- Garcia, Al. " A History of Jazz/Rock Fusion." The Jazz/Rock Fusion Page:a Site Is Dedicated to Jazz Fusion and Related Genres with a Special Emphasis on Jazz/Rock Fusion. N.p., n.d. Web.
- Giddins, Gary, and Scott Knowles. DeVeaux. Jazz. New York: W.W. Norton, 2009. Print.
- "History of Ragtime [article]:Article Description: Performing Arts Encyclopedia, Library of Congress." History of Ragtime [article]:Article Description: Performing Arts Encyclopedia, Library of Congress. N.p., 29 Sept. 2006. Web. 17 May 2013.
- Holt, Fabian. Genre in Popular Music. Chicago: University of Chicago, 2007. Print.
- McKinley, Elliot Miles. Bitches Brew: Miles Davis and the Birth of Jazz-Rock Fusion. Wilson 2018, Lexington. Lecture.
- Vail, Ken. Jazz Milestones: Pictorial Chronicle of Jazz, 1900-90. N.p.: Castle Communications, 1995. Print.
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Works Cited
Historical and Social Context of Jazz-Rock Fusion
Jazz-rock Fusion or Jazz Fusion is defined as the synthesis of "employing instrumentation, rhythms and repertory of rock in an effort to reposition jazz in the sphere of popular music"(Giddens & DeVeaux, 486) beginning in the late 1960s. Although fusion rose out of the 1960s as mainstream music, it is influenced by many eclectic sources through "the melding of traditions from Africa, Europe, and Latin America, and from an amalgamation of such sources as blues, ragtime, and Tin Pan Alley" (486). The earliest trace of jazz can be found during America's era of slave importation from Africa and branching out from the African-American community ever since. Jazz is very much belonging to a black identity because it developed as a result of slaves "striving to keep African musical traditions alive" by "blending them with the abiding traditions of Europe" (43). Also, jazz has blossomed in the wake of African-American music communities before it was heavily popularized. Even though jazz claims an African-American identity, it also symbolizes and boasts freedom and unity through its rampant improvisations and blend of sounds from across nations, breaking the boundaries of race. For example, Miles Davis says if a jazz musician can play, "he didn't give a damn if he was red and had green breath." As a result, not only were the musicians of jazz diverse, "the growing diversification of jazz in the mid twentieth century into cultures of traditional, modern, pop, and art jazz makes it difficult to represent the genre in the singular and increases the need to specify which culture of jazz one refers to" (Fabian & Holt, 81).
This "culture" of jazz does not refer to the music itself, but also to the society that changes around it and the history it conjures up from its past and how those memories affect the music and elicit emotional response in others. To explain the whole story of jazz-rock fusion, one must go way back to jazz's humble beginnings and analyze what jazz meant back then, and how its different shapes and forms in time ties back to what it meant in the past but also what it means in the present. As stated earlier, jazz can be traced back to a time when slave trade was popular and legal. Music to the enslaved was their window to home in Africa and not merely a form of entertainment or enjoyment. The only way to practice their culture was to mix African traditions with the newly learned culture of the New World because a lot of African culture was "stripped away from the Africans in the process of being transformed to a new class of people in the United States" (Early).
The mix of African traditions with white/European-American traditions created a type of music and sound that would influence and set the ground work for future jazz musicians in many different ways. This music that had developed in slave communities is known as African folk music. Since this music is a blend of African and European traditions it is often characterized as the "mulatto" of music. African folk music is characterized by "polyrhythm created within a short rhythmic cycle, and spontaneous interaction as defined by call and response," "use blue notes to alter pitch, and "use timbre variation as an expressive device" (Giddens & DeVeaux, 45). Many genres developed from African folk music. One of them is using music to "retell local history through lengthy ballads," a popular piece "John Henry" was about the blasting of railroad tunnel on the Virginia border (46), symbolizing the hard life of a railroad worker. The sound of the repeating pattern of the train can be seen surfaced in many fusion pieces, for example "The Dance Of The Maya" by Mahavishnu Orchestra has a repeating train-like rhythm. Another genre of ballads that emphasize "braggadocio and exaggeration" and "sexual exploits and one-upmanship" that can be seen in hip-hop music today (46). The next genre is the work song that "thrived on railroads, levees, and anywhere else music was needed to pace manual labor. The repetition of manual labor brings out a "rhythmically loose vocal line" that is lonely the people at work can all relate to. This style of music is characteristic of many jazz pieces to come. Call and response was used heavily in the genre of religious music. Early jazz artists began their training in music in church and thus that influence stuck with the music for years to come. These Afro-folk traditions have stuck around through the Civil War, emancipation, the Great Depression, the Civil Rights movement, and so on. This shows the strength of this lasting tradition, but also it's flexibility and its ability to mold to other genres in changing times and cultures.
During the early twentieth-century, many black musicians had a spotlight in the black communities, but many wanted to move into a bigger sphere where there were white, more affluent audiences. However, the riff between races was strong and not many succeeded. However, many white musicians studied their music and eventually brought about minstrelsy, "a humorous theatrical production in which a quartet of white musicians performed in blackface"(57) satirically poking fun of the culture of plantation slaves and became widely popular across America. This augmented unnecessary black stereotypes that further degraded them during times of segregation. Their musical talents were even questioned and were labeled as having a "natural rhythm," indicating that they did not gain their skill through practice but through being black. These heavy stereotypes prompted many black musicians to move to Europe where their skill was more respected, but many stayed and were very interested in the notation and theory in music.
Through the stereotypes, black musicians proved themselves capable of becoming greater through music. One type of music that was popularized in the black community in the early 1900s was ragtime. Many depict jazz as actually officially blooming through ragtime (Garicia). Ragtime is generally played by the piano, having a "double meter and containing a highly syncopated treble lead over a rhythmically steady bass...usually composed three or four contrasting sections...each one being 16 or 32 meters in length" ("History of Ragtime"). This type of music is similar to the shuffle rhythm that characterizes early jazz in pieces such as "Choo Choo Ch'boogie" in which there are swung eighth notes and some syncopated rhythm lines. Ragtime was mostly very upbeat music that played in bars or other places with large social gatherings, bringing all kinds of people together to hear it. With its syncopated rhythms, there is a swing to it that people want to dance to. The conditions that ragtime set made audiences wider among blacks and whites. It was played everywhere, even in the Chicago World Fair in 1893 ("History of Ragtime"). The fad that was ragtime would, in 1917 fade with the onslaught of jazz rising into the spotlight.
However, before jazz becomes heavily popularized among the masses, a genre of blues became heavily popularized and black musicians tapped into it to make it their own. In fact it was so popular in black circles that record companies renamed it "Race Records" until in 1940, Billboard renamed it "Rhythm and Blues" (Giddens & DeVeaux 63). Rhythm and blues can still be heard in contemporary music--it is ballad-like and has a slow groove that greatly contrasts ragtime of the early twentieth century. R&B is also mainly traced back to African-American artists in the U.S. The title of "Race Records" still stemmed from prejudice against the musical skills of African-Americans. Once a different kind of blues, known as "Jump Blues" for its ragtime rhythm, heavier ostinato, and most importantly a strong left hand, developed and paved the way towards a fusion of jazz and rock n' roll. One example of a Jump Blues song is "Rocket '88." In "Rocket '88," the listener can hear the appearance of the electric guitar in this music and also lyrics of song that talk about cars, money, and girls in a very upbeat and bold new way. This music style seems to be trying to shift from the black audience as the target audience to the affluent, white middle-class. The topics sung in these songs emphasize the new consumerism of the day, characterized by a large movement of population from the cities to the suburbs and the growing affluence of middle class families in America in the 1940s and 1950s. This is also what is known as the "Big band era," in which there were many instruments in each section and live performances were many (McKinley). During the Big Band Era, all the instruments seem to play all at once along a certain structure, but nevertheless having a very full sound and texture. The Big Band era played music suitable for dancing, characterized by an increased loudness and liveliness that leaned more to the side of ragtime.
As new technology developed and live performances for the bands decreased, there was more in-studio recording of music so big bands were not as necessary as before. Jazz saw a reduction in band members to only around one or two people per section. This new kind of jazz towards more modality and color as opposed to lyricism is known as Bebop. Because instruments in the band were dwindled down to a bare minimum, the instruments had to do more to fill up the song. Bebop is characterized by an entirely instrumental style, small band, fast tempo, extreme virtuosity, and playing music for its own integrity as opposed to playing for dance or song (McKinley). Collective improvisation, that is, instrumentation all improvising differently at the same time, was a recurring pattern in Bebop. For example in "Confirmation" by Charlie Parker, every space in the track was filled with lines of improvisation, however, the steady base line indicative of blues and ragtime was still intact. The evolution of jazz with the changing of the times is very clearly seen in the development of bebop.
From bebop, cool jazz and a more modal jazz developed, characterized by less improvisation and more color, also more laid back, more space between notes, less emphasis on virtuosity, and a kind of "impressionistic" jazz that seeks to paint an image rather than the angular and rhythmically-driven qualities of bebop. From cool/modal jazz to hard bop and free jazz--guitar/percussion presence and straight eighth notes begin to take over. Then, the essence of Jazz-Rock fusion blossoms in the late 60s early 70s.
A main landmark in the history of jazz-rock fusion is Miles Davis's album Bitches Brew. This album captivates both elements of jazz and rock and won an Oscar. Jazz in that tracks such as "Bitches Brew" has a strong, leading trumpet that heavily improvises along the groove of the bass beat. Rock in that Miles uses lots of electric instruments in ostinato to just jam to the beat, electric guitar presence is also very heavy. Not only is jazz-rock fusion what is implied in its name, it also includes a hodgepodge of many other influences such as Eastern/Indian influences, gospel and r&b influences. Another important characteristic of jazz-rock fusion is the fact that it doesn't go anywhere--the only way it goes is up through building other instruments on top of each other. There is enough groove in the jam to cruise along to the beat without it hitting a clear ending.
The "Miles Alumni" of jazz-rock fusion continued Davis's legacy. Groups such as the Mahavishnu Orchestra, who brought along their own twist to fusion toward an Eastern direction and Weather Report, who also brought their own flavor to the table, especially in "The Man In The Green Shirt." Studio effects and electric guitar strumming seems to have taken over the tracks, however, jazz elements in this piece are still clear; for example: there is a lot of improvisation going on and there are lots of elements of cool jazz--and you know the rest of the history follwing that if you've read this article.
All in all, just because jazz came from African-American backgrounds, does not mean it can only be played by black people. In fact, jazz is easy to transform and transcribe elements of one's own individuality upon it, and jazz-rock fusion is an example of a certain style reflected through the musicians of that time period. Jazz-rock fusion was a diamond in the rough--developed through the sacrifice, desperation, or joy of others, it is made into a perfect balance of two very different elements of music. And in conclusion, I think how jazz-rock fusion came about is beautiful.
During the early twentieth-century, many black musicians had a spotlight in the black communities, but many wanted to move into a bigger sphere where there were white, more affluent audiences. However, the riff between races was strong and not many succeeded. However, many white musicians studied their music and eventually brought about minstrelsy, "a humorous theatrical production in which a quartet of white musicians performed in blackface"(57) satirically poking fun of the culture of plantation slaves and became widely popular across America. This augmented unnecessary black stereotypes that further degraded them during times of segregation. Their musical talents were even questioned and were labeled as having a "natural rhythm," indicating that they did not gain their skill through practice but through being black. These heavy stereotypes prompted many black musicians to move to Europe where their skill was more respected, but many stayed and were very interested in the notation and theory in music.
Through the stereotypes, black musicians proved themselves capable of becoming greater through music. One type of music that was popularized in the black community in the early 1900s was ragtime. Many depict jazz as actually officially blooming through ragtime (Garicia). Ragtime is generally played by the piano, having a "double meter and containing a highly syncopated treble lead over a rhythmically steady bass...usually composed three or four contrasting sections...each one being 16 or 32 meters in length" ("History of Ragtime"). This type of music is similar to the shuffle rhythm that characterizes early jazz in pieces such as "Choo Choo Ch'boogie" in which there are swung eighth notes and some syncopated rhythm lines. Ragtime was mostly very upbeat music that played in bars or other places with large social gatherings, bringing all kinds of people together to hear it. With its syncopated rhythms, there is a swing to it that people want to dance to. The conditions that ragtime set made audiences wider among blacks and whites. It was played everywhere, even in the Chicago World Fair in 1893 ("History of Ragtime"). The fad that was ragtime would, in 1917 fade with the onslaught of jazz rising into the spotlight.
However, before jazz becomes heavily popularized among the masses, a genre of blues became heavily popularized and black musicians tapped into it to make it their own. In fact it was so popular in black circles that record companies renamed it "Race Records" until in 1940, Billboard renamed it "Rhythm and Blues" (Giddens & DeVeaux 63). Rhythm and blues can still be heard in contemporary music--it is ballad-like and has a slow groove that greatly contrasts ragtime of the early twentieth century. R&B is also mainly traced back to African-American artists in the U.S. The title of "Race Records" still stemmed from prejudice against the musical skills of African-Americans. Once a different kind of blues, known as "Jump Blues" for its ragtime rhythm, heavier ostinato, and most importantly a strong left hand, developed and paved the way towards a fusion of jazz and rock n' roll. One example of a Jump Blues song is "Rocket '88." In "Rocket '88," the listener can hear the appearance of the electric guitar in this music and also lyrics of song that talk about cars, money, and girls in a very upbeat and bold new way. This music style seems to be trying to shift from the black audience as the target audience to the affluent, white middle-class. The topics sung in these songs emphasize the new consumerism of the day, characterized by a large movement of population from the cities to the suburbs and the growing affluence of middle class families in America in the 1940s and 1950s. This is also what is known as the "Big band era," in which there were many instruments in each section and live performances were many (McKinley). During the Big Band Era, all the instruments seem to play all at once along a certain structure, but nevertheless having a very full sound and texture. The Big Band era played music suitable for dancing, characterized by an increased loudness and liveliness that leaned more to the side of ragtime.
As new technology developed and live performances for the bands decreased, there was more in-studio recording of music so big bands were not as necessary as before. Jazz saw a reduction in band members to only around one or two people per section. This new kind of jazz towards more modality and color as opposed to lyricism is known as Bebop. Because instruments in the band were dwindled down to a bare minimum, the instruments had to do more to fill up the song. Bebop is characterized by an entirely instrumental style, small band, fast tempo, extreme virtuosity, and playing music for its own integrity as opposed to playing for dance or song (McKinley). Collective improvisation, that is, instrumentation all improvising differently at the same time, was a recurring pattern in Bebop. For example in "Confirmation" by Charlie Parker, every space in the track was filled with lines of improvisation, however, the steady base line indicative of blues and ragtime was still intact. The evolution of jazz with the changing of the times is very clearly seen in the development of bebop.
From bebop, cool jazz and a more modal jazz developed, characterized by less improvisation and more color, also more laid back, more space between notes, less emphasis on virtuosity, and a kind of "impressionistic" jazz that seeks to paint an image rather than the angular and rhythmically-driven qualities of bebop. From cool/modal jazz to hard bop and free jazz--guitar/percussion presence and straight eighth notes begin to take over. Then, the essence of Jazz-Rock fusion blossoms in the late 60s early 70s.
A main landmark in the history of jazz-rock fusion is Miles Davis's album Bitches Brew. This album captivates both elements of jazz and rock and won an Oscar. Jazz in that tracks such as "Bitches Brew" has a strong, leading trumpet that heavily improvises along the groove of the bass beat. Rock in that Miles uses lots of electric instruments in ostinato to just jam to the beat, electric guitar presence is also very heavy. Not only is jazz-rock fusion what is implied in its name, it also includes a hodgepodge of many other influences such as Eastern/Indian influences, gospel and r&b influences. Another important characteristic of jazz-rock fusion is the fact that it doesn't go anywhere--the only way it goes is up through building other instruments on top of each other. There is enough groove in the jam to cruise along to the beat without it hitting a clear ending.
The "Miles Alumni" of jazz-rock fusion continued Davis's legacy. Groups such as the Mahavishnu Orchestra, who brought along their own twist to fusion toward an Eastern direction and Weather Report, who also brought their own flavor to the table, especially in "The Man In The Green Shirt." Studio effects and electric guitar strumming seems to have taken over the tracks, however, jazz elements in this piece are still clear; for example: there is a lot of improvisation going on and there are lots of elements of cool jazz--and you know the rest of the history follwing that if you've read this article.
All in all, just because jazz came from African-American backgrounds, does not mean it can only be played by black people. In fact, jazz is easy to transform and transcribe elements of one's own individuality upon it, and jazz-rock fusion is an example of a certain style reflected through the musicians of that time period. Jazz-rock fusion was a diamond in the rough--developed through the sacrifice, desperation, or joy of others, it is made into a perfect balance of two very different elements of music. And in conclusion, I think how jazz-rock fusion came about is beautiful.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)