Blog 5: The Significance of Jazz and Genius
What were your assumptions about the history of jazz before attending this class and assess whether, and to what extent, the class has changed, revised, and/or reinforced those assumptions? Also, pick one concept—Improvisation, Dialogic, Call and Response, Genius, Blues, Swing, African, etc.,—that has been used in class, and discuss how your definition of that concept has changed through participation in this class.
Before taking this course, I did not realize the tremendous role jazz played in the evolution of music and pop culture in general. I consider pop culture to have begun with literature, theater, and classical music concerts long before jazz and minstrel shows. However, these new forms of entertainment certainly added an extra dimension to popular culture: the American dimension of culture influencing itself like a feedback loop. Ted Gioia says of minstrel music’s effect on jazz, “A black imitation of a white caricature of black music exerts its influence on another hybrid form of African and European music.” (Gioia p. 8) Indeed, this give-and-take dynamic of American pop culture was a key driving factor in the success of jazz. Although originally played by mostly black musicians, jazz gradually gained popularity, leading to its adoption by white bands. The popularization of jazz and swing by white bands granted greater exposure and popularity for black bands, thus further driving the style’s success.
Before this class I wrongly assumed that jazz was not an historically significant musical form. Although modern jazz is a favorite genre of mine, I was under the false impression that it was simply another style that arose out of the rapidly changing musical landscape of the 20th century. Perhaps I did not realize that the popular swing music of the 1930s was itself a form of jazz. In contrast with my assumptions, I have learned that jazz was consistently at the forefront of modern music. Benny Goodman and Duke Ellington and their bands gained widespread popularity in the swing era, becoming some of the most widely recorded jazz ensembles and further expanding their audiences with regular radio broadcasts. (Gioia, p. 121) Perhaps the first major confirmation of jazz’s significance came with the historical Carnegie Hall concert of Benny Goodman and his orchestra in 1938, which was so wildly successful that it was sold-out. Critic Bruce Eder described it as “the single most important jazz or popular music concert in history: jazz's ‘coming out’ party to the world of ‘respectable’ music.” (Eder) Jazz is far more important than I realized.
In this class, we often discussed the quality of genius. Before taking this class, I considered a genius to be a person who takes what they know and creates something beautiful, new, and significant. After studying the history of jazz, I realize there is so much more to it than that. Samuel Johnson said of genius, “since a genius, whatever it be, is like fire in the flint, only to be produced by collision with a proper subject, it is the business of every man to try whether his faculties may not happily cooperate with his desires.” (Lecture, 2013-01-29) The geniuses of jazz are a diverse bunch: Armstrong, Goodman, Ellington, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Miles Davis, among others. While these individuals did display the quality of genius I described, they also exhibited some other (sometimes less flattering) facets of genius. Charlie Parker, aka Bird, for example, laid bare the genius’s quality of greediness. In Bird, we see that genius is inherently greedy: “it consumes everything and everyone around it to feed its creativity, [and] is dismissive of other people’s needs and concerns.” (Lecture, 2013-02-21) In Thelonious Monk, we see the subtle brilliance of the genius. Monk is known not only for his avant-garde musical style, but also for his funny dances he did on stage. While most laughed at his dances, few realized that the strange pulsing motion of his dancing had subtly altered the band’s rhythm to his liking. (Kelley, p. 232) “Genius” is not just a word—it is a unique kind of person with a voracious appetite for creation, and sometimes destruction.
Gioia, T. (2011). The History of Jazz 2nd Ed. Oxford University Press
Eder, Bruce (1999-11-02). "Live at Carnegie Hall: 1938 Complete - Benny Goodman : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2013-03-11.
Kelley, R.D.G. (2009) Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original. Simon and Schuster
Before taking this course, I did not realize the tremendous role jazz played in the evolution of music and pop culture in general. I consider pop culture to have begun with literature, theater, and classical music concerts long before jazz and minstrel shows. However, these new forms of entertainment certainly added an extra dimension to popular culture: the American dimension of culture influencing itself like a feedback loop. Ted Gioia says of minstrel music’s effect on jazz, “A black imitation of a white caricature of black music exerts its influence on another hybrid form of African and European music.” (Gioia p. 8) Indeed, this give-and-take dynamic of American pop culture was a key driving factor in the success of jazz. Although originally played by mostly black musicians, jazz gradually gained popularity, leading to its adoption by white bands. The popularization of jazz and swing by white bands granted greater exposure and popularity for black bands, thus further driving the style’s success.
Before this class I wrongly assumed that jazz was not an historically significant musical form. Although modern jazz is a favorite genre of mine, I was under the false impression that it was simply another style that arose out of the rapidly changing musical landscape of the 20th century. Perhaps I did not realize that the popular swing music of the 1930s was itself a form of jazz. In contrast with my assumptions, I have learned that jazz was consistently at the forefront of modern music. Benny Goodman and Duke Ellington and their bands gained widespread popularity in the swing era, becoming some of the most widely recorded jazz ensembles and further expanding their audiences with regular radio broadcasts. (Gioia, p. 121) Perhaps the first major confirmation of jazz’s significance came with the historical Carnegie Hall concert of Benny Goodman and his orchestra in 1938, which was so wildly successful that it was sold-out. Critic Bruce Eder described it as “the single most important jazz or popular music concert in history: jazz's ‘coming out’ party to the world of ‘respectable’ music.” (Eder) Jazz is far more important than I realized.
In this class, we often discussed the quality of genius. Before taking this class, I considered a genius to be a person who takes what they know and creates something beautiful, new, and significant. After studying the history of jazz, I realize there is so much more to it than that. Samuel Johnson said of genius, “since a genius, whatever it be, is like fire in the flint, only to be produced by collision with a proper subject, it is the business of every man to try whether his faculties may not happily cooperate with his desires.” (Lecture, 2013-01-29) The geniuses of jazz are a diverse bunch: Armstrong, Goodman, Ellington, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Miles Davis, among others. While these individuals did display the quality of genius I described, they also exhibited some other (sometimes less flattering) facets of genius. Charlie Parker, aka Bird, for example, laid bare the genius’s quality of greediness. In Bird, we see that genius is inherently greedy: “it consumes everything and everyone around it to feed its creativity, [and] is dismissive of other people’s needs and concerns.” (Lecture, 2013-02-21) In Thelonious Monk, we see the subtle brilliance of the genius. Monk is known not only for his avant-garde musical style, but also for his funny dances he did on stage. While most laughed at his dances, few realized that the strange pulsing motion of his dancing had subtly altered the band’s rhythm to his liking. (Kelley, p. 232) “Genius” is not just a word—it is a unique kind of person with a voracious appetite for creation, and sometimes destruction.
Gioia, T. (2011). The History of Jazz 2nd Ed. Oxford University Press
Eder, Bruce (1999-11-02). "Live at Carnegie Hall: 1938 Complete - Benny Goodman : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2013-03-11.
Kelley, R.D.G. (2009) Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original. Simon and Schuster
Well-written entry, Alex, I found the first paragraph especially insightful. While we've argued that jazz is surrounded by a "culture influencing itself like a feedback loop" as you wrote, I had not traced this "give-and-take dynamic" all the way back to minstrelsy, but the connection is plainly evident from the Gioia quote you supplied.
ReplyDeleteInteresting blog. I enjoyed the first paragraph the most. I am shocked to learn you were unaware of jazz's historic importance, but that means that this class was especially eye-opening for you. Jazz certainly had a very interesting journey into the 'realm of respectable music', which in no way legitimized its musical importance any more than it diminished it. I found it refreshing to read your blog, which was not about a musical aspect of jazz. On a technical note, good use of multiple references. Nice blog.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blog. Your Ideas about pop culture were very insightful. I also did not realize how important jazz thorough his history. I like the color scheme of you blog, it does not make me want to vomit or gouge my eyes out like other ones.
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