculate portfolio measures such as standard deviation and variance. Calculations have been done on a spreadsheet and the results are summarised in the table below. Measure Value Variance 0.0648 Standard Deviation 25.46% Variance is varianceis theexpectationof the squared deviation of arandom variablefrom itsmean, and it informally measures how far a set of (random) numbers are spread out from their mean. Standard deviation is a measure of how much members of group differ from the mean value.(New York University, 2013) It is obtained by taking the square root of variance. Recommendations While it is understood that the individual wants to leave an enjoyable peaceful retired life pursuing charities and interests it would augur well for him and his investments as well as his family if he would take an active interest in his portfolios performance. That can be done by periodic reviews of his portfolio performance as well as being updated about the macro and micro economic environment that impacts his portfolios performance. It would also be good if he keeps himself updated about new financial products and how he wants to change his investments depending on if his requirements of portfolio performance change. Conclusion Keeping in mind the individuals requirements and profile the portfolio has been constructed using the tried and tested principles of diversification and risk aversion. The selection has been done such that the fund managers do maximum work and the individual can be at relative peace regarding his investments. Through various analysis varied the assessment of his portfolio has been done which has been satisfactory at various levels. References AAII, 2008. How Interest Rate Changes Affect the Price of Bonds. AAII. ANZ, 2016. ANZ. [Online] Available at: https://www.wealth.anz.com/investments/property-investment [Accessed 28 September 2016]. Bloomberg, 2016. Australian Rates Bonds. [Online] Available at: https://www.bloomberg.com/markets/rates-bonds/government-bonds/australia [Accessed 26 September 2016]. Bodie, Kane Marcus, 2014. Investments. s.l.:McGraw Hill. Damodaran, A., 2016. Default Spreads and Risk Premiums, New York: Stern. Ernst and Young, 2015. Estimating risk-free rates for valuation, s.l.: Ernst and Young. Fair, R., 2016. Risk Aversion and Stock Prices, s.l.: s.n. Keel, S. T., 2006. Optimal Portfolio Construction, Zurich: SWISS FEDERAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY ZURICH. Morgan Stanley, 2010. The Essentials of Portfolio Construction, New York: Morgan Stanley. New York University, 2013. Standard Deviations. In: New York: New York University. RBA, 2006. The Structure of the Australian Financial System, s.l.: RBA.