The History of Jazz

Jazz is a music genre believed to have begun at the beginning of the 20th, where scholars argue that its birth came from African-American communities of the Southern United States. It is argued that it was the first American music style that influenced music globally, and that its growth came from the post Civil War and Emancipation era. This was a time when freed slaves were able to travel, spreading their African culture of rhythm and tonality with them, facilitated by the availability of instruments from the bands of Civil War Armies. The development of jazz can be attributed to the following factors; spirituals and field hollers of the slave workers, beats of ragtime syncopation, and demos of brass bands as well as deep down snarl of the American blues. Notably, jazz is mainly based on improvisation, and it can be observed to have evolved over the years while balancing traditional forces, with the pursuit of new approaches and ideas. The modern jazz is on exciting growth mode following a similar path. Therefore, this essay explores the pre-history of jazz music, cultural influences, and the cultural contributions to the formation of jazz.

Jazz reflects a cultural diversity and individualism of its mother country- America. Necessarily, around the turn of the twentieth century, New Orleans in Louisiana was the area of diverse cultures that had merged in (Gridley, 2011). People came from different regions and countries for different reasons, which resulted to exposure of musicians to a variety of music genres. Some of the music genres included the European classical music, American blues, and even South American songs and rhythms that merged to form jazz (Gioia, 2011)

The father of jazz improvisation can be seen to be Louis A...

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...yles such as avant-garde music, jazz and rock music fusion, Latin jazz, and other countless jazz styles. Modern jazz has taken another angle where musicians have the potential of using its unique nature to come up with distinct and unique artistic styles, though incorporating with the traditional jazz characteristics. The idea of music fusion, especially fusing jazz with the other music genres has given this genre a new turn and commercialized it in different ways, thus, facilitating its growth and support.

References

Gioia, T. (2011). The History of Jazz. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Gridley, M (2011). JAZZ STYLES History & Analysis (11th Edition). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Hardie, D. (2013). Jazz Historiography: The Story of Jazz History Writing. Bloomington: iUniverse.

Tirro, F (1993). JAZZ - A History (2nd Edition). New York: W.W Norton & Compa