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Jazz

Billie Holiday

Jazz is an American genre of music that has been around since the early 1920s. Jazz originated around the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions.

Fast Facts

Height of popularity: 1920s-1960s
Typical instruments: Saxophone, Trumpet, Trombone, Clarinet, Piano, Guitar, Double bass, Drums, Vocals

Notable Acts

Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, Billie Holiday, Ornette Coleman, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Dave Brubeck, John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald, Stan Getz, Benny Goodman, Wynton Marsalis, Thelonious Monk

Improvisation

While jazz may be difficult to define, improvisation is definitely one of its key elements. Early blues was commonly structured around a repetitive call-and-response pattern, a common element in the African American oral tradition. A form of folk music which rose in part from work songs and field hollers of rural Blacks, early blues was also highly improvisational. These features are fundamental to the nature of jazz. Depending upon the performer's mood and personal experience, interactions with fellow musicians, or even members of the audience, a jazz musician/performer may alter melodies, harmonies or time signature at will.

Categories

Entertainment | Music | Jazz | Experimental

| View Note History

Did you mean: Utah Jazz, the basketball team?

The Mahalo Top 7

Wikipedia: Jazz | Jazz Age
PBS: Jazz A Film By Ken Burns
All About Jazz: Jazz Music, Clubs and Culture | History of Jazz Time Line
JazzReview.com: Complete Guide to Jazz
A Passion for Jazz!: Music History and Education
Official Site: American Jazz Museum
NPR Music: Jazz & Blues

Ragtime

Washingtonpost.com: The History of Jazz
Wikipedia: Ragtime
Origins of: Ragtime
Official Site: Biography & History of Scott Joplin
Wikipedia: Scott Joplin

Jazz of the 1920s and 1930s

All About Jazz: 1920s Jazz Age
PBS: The Devil's Music: 1920's Jazz
Wikipedia: Jazz Age
Wikipedia: Swing
Jazz Age: Jazz Age 1920s
Trombone.org: The Historical Evolution of the Jazz Trombone: Part One | Part Two

Jazz Age Artists

Jazz of the 1940s and 1950s

Wikipedia: Dixieland
Wikipedia: Bebop
Wikipedia: Free Jazz

Bebop Jazz Artists

Free Jazz Artists

Jazz of the 1960s and 1970s

Wikipedia: Latin Jazz
Wikipedia: Bossa Nova
Wikipedia: Soul Jazz
Wikipedia: Smooth Jazz
Wikipedia: Jazz Fusion

Smooth Jazz Artists

Soul & Fusion Artists

Latin & Bossa Nova Artists

Jazz of the 1980s and 2000s

Monocular Times: Free Jazz Punk Rock
DigitalDreamRoom.com: 100 Greatest Fusion Artists
History of: Jazz/Rock Fusion

Contemporary Jazz Artists

Jazz Theory

Jazz Tutorials: Jazz Theory | Minor Harmony
Outside Shore Music: A Jazz Improvisation Primer
JazzGuitar.be: Jazz Guitar Chord Theory
Musilosophy.com: Jazz improvisation, piano improvising, music harmony and theory
Jazz Resource Center: Dominants and Subdominants
All About Jazz: Jazz Theory April 23, 2003
tronbome.org: Just For Beginners Jazz Improvisation for Beginners: Part One

Jazz Podcasts and MP3's

All About Jazz: Jazz Podcasts | Free Jazz Downloads
In The Groove...: Jazz and Beyond
PodcastDirectory.com: Jazz Podcasts
RedJazz: Jazz Podcast, News & Reviews
MediaGuide: Smooth Jazz Radio Stations

Jazz Videos

All About Jazz: Jazz Videos
YouTube Search: Jazz Videos
YouTube: Modern Jazz Quartet "Django" (Time 5:13)
YouTube: Miles Davis & John Coltrane "So What" (Time 8:22)
YouTube: Ella Fitzgerald "One Note" (Time 6:35)

YouTube: Billie Holiday "Strange Fruit" (Time 2:33)
YouTube: Louis Armstrong "What a Wonderful World" (Time 2:18)
Jazz Improv TV: Jazz Videos

Jazz Festivals

FestivalFinder: Music Festivals of North America
SFJAZZ: Presenter of the San Francisco Jazz Festival
Official Site: Monterey Jazz Festival
JVC Jazz Festivals: Newport Jazz Festival
Official Site: Scott Joplin International Ragtime Festival
A Passion For Jazz: Jazz Festivals

Jazz Forums and Blogs

JazzReview.com: Jazz Forum Listings
All About Jazz: Jazz Bulletin Board
Blog: The Ragtime Kidd

Related Pages on Mahalo

Albert Ayler | Amy Winehouse | Antonio Carlos Jobim | Art Ensemble of Chicago | Basquiat Strings | Benny Goodman | Bill Evans | Billie Holiday | Bobby Darin | Boney James | Bud Powell | Buddy Rich | Buena Vista Social Club | Cab Calloway | Charles Mingus | Charlie Parker | Charlie Watts | Chick Corea | Cole Porter | Count Basie | Dave Koz | Dean Martin | Dexter Gordon | Diana Krall | Dinah Washington | Dizzy Gillespie | Django Reinhardt | Duke Ellington | Ella Fitzgerald | Fats Navarro | Fats Waller | Frank Sinatra | Gene Krupa | George Benson | Glenn Miller | Harry Connick, Jr. | Herb Alpert | Herbie Hancock | Jaco Pastorius | Jelly Roll Morton | Jimmy Smith | Joel Dorn | John Coltrane | John McLaughlin | John Scofield | Keith Jarrett | Kenny G | Ledisi | Leo Fender | Les Paul | Lester Young | Louis Armstrong | Louis Prima | Max Roach | Mel Torme | Miles Davis | Naked City | Nat King Cole | Norah Jones | Ornette Coleman | Oscar Peterson | Pat Metheny | Paul Anka | Pink Martini | Ruth Etting | Sammy Davis, Jr. | Sarah Vaughan | Sonny Rollins | Stan Getz | Stanley Jordan | Sun Ra | Thelonious Monk | Tito Puente | Tony Bennett | Tortoise (Band) | Vusi Mahlasela | Wayne Shorter | Weather Report (Band) | Wes Montgomery | Will Downing | Wynton Marsalis | Freddie Hubbard

Jazz Questions

What are the characteristics of Bebop Jazz? What separates it from other forms of Jazz?

Who are the most talented drummers in Jazz history? (6 answers)

I'm looking to get better at Jazz guitar. Who is the best beginner's mentor for Jazz Guitar? Django, Wes Montgomery? (1 answer)

Do Jazz musicians make the best all round studio musicians? (4 answers)

View All: Jazz Questions | Entertainment Questions

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