What’s Jazz Music?

A comprehensive guide to understanding Jazz Music, its origins, and its development over the years.

Origins of Jazz

Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It is a style of music that is characterized by a strong rhythm section, improvisation, and a blues or swing feel.

New Orleans

New Orleans, Louisiana, is considered the birthplace of jazz. It was here that the original jazz bands began to form in the late 1800s and early 1900s. These early bands were made up of mostly African American musicians who played a blend of African and European musical traditions. The first jazz recordings were made in New Orleans in 1917, and the city remained an important center for jazz music throughout the 1920s and 1930s.

Ragtime

Ragtime music was born in the late 1800s in the southern United States, and it quickly spread across the country. The first ragtime song was written in 1899, and the genre became extremely popular in the early 1900s. Many famous jazz musicians got their start playing ragtime music, including Scott Joplin, Jelly Roll Morton, and Louis Armstrong.

Ragtime is characterized by itssyncopated rhythms, which means that the music is not evenly divided into beats. Ragtime is usually played on piano, but it can also be played on other instruments such as guitar, banjo, and drums. The most famous ragtime song is “The Entertainer” by Scott Joplin.

The blues

The blues is a genre of music that originated in the African-American communities of the United States around the end of the 19th century. The style developed from and incorporated elements of African musical traditions, including work songs and spirituals. The blues is often considered one of the earliest forms of jazz.

The term “the blues” refers to both a Feeling and a style of music. The feeling can be described as “a deep, ineffable sadly or wistfulness.” The music often deals with topics such as lost love, broken relationships, loneliness,and despair.

Characteristics of Jazz

Jazz is a type of music that was created by African Americans in the early 1900s. It is a mix of African and European musical traditions. Jazz is characterized by swing rhythms, blue notes, and improvisation.

Improvisation

A fundamental characteristic of jazz is improvisation, or the ability to spontaneously compose melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic elements during performance. This improvisation takes place within strict guidelines, involving harmonic structure and progressions, melodic motifs, and rhythms.

Jazz musicians often strive to “swing” — create a strong pulsing feeling of rhythm — while soloing or improvising. An important figure in the development of jazz was Louis Armstrong, who popularized what became known as scat singing — vocalizing nonsense syllables instead of words. Improvisation is not unique to jazz; it occurs in all types of music, even classical. But what sets jazz apart is the way improvisation interacts with other elements, such as the blues and African rhythms.

Swing

One of the most distinctive features of jazz is swing, which gives the music a pulsing, rhythmic feel. Swing can be created by using any type of instrumentation and is not limited to use by Jazz ensembles. When playing swung notes, players usually accent the backbeat

Polyrhythm

As its name suggests, polyrhythm is the simultaneous use of two or more https://www.jazzguitarlessonsonline.com/blog/jazz-guitar-chords-arpeggios/ rhythms . It is a defining characteristic of jazz and often gives the music its distinctive feel. In jazz, rhythm is as important as melody, and the two elements are often intertwined.

Polyrhythm can be created using a variety of methods, including https://www.jazzguitarlessonsonline.com/blog/jazz-chord-progressions/ chord progressions , https://www.jazzguitarlessonsonline.com/blog/walking-bass-lines/ walking bass lines , and https://www.jazzguitarlessonsonline.com/blog/comping-patterns/ comping patterns . It is also common to find polyrhythm in https://www.jazzguitarlessonsonline.com/blog/solos/ improvised solos .

Polyrhythm adds interest and excitement to a piece of music and can help to create a sense of forward momentum. It can also be used to create tension and release, or to add contrast to a piece of music.

Call and response

One important element of jazz is call and response. This is a musical conversation where one instrument or group of instruments plays a phrase (the call) and another instrument or group of instruments answers (the response). This back-and-forth can happen between two different instruments, like the trumpet and saxophone, or between different groups of instruments, like the brass and woodwind sections. Call and response is often used to build tension and excitement in a jazz piece.

Types of Jazz

Jazz is a genre of music that originated in the African-American communities in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Jazz is characterized by a complex system of improvisation and swing. There are many different types of jazz, including: bebop, big band, free jazz, and more. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at some of the most popular types of jazz.

Dixieland

Dixieland jazz is a style of jazz music that originated in New Orleans around the turn of the 20th century. It is characterized by a frontline of trumpets, trombones, and clarinets, with a rhythm section featuring a piano, bass, and drums. The earliest known recordings of dixieland date back to 1917, and the style became popular in the 1920s and 1930s.

Swing

Swing is a jazz style that developed in the early 1930s and became popular in the mid-1930s. Swing is often said to be the first truly American form of jazz because it blended elements of European and African musical traditions. The style is characterized by a strong rhythm section, complex harmonies, and improvisation.

Swing was the dominant jazz style from the mid-1930s to the early 1940s. It was followed by bebop, which developed in the 1940s.

Bebop

Bebop was the first type of jazz to gain popularity with the general public. It was characterized by fast-paced, improvisational music that was played by small groups of musicians. Bebop was a reaction against the big band sound of the time, and it quickly gained popularity among young people in the 1940s.

Hard bop

Hard bop is a subgenre of jazz that appeared in the mid-1950s, combining elements of bebop, cool jazz, and rhythm and blues. Hard bop was developed in response to the scaling back of bebop’s complex harmonic structures and improvising techniques. Influenced by gospel music, hard bop places more emphasis onregular chords and strong melody lines.

One of the key figures in the development of hard bop was trumpeter Clifford Brown, who came to be seen as a mentor by later musicians such as Miles Davis and Cannonball Adderley. Other important contributors include Horace Silver, Art Blakey, Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, Lee Morgan, Jackie McLean and Jimmy Heath.

Modal jazz

Modal jazz is a jazz piano style that emphasizes improvisation over chord progressions. Rather than using the traditional major and minor scales, modal jazz uses modes, which are a series of notes with a specific pitch pattern. The most commonly used mode in modal jazz is the Dorian mode, but other modes such as the Phrygian and Lydian modes are also used.

One of the main characteristics of modal jazz is that the same mode is often used for the entirety of a piece, or at least for long sections of it. This gives the music a very “static” feel, as opposed to the more “changing” feel of music that uses chord progressions. Static harmony like this allows for more space and freedom in improvisation, since there are no changes that need to be navigated.

Modal jazz was popularized in the 1950s and 1960s by Miles Davis, with his landmark albums “Kind of Blue” and “In a Silent Way”. Other important modal jazz musicians include John Coltrane, Bill Evans, McCoy Tyner, and Herbie Hancock.

Free jazz

Free jazz is an approach to the genre that emerged in the late 1950s and 1960s, characterized by very free improvisation and sometimes discordant tones. Musicians felt they needed to break away from the restrictions of bebop and hard bop, and create a new style that was more expressive. Free jazz frequently uses alternate harmonic structures and unusual time signatures, and can be quite experimental in nature. Some well-known free jazz musicians include saxophonist Ornette Coleman, trumpeter Miles Davis, and pianist Cecil Taylor.

Notable Jazz Musicians

Jazz is a genre of music that originated in the African-American communities in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Jazz is characterized by swing and blue notes, call and response vocals, polyrhythms and improvisation. Jazz has roots in West African cultural and musical expression, and in African-American music traditions including blues and ragtime.

Louis Armstrong

Louis Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American trumpeter, composer, singer and occasional actor who was one of the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades, from the 1920s to the 1960s, and different eras in the history of jazz. In 2017, he was inducted into the Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame.

Charlie Parker

Charlie Parker was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Parkers innovations in rhythm, harmony, and phrasing influenced many of the jazz greats who followed him. He is considered one of the most significant and influential figures in the history of jazz.

Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Parker began playing the saxophone at the age of 11. He quickly developed into a virtuoso, and by the age of 18, he was playing with such leading Kansas City bandleaders as Jay McShann and Buster Smith. In 1939, Parker moved to New York City, where he played with bandleader Benny Carter and briefly attended classes at the Juilliard School.

In 1941, Parker began sitting in at Minton’s Playhouse, a Harlem nightspot where many of the leading bebop musicians congregated. It was here that Parker first encountered pianist Thelonious Monk, with whom he would develop a lifelong friendship. Parker also met trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, with whom he would co-write one of bebop’s most enduring compositions,”Ko-Ko.”

In 1942, Parker and Gillespie joined fellow beboppers Coleman Hawkins and Billy Eckstine in creating their own band, which quickly became one of the most popular attractions at Eckstine’s club, The Spotlite. The following year, Parker made his first recordings as a leader for the Savoy label; these sessions resulted in such classic bebop recordings as “Now’s the Time” and “Billy’s Bounce.”

Miles Davis

Miles Davis (1926—1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader and composer. He is one of the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music. Davis adopted a variety of musical styles throughout his career, which included bebop, cool jazz, hard bop, modal jazz and jazz fusion.

Born and raised in Illinois, Davis moved to New York City in 1944 to study at the Juilliard School of Music. In 1945, he began to play professionally, soon working with such leading bebop musicians as Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. He made his first recordings as a leader in 1947, but they received little attention at the time.

In the 1950s, Davis experimented with different styles of music, including cool jazz and hard bop. He also began to use modes (scales with no specific key) instead of chord progressions as the basis for his improvisations, a approach that would come to be known as modal jazz. His best-known album from this period is Kind of Blue (1959), which has been described as “the best-selling jazz album of all time.”

In the 1960s, Davis continued to experiment with different styles of music, including jazz fusion. He also became increasingly politically active, speaking out against racism in the United States and other social injustice issues. His later years were marred by drug addiction and declining health; he died in 1991 at the age of 65.

John Coltrane

John Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer who is considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. He recorded over 50 albums during his career, and his work spanned a wide range of styles, including bebop, hard bop, free jazz, and modal jazz. Coltrane was also a pioneer in the development of jazz improvisation and played a major role in the popularization of chord progression guides such as the ii-V-I progression. He died tragically at the age of 40 from liver cancer.

Jazz in the Present Day

Jazz music has come a long way since its humble beginnings in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Today, jazz is enjoyed by people of all ages and from all walks of life. It has also been influenced by other genres of music, making it a truly unique and diverse genre. Let’s take a look at some of the ways jazz is enjoyed in the present day.

Jazz Festivals

Jazz festivals are large music festivals that feature a wide range of jazz styles, including traditional jazz, bebop, swing, hard bop, post-bop, modal jazz, third stream, free jazz, and fusion. Many festivals also feature related genres such as blues and gospel music. The history of jazz festivals dates back to the first half of the 20th century when large gatherings were held in major cities such as Chicago and New York to showcase the latest developments in jazz. These early festivals were typically organized by music promoters and featured several bands performing on multiple stages over the course of several days.

In the 1950s and 1960s, as jazz became increasingly popular around the world, festivals began to spring up in Europe and Asia. Major international Jazz Festivals now take place annually in dozens of countries across the globe, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Cuba, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Poland Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom and the United States.

Contemporary jazz musicians

Contemporary jazz musicians are continuing to push the boundaries of the genre and explore new sounds and styles. Here are some of the most innovative and exciting contemporary jazz musicians making music today.

-Trombone Shorty
-Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah
-Bria Skonberg
-Chai Brenner
-Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra