Investigation Into Jazz

Written investigation into the contexts and musical influences on the jazz style.

Summary of HND seminar on History of Jazz.

On the 10th March, we were given a seminar by the HND students on Ð''The Development of Jazz Music and Dance. My aim in this written investigation is to summarise the information given to me.

Development through African music

The earliest form of Jazz, began in African music. While most West African culture was erased when people were transported into slavery, some core possession and spirit based beliefs remained. People began to develop rhythms by using polyrhythmic drums, dance and clapping. This was carried from the work place to the Christian Church House. Church began to become more of a music lesson, than a spiritual, calm place to pray. This was the earliest sign of Ð''Gospel' churches. The rhythms developed here became known by Western listeners as syncopation.

Development of the Blues.

Blues lyrics are simple rhyming couplets. The first line is repeated followed by a second to complete the three lines of poetry. The story is always about a subject upon which the performer has strong feelings.

This is the example we were given:

Ð''while you're livin' in your mansion Ð'- You don't know what hard times mean

while you're livin' in your mansion Ð'- you don't know what hard times mean

Poor workin' man's wife is stravin' Ð'- your wife is livin' is like a queen.'

We were also given another example which was Natural Blues by Moby.

Merging of cultures.

By the end of the civil was in 1865, the abolition of slavery meant that many black musicians earned their living by playing music. The musicians would play European tunes adding their own rhythms and melodies. Tunes were therefore Ð''jazzed' or Ð''ragged'. The merging of black and white music traditions began the birth of jazz.

New Orleans is considered to be the birth place of jazz. The French section of the city housed black creoles originally from the West Indies, were influenced by the European rule. The black creoles were trained in European music and often played in chamber ensembles and so on. The American part of the city housed newly freed American Blacks who were greatly disadvantaged and generally uneducated. To occupy themselves they would play the music of gospel, blues and worked on songs played passed on by ear. A new racial segregation law introduced in 1894, forced Creoles and American Blacks to live together in one section of the city. When together a new style of music immerged. Therefore in the late 1890's ragtime began to immerge from urban salons of New Orleans.

Ragtime

Ragtime was born in New Orleans at the turn of the century. Essentially, Ragtime was piano based music with a bouncy and jerky strict two or four time beat. Scott Joplin is said to be the Ð''king of ragtime' music. His hits included Ð''The Maple Leaf Rag' which was the first best seller sheet music. We were given an example of ragtime composition as