Reflections on History of Jazz

            Before taking Black Studies 14 this quarter, I was highly clueless of the rich cultural and economic history behind jazz music. Previously, I associated it with fancy hotels and jazz bars. By associating jazz music with high-scale entertainment and dining, I never paused to think of the historical roots of the music, nor did I consider the musicians’ background. The material Dr. Stewart covered in this class, along with the reading materials assigned, opened my eyes to the faulty nature of my ill-informed disregard for the rich background of jazz music.

            The word ‘genius’ is often used to describe the extent of certain jazz musicians’ musical creativity and incredible technical abilities, namely Charlie “Bird” Parker and Thelonious Monk. As a heroin addict whose music was highly influential to others, Charlie Parker’s ‘genius’ revealed itself in his “egocentric and voracious” (Dr. Stewart, 2/21/2013) behaviors. Charlie Parker made sure his self-indulgent desires became reality, using and manipulative those around him in order to so. In order to afford his heroin habit, Charlie Parker would steal from his loved ones — even those who had taken him into their homes, such as Miles Davis. Addiction has a strong link with mental illness, and Charlie Parker’s disregard for others also paints a picture that Bird had unhealthy ways of dealing with his feelings. In addition, Thelonious Monk’s image was that of a troubled, yet brilliant pianist. Thelonious Monk, who had bipolar disorder, experienced cycles of mania and depression (Kelley, 431). While it is difficult to argue that mental illness is conducive to one’s personal success and functionality, Thelonious Monk’s bouts of mania encouraged his musical creativity. Perhaps Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk’s mental-health struggles helped the musicians develop a strong coping mechanism and the perseverance necessary to become the legendary geniuses that they are now. 

Racial Discourse and the Swing Era

            The rise of radio gave swing popularity and moved it into the mainstream. Because of this increased exposure, jazz accumulated more fans and critics. The 1930s were also nicknamed the "Swing Era." 

            It is important to note that although jazz music was receiving more attention, most jazz critics were of white descent. For Duke Ellington, this relationship between jazz musicians and their critics was “laughable” (Lecture 2/14/2013). According to Dr. Stewart, a combination of empathy and criticism (criticality) was missing from the jazz criticism. Jazz magazines increased in number with Down Beat, in particular, considered to have played the biggest role in shaping “critical and popular opinion on jazz” (“Swing Changes” 74). The jazz critics approached the music from a detached point of view, without taking into consideration the economic and other factors the musicians had to take into account. In addition, “Swing Changes” argues that the difficulty in the jazz critics’ task lay in the need to present swing as an “African-American music” (54). Although many critics encouraged integration, racism and segregation were the norm in the 1930s.

            John Hammond is one of the biggest jazz critics of the Swing Era. He made himself the “arbiter of African-American musical authenticity” (“Swing Changes” 52) through consistently getting his critiques published and promoting musicians who grew to become successful and famous, such as Benny Goodman, Fletcher Henderson, and Count Basie. Hammond famously criticized Duke Ellington’s lack of support for black culture, which he attributed to Ellington’s desire of “commercial success” (Lecture 2/14/2013). However, these comments did not faze Ellington, which he shrugged off as “laughable.”

            Because of the left leaning of the white jazz critics, the genre was cemented as a “democratic music” and “product of the people” (“Swing Changes,” 53). Some jazz musicians, such as Duke Ellington were suspected of having Communist sympathies, along with the critics who wrote about them in jazz magazines — particularly John Hammond, whom the FBI also investigated. The Communist bond with certain black political and cultural groups against fascism — the Popular Front — also contributed to this image of jazz.

            The combination of radio and jazz magazine publication resulted in explicit racial discourse during the 1930s. In addition, the relationship between the music industry and jazz musicians asked for exoticized “otherness” (“Swing Changes” 124). This is why Hammond accused Ellington for “tolerating racial indignities” — because Ellington agreed to add “jungle” effects to his music in order to appease the music industry.

Chicago's Importance to Jazz Music

                During the 1920s, jazz music moved beyond New Orleans and into Chicago and Harlem, where each location added its unique socioeconomic influences. Between the two cities, Chicago stands out as the most important jazz city of the 1920s, because it is where jazz music grew beyond its New Orleans roots and became a popular, cultural phenomenon.

                Jazz moved out of brothels and into dance halls in Chicago, due to the rise of mob-controlled speakeasies in Chicago's South Side (in response to Prohibition). Chicago developed its own style of jazz during this period: more upbeat, individualistic, rapid, and danceable (Lecture 1/31/2013). Furthermore, the industrialized city was full of factory workers were able to let loose after work, which made the dance halls high in demand.

                Louis Armstrong is the figurehead of both the Chicago jazz scene, in addition to being the most famous figure of jazz. Armstrong is the iconic jazz soloist whose skills as a cornet and trumpet player were highly recognized and admired by jazz lovers. Gioia goes as far as to call him an “unofficial ambassador for jazz” (Gioia, 69). Armstrong's soloist style fits in with Chicago's culture as a industrialized and capitalistic city. 

                It is important to note that white appropriation of jazz music occurred especially in Chicago. In “Chicagoans,” Humphrey Lyttleton describes how the Austin High School Gang — comprised solely of white musicians — imitated the music of Armstrong, King Oliver, and other black musicians. However, Lyttleton argues that the Gang “got it all wrong” (Lyttleton, 154) with their imitation. Although the Gang had extraordinary passion for jazz, they lacked rhythmic talent; yet they had an easier time making recordings, because they were not black.

                Lyttleton’s views on the Austin High School Gang reflect the tense race relations in Chicago during the 1920s. Bahktin’s theory of how the audience affects art can be seen in the evolution that occurs within jazz as a response to white appropriation and especially the mob bosses, whom Travis calls the “jazz slave masters” (Travis, 49). Although the mob bosses paid the black musicians, they had ultimate control over the music and exoticized black culture with jungle imagery and female dancers. 

                Unlike Chicago, the Harlem jazz scene had different struggles with race relations. During the 1920s, Harlem was not a slum. The Harlem Renaissance — a highbrow black cultural renaissance of sorts — divided Harlem into two cities (Lecture 2/7/2013): ‘high-culture’ Harlem, with the Renaissance poets and artists and ‘low-culture’ Harlem, with all the jazz musicians. In Harlem, the jazz musicians had rent parties, in which musicians performed at people’s apartments in order to raise money to pay rent. Bahktin’s theory can also be applied to Harlem, where the community and art had a mutually-influential relationship: The musicians played pieces that rent-party audiences would enjoy and the style of music played would affect the audience’s mood and response.

                Harlem’s jazz scene also differs from Chicago’s in terms of musical style. In Harlem, ragtime and stride styles were popular due to the accessibility of pianos. Rent parties encouraged a direct response from the community, rather than music critics. James P. Johnson and his fellow “piano ticklers” (Lyttleton, 23) needed audience approval in order to make money. As a result, they improvised pieces that were appealing to the public at the time. For example, ‘ragging’ European classical music led to the creation of Johnson’s stride style.

                Despite Harlem’s contributions to jazz, Chicago played a more important role for jazz in the 1920s. Chicago is the location where jazz soloists emerged (most importantly Louis Armstrong). It was also the location of tenser race relations, and is more representative of white appropriation of jazz. 

How New Orleans Became the Birthplace of Jazz

       At the start of the twentieth century, jazz music emerged in New Orleans due to geographical and cultural reasons. Ted Giola refers to New Orleans as a “major hub of commerce” (Giola, 29) and rightly so: Water was the major source of transportation at the time (via steamboat) and New Orleans’s seaside location helped the city rise as a major cosmopolitan trading center, bringing a diversity to the city that no other city in the U.S. was able to experience.
      Culturally, New Orleans was home to a richly-diverse population. In addition to the diversity within European populations, there was also a major black population, with a large portion being of West African heritage. This diversity was further fueled by intermarriage.
      Home to a predominantly Catholic population, New Orleans had a slightly more liberal legal system and attitude in regards to slavery; they followed the Latin Code, which argued that slaves have souls and are human beings — not property. Intermarriage was supported in order to increase the Catholic population. This resulted in a large mixed-race population.
      The Creole people — the descendants of New Orleans’ French and Spanish settlers — are famously tied to New Orleans culture. The Creole intermarriages with the black population resulted in mixed children — Creoles of Color — generally the free children of slave owners. However, the Creoles of Color did what they could to separate themselves from the lower-class black community; they tried to assimilate into New Orleans’ European culture and spoke negatively of the lower-class black community to emphasize how different they were from the Creoles of Color. They also their own set of legal rights.
      All of this “special treatment” toward the Creoles of Color changed after the Robert Charles Riots in 1900. Robert Charles, a black man, shot a white policeman in self-defense. The white population rioted for days; Charles’s body was unrecognizably mangled when he was killed. Racial tensions remained high after this event.  The Louisiana Legislative Code in 1894 — which stated that anyone with “one drop” of African blood was black (Giola, 34) — changed the social status of Creoles of Color.
      The significance of the passage of the Louisiana Legislative Code in 1894 cannot be stressed enough: It played the most important role in the emergence of jazz in New Orleans. Because of this “one drop” rule, Creoles of Color were no longer welcome in white communities; they were pressed into associating with the lower-class black community that they had struggled to differentiate themselves from.
      Musically, the Creoles of Color were classically-trained musicians with technical fluency. No longer welcome to play with the white bands, they began playing with the black musicians. This resulted in a syncretism of African and European musical tradition. The African musical principle of ‘vital aliveness’ — coined by Robert F. Thompson — calls for an intense performance style that is reminiscent of youthful energy. The musicians ‘attack’ their instruments to achieve this. This ‘vital aliveness’ from the black musicians combined with the Creoles of Color’s background in European musical tradition (Giola, 33), resulting in competitive creativity. Giola argues that the “blurring of musical genres was central to the creation of jazz” (Giola, 33). When the Creoles of Color played music with the black musicians, ragtime and the blues experienced inevitable changes. Through this fusion, jazz was born in New Orleans.