Photography by Ed Newman.

"The practice of having music during funeral processions, Danny Barker said, was added to the basic African pattern of celebration for most aspects of life, including death. As the brass band became increasingly popular during the early 18th century, they were frequently called on to play processional music. Eileen Southern in The Music of Black Americans wrote, ‘On the way to the cemetery it was customary to play very slowly and mournfully a dirge, or [… spiritual] such as ‘Nearer My God to Thee,’ but on the return from the cemetery, the band would strike up a rousing, ‘When the Saints Go Marching In,’ or a ragtime song such as ‘Didn’t He Ramble.’ Sidney Bechet, the renowned New Orleans jazzman, after observing the celebrations of the jazz funeral, stated, ‘Music here is as much a part of death as it is of life.’” - hurricanebrassband

(Source: gothfortheholidays)