Kansas City Jazz: Influential Persons
What is jazz music? A single definition cannot be found. Many writers have attempted to define jazz music only to regress to trying to define what it does. Even this approach is difficult. Writers have only been able to find broad areas to agree up, such as agreeing that jazz is music. But alas, even this is a shortcoming in the eyes of some. Jazz has been so many things throughout it long and illustrious history that it's even hard to point out its origins, which stem from many places, many styles of music, and many people. However there is an ongoing debate as to its precise origins. It is known to have evolved out of New Orleans at the turn of the 20th century and from there spread to the north and Midwest. Based in blues and ragtime, jazz was seen to have geographical "hot spots" throughout the country; New Orleans, Chicago, New York, and Kansas City. Each "hot spot" has its own history containing significant events and people that helped shape the musical style of that culture center. Kansas City is no exception. There are innumerable persons that helped make Kansas City jazz what it has become.
Jazz emerged in a time that one might think that something new, such as the jazz movement, would not succeed. Jazz began to gain notoriety in the midst of The Great Depression. Kansas City's ability to sustain throughout such a horrible time can only be accredited to one thing; the administration of Thomas J. Pendergast, "boss" of Kansas City (and much of Missouri) from 1911 until his arrest for tax evasion in 1938. His methods, however, where not of the most reputable morals. Pendergast openly tolerated a "wide-open town" in Kansas City in exchange for political and financial benefits. Pendergast's tolerance of such laws as Prohibition were so extreme that from the year 1920 to 1933 there was not a single felony conviction for violation of that law. This is seen as more unusual when one realizes that there were over 300 bars in the city that employed live musical entertainment (Pearson, Political 181).
Pendergast and his followers were not avid supporters of black music, in fact, "he scarcely listened to music at all. Throughout his life he made it a rule to be in bed no later than nine o'clock, an hour at which musical happenings in the nightclubs of Kansas City were barely getting started (Russel 6).
The popularity of jazz grew in the twenties, and its center changed from New Orleans to Chicago. From there it spread to Kansas City and New York. The end of WWI ushered in the Jazz Age in New York, and it came to be associated with the parties and wild behavior of the 1920’s (Verve). Music from this era is also sometimes called “The Chicago Style,” and includes artists such as Bix Beiderbecke on trumpet and Pee Wee Russel, Mezz Mezzrow, and Benny Goodman on clarinet.
Jazz is an American genre that developed from ragtime and blues in the early twentieth century in urban areas of the U.S. This genre is characterized by strong, prominent meter, improvisation, distinctive tone colors, and performance techniques. The development of Jazz made a postive, lasting impact after World War One ended. It became a way of bringing young people together. Jazz became the basis for most social dance music and provided one of the first opportunities for public integration. Subcultures like the gangs of New York and Chicago encouraged the subjugation of the black artists to the white man’s economic and social power, often resulting in gang leaders having complete control over
Jazz was a unique form of music, there had never been anything like it before. It was rebellious, rhythmic, and it broke the rules- musical and social. It started a musical revolution, “With its offbeat rhythms and strange melodies, jazz was blamed for everything from drunkenness and deafness to in increase in unwed mothers.” Jazz was seen as immoral and worried the older generation that their kids would lose interest in classical music. It was also seen as against society because it came about from the African- American culture, but despite all of that, jazz led to a new era of music that still prevails today.
Although jazz first appeared in New Orleans in the twentieth century, the music it was derived from has been around for much longer. The roots of jazz can be found in both African and European influences that blend together to create a distinctive musical quality and swing character. It encompasses a wide range of music, including that of ragtime and blues, which are two of the most prominent genres that influenced jazz in its early stages. Although there are many differences between the musical styles and instrumentation of ragtime and blues, there are also some similarities in terms of common origin that helped drive the birth of modern-day jazz.
Since the first emergence of Jazz in the late 19th century, new styles and versions of the genre have been popping up in various locations across the world. Jazz first appeared in New Orleans. This is because New Orleans was one of the only places in the world that allowed the slaves there to play musical instruments, most importantly the drums. People in New Orleans of all social groups attended VooDoo rituals, which was where European horns met African drums. The two sounds joining together was “like lightning meeting thunder”. The locals then put the two styles together and used music they heard in churches or in barrooms for inspiration, thus creating an entirely new style of music; Jazz.
There were many important events that have occurred during the history of our country. Some have been filled with turmoil, while others have shown prosperity. Examples of turmoil are World War I and World War II. The Jazz Age did not let the bad times affect them. They are many ways that this time period is considered great. The Jazz Age was the greatest era in American history because of the characteristics and the economic prosperity that defined the 1920s as well as the styles and behaviors of the people who lived during this time, as seen through the characters in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby.
The word “jazz” is significant to America, and it has many meanings. Jazz could simply be defined as a genre or style of music that originated in America, but it can also be described as a movement which “bounced into the world somewhere about the year 1911…” . This is important because jazz is constantly changing, evolving, adapting, and improvising. By analyzing the creators, critics, and consumers of jazz in the context of cultural, political, and economic issue, I will illustrate the movement from the 1930’s swing era to the birth of bebop and modern jazz.
Imagine you are walking the streets of New Orleans. You are standing right where jazz was established in the United States of America. Jazz wasn’t just about music, it also affected the culture involving social, economic, artistic and jazz leaders.
To understand the genesis of Jazz one must also understand the setting of its origin, New Orleans. The city was founded by the French in 1718, then in 1763 the city ceded to Spain and remained under Spanish control until later being returned to the French in 1803, and then was immediately sold to the United States under the Louisiana Purchase. New Orleans was also heavily populated by African slaves making up 30% of the total population of the city at this time; so New Orleans was experiencing a lot of cultural diversity and was being shaped and molded by the many different fashions of people who lived in the city. These different social groups along with their culture also brought with them their deep rooted musical traditions, the fusion and combination of these traditions would give rise to what we know today as modern day Jazz. Jazz is a genre of music that could only have formed in America; it draws from many different cultures and art forms creating a cocktail of traditional European and African music, mixed with a blend of Spanish tinge, with a strong base of blues filtered through the American experience.
Jazz culture to be exact, is the topic at hand. Jazz culture expands throughout many genres and is expressed in many ways. The many genres of jazz are Big Band, jazz funk, modern jazz, smooth jazz, Latin jazz, and jazz fusion. Each of these comes with its own unique sound and origin. Latin jazz, for example, employs rhythms from both African and Hispanic backgrounds. The sound is particularly up tempo with divided eight beat patterns. Jazz artists who have portrayed these qualities of jazz to the world are at the very core of its culture. Many people who are in places of power in this society or are held in some form of esteem have had some exposure to the arts, whether it is classical or jazz. This is due to a desire to be culturally diverse which is a quality held in high esteem in regards to a more worldly point-of-view. There are many aspects of Jazz music that could be approached, but there is one point in particular that must be expressed in detail. The influence on the genre ...
The “Jazz Age” was a term F. Scott Fitzgerald coined to describe the ostentatious era that began after World War I during the Roaring Twenties. It was a joyous time full of great prosperity. He published many famous books during this time like The Great Gatsby and Tender is the Night. Fitzgerald claimed to know a great deal about the glitz and glamour of the Roaring Twenties, while he never actually experienced those aspects himself. Although F. Scott Fitzgerald had many struggles with alcoholism and his marriage, he is considered to be one of the greatest American writers of the twentieth century.
Jazz music has got a lot of importances as much as it lacks a correct definition. It plays a role in the entertainment sector. It entertains the listeners who are passionate to the art. They get a special entrainment especially for the working class who find listening to jazz as an activity done during the leisure time. Jazz on the other hand is very educative and informative of the past and the current issues. Since it is a long time art, it can be used to safeguard and protect the cultural practices of the people of the community. The culture is stored in the jazz songs and easily passed from one generation to another. It can also be transferred from one community to another since jazz music listeners are all over the world. Hence jazz music is a store of culture of a people of a particular social locality or geographical location.
Jazz began affecting American culture from the beginning of its conception. Ironically, it is nearly impossible to find the pinpoint of where jazz got started. Many early types of music, such as: Blues, Afro-Latin Caribbean rhythms, work songs, Protestant church hymns, Jewish songs, silly contemporary tunes, English and Irish dance music, gospel and spiritual, and ragtime, all went into the creation of jazz. A lot of credit goes to the African Americans for the creation of jazz. (Taborelli, Giorgio). “Jazz was born out of the cultural experience of African Americans and can be traced in a direct line to the slave songs of the plantations through the Negro Spirituals, Ragtime, and the Blues”("Jazz Musicians as Cultural Intermediaries”).The 18th Amendment, or the ban of alcohol also fueled new opportunities for jazz to begin. (Tirro, Frank)
In 1920 the Jazz music has emerged in the City of New Orleans and from there, there were also many great New Orleans Jazz musicians. Jazz is a music style that combines of three main element improvisation, bluesy flavor and swing feeling. Often, African American play Jazz on the street of New Orleans and they started to form bands and perform for people without charging them money. In the early history of Jazz, there was one major artist that has major contributions to Jazz, his name is Louis Armstrong. Armstrong was one of early jazz musicians who were born in New Orleans, Louisiana. Though, many African American Jazz musicians play music on the street of New Orleans but there was not any known record of their musics. Armstrong was one of those early Jazz musicians who move to Chicago where later he play and develop historic jazz style called improvision. Louis Armstrong well known as a soloist performer of his cornet or trumpet. Louis Armstrong using improvising technique where he can compose music while he is solo with his trumpet and create smooths and depth melodies.
a unique sincerity and magnetism that has withstood the test of time. From its humble beginnings in New Orleans, jazz quickly spread throughout the United States and soon became an illustrious component of American culture. This art form not only offered a distinct and musically euphonic prospect, but also gave voice to the African American community. The development of jazz tore down barriers and confines forever shaping music and culture around the world.