The first jazz recording is Dixieland Jazz Band One Step. It came from a group of white musicians called the Original Dixieland Jazz Band. The groups tried to bring a certain feel in their music. It was quite similar to the one that came from popular jazz artists of the time.

However, over a period of time, people’s expectation from jazz changed with the development of newer forms of music. Now let’s go through the different elements of this musical genre:

1. Improvisation

Many of the musical geniuses have come up with improvisations during their career. Among them were the legends, such as Mozart and Beethoven. There have been traditions of improvisation in different countries of Asia and Africa as well. Improvisation in jazz is something special owing to its use of the blues scale. This particular scale has a universal appeal, which emotionally satisfies the listener.

2. Creative freedom

There were some revolutionary changes that came with time since the introduction of jazz. Such changes allowed drummers to improvise and interact with the ensemble freely. With greater focus on improvisation, the melodies could be made shorter and more angular.

Later, jazz went through some significant movements with the intention of bringing jazz back to the audiences. As a result, certain new sub-genres were born, such as ‘hard bop’. It had the influences of R&B. Then there was ‘soul jazz’, which had a heavy emphasis on soul, R&B, and blues.

In a way, jazz musicians are jacks of all trades when it comes to their musical abilities. This detailed knowledge of jazz musicians with regards to music offers them plenty of opportunities. They’re often hired for sessions of pop, rock, R&B, and other musical styles.

3. Syncopation

Jazz musicians always try to create variations in their phrases. They do their best not to play the same note duration repeatedly. If they do, the rhythm tends to get rather stale and the music gets boring. This is the role of syncopation. It places greater emphasis on weak and strong beats.

This is something that drummers and jazz musicians must always keep in mind. It is immensely useful in catching the listeners by surprise and this is one of jazz’s vital elements.

4. Swing

The feeling of swing is created by swinging the eighth note. Think of the rhythm of water dripping when it’s fast in a moderate way. This is a straight eighth note. An eighth note is worth half a beat by itself. For fans of different jazz types, swing is usually a subjective quality.

Despite this, it produces a feeling that provides momentum to a performance. An eighth note in swing comes in the form of triplets, which is a group of three notes. The first in the pair is slightly longer than the other two. The result of this is a rhythmic feel, which is a sequence that’s short-long in nature.

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Smooth jazz drifts even further from its traditional roots. It favors pleasant melodies that are uncomplicated and has a little bit of improvisation from its practitioners. Radio stations that are dedicated to smooth jazz and present the music in an easy listening format. This sub-genre of contemporary jazz has enjoyed a rather long stint in the world of mainstream music.

So, contemporary jazz can be described as an umbrella term for a range of new music in the genre. It covers the jazz music produced and recorded in the late 20th and early 21st century. Here are some of the contemporary jazz musicians that you must know:

1. Diana Krall

Diana Krall has sold over 15 million albums globally. This includes more than 6 million albums, which were sold in the United States alone. She is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer who is famous for her contralto vocals.

The Billboard magazine placed her on the second position among the greatest jazz artists of the decade. This was during the month of December, 2009. She was among the best-selling artists of her time. Krall is also a winner of eight Juno awards and three Grammy awards. He has nine gold, seven multi-platinum, and three platinum albums to her name.

2. George Benson

A former child prodigy, George Benson rose to fame in the 1960s. He began his professional career as a jazz guitarist when he was 19 years of age. In the beginning, he played soul jazz with Jack McDuff and several other musicians. Later, he enjoyed a successful solo career while alternating between jazz, R&B, pop, and scat singing.

His album titled Breezin’ reached the number one spot on Billboard album chart in the mid-1970s. It became a certified triple-platinum album. His concerts were attended by a massive number of jazz fans. Benson still enjoys a large following and has won ten Grammy awards. He also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which stands testimony to his immense popularity.

3. Cheryl Barnes

For almost a decade, Cheryl Dyrithe Barnes shied away from making records. She is a classically-trained jazz singer and possesses an amazing depth, technique, and range. Having toured many countries for her live performances, she knows how to keep the audience hooked.

Barnes is also an actress and is famous for her role in Hair. It was based on Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical, which was a Broadway play. It was directed by Milos Forman and was released in 1979. She played the role of Hud’s fiancée in the film. Her fourth album came out in the year 2014.

4. Larry Carlton

Carlton has been a part of thousands of recording sessions as a jazz guitarist. He has also participated in the recordings for movies and television albums belonging to different genres. He built his career in the 1970s and 1980s as a studio musician.

Carlton has been on over 100 gold records. He was a member of Crusaders, a band specializing in jazz fusion. He has also been a member of the smooth jazz band, Fourplay. Besides this, he has been able to maintain a long solo career as well.

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Among the instruments used is guitar, which has a great deal of contribution in jazz. An upright bass maintains the rhythm by binding the sounds together. In a much more advanced and ideal scenario, you’ll certainly need an appropriate jazz instrument. This will ensure that you achieve the exact vibe.

Here are some of the important musical instruments that are used in making jazz music:

1. Trumpet

If you delve into the history of trumpets, you’ll come to know that they were invented during 1,500 BC. During those times, the instrument was used as horns in battles. It was between the 14th and 15th centuries that they gradually transitioned into musical instruments. After Louis Armstrong took the trumpet to the stage, it became more popular than ever before.

A trumpet is an instrument made of brass and is played by using a vibrating mouthpiece. In order to change the pitch, it has three valves. The trumpet players use different techniques of puckering to create a variety of sounds.

2. Drums

Multiple pieces of percussion are collectively termed as ‘drums’ and they’re of great importance in jazz. You may need only a few of them to play jazz beats and dribbles. Yet they carry the tempo and rhythm of the whole band.

3. Saxophone

A woodwind instrument made out of brass, saxophone is among the most essential jazz instruments. It allows its player to express his or her individualism in a spontaneous manner. Altos, baritones, tenors, and sopranos are the four types of saxophones. This musical instrument can play only one note at a time. It can be used to play solos as well as melodies.

4. Guitar

Be it any genre of music, guitar is commonly used for creating some fabulous melodies. The fretting system of the instrument allows its player to create hundreds of notes. This makes it one of the most versatile among the instruments used for making music.

For achieving greater clarity, jazz musicians use either jumbo or hollow-body guitars. They usually prefer electric guitars for playing rhythm or performing solos. The plucking of six strings in this musical instrument creates melodies. The player can play them together for chords or individually for solos.

5. Piano

In jazz, the pianist accompanies the melodies with chords in a rhythmic manner, which feels bright and bouncy. Pianos offer greater versatility than guitars. They offer 88 keys, giving pianists greater opportunities for experimentation. While playing, the notes can vary between high and low. While ‘comping’ chords with one hand, a pianist may also improvise a melody with the other hand.

6. The standing bass

This musical instrument appears like a huge violin. The player of the instrument uses it for playing notes to create a melody’s base. This wooden instrument has four strings of nylon along the fretboard. To resonate the strings in classical music, the player drags a wooden bow along the lines.

While doing this, the player needs to hold notes on the fret with his or her left hand. In jazz music, everything is quite extraordinary. So, it doesn’t come as a surprise that jazz players prefer plucking the strings. They do this in order to create a pulse effect.

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Today, you’ll come across a range of styles and sub-genres of the genre. There are a variety of sounds that come under the term ‘jazz’. You might also find it difficult to understand the meaning of this term. When we compare jazz to the other genres, it may give rise to a lot of debate. This would mainly be about its parameters and definition.

There are some who take a more relaxed view of what jazz actually means. They might go on to suggest that it’s associated more with a state of mind. There are others who would disagree and say that words and sounds do matter in jazz. Apparently, there are no easy answers in this regard.

Origins of jazz

The origins of this genre of music can be traced back to 19th century’s second half. This is when jazz was born in the city of New Orleans. Being a port city, it had individuals coming in from various corners of the world. These people were also socializing and sharing their music with others. It was a wonderful time, as music from different parts of the world could be heard on the city’s streets.

New Orleans was also one of the few places in America where slaves could keep drums. West Africa had rich musical traditions besides being the birthplace of a vast majority of slaves. With the abolition of slavery and the end of the American Civil War, many former slaves found employment.

Most of them were employed as musicians, which exposed these individuals to other forms of music. This is how jazz was born. It originated in an environment of freedom, which gave it plenty of scope for experimentation and expression.

Development and popularity

One can find the influences of the musical traditions of West Africa and Europe in early jazz. It also included slave songs, church hymns, the Cuban-style rhythm, and field chants. However, this musical genre didn’t make it big until the late 19th century.

Towards the end of the 19th century, a precursor to jazz called ‘ragtime’ started gaining popularity. It also caught the ear of the white Americans. The most famous among the artists of ragtime was Scott Joplin. Before his death in the early 20th century, he had composed 44 original songs in the genre.

Around this time, other artists also began improvising on the sound. The age of jazz began in the 1920s, when the music became immensely popular. It entered the mainstream and turned some of the black musicians into overnight successes. Among them were Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie.

The jazz age culminated in a historic event, which took place in the year 1938. This was the Benny Goodman concert, which was hosted at Carnegie Hall. It brought together musicians from various ethnicities and all of them performed jazz in this historic hall.

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However, jazz didn’t stop here. It further gave rise to rock-fusion and the contemporary electronic music. Over the years, there have been various attempts to explain the defining features of jazz. For some of the prominent contemporary jazz musicians, jazz is a cohesive music style owing to its unique qualities. Regardless of how it is defined, jazz has certainly led to the development of many sub-genres.

It is important to note that these sub-genres have evolved over many years. Each of them possesses their own distinct features. Of course, the legendary jazz artists of the past have been instrumental in developing these sub-genres. Then there were certain artists who had been into multiple genres of jazz. Here, we’ll delve into the three sub-genres of jazz that were once extremely popular:

1. Dixieland or Chicago Style

Dixieland has had its share of controversy and it was mainly associated with its name. Some people see it as a derogatory term, which was used in the pre-Civil War era. Nevertheless, it’s still in use and describes the music that came up in New Orleans.

The evolution of the earliest forms of jazz took place in the late 19th and the early 20th centuries. Their roots were in a style with the name ‘ragtime’ or ‘playing hot’. These forms of jazz come under classical jazz, also known as ‘hot jazz’. You’ll even find the term ‘dixieland’ in one of the earliest jazz recordings.

2. Swing or Big Band

Music in the 1930s had a greater emphasis on showmanship. The bands that belonged to this era had their own theme songs, uniforms, and logos. Swing or Big Band is a musical genre that has a greater importance for written composition instead of improvisation. You’ll also find large ensembles in this form of music.

The bands have sections just like an orchestra, but they don’t have any roots in orchestras. Instead, they took their inspiration from the divisions that were seen in the front lines of dixieland. The music had a steady 4/4 time to produce a smoother feel of swing.

3. Bebop or Bop

There was an increase in the use of complex harmonies with Bebop. They either substituted or altered the standard chord progressions. There was a new line of melody overlaying a familiar harmonic structure of chord progressions that were borrowed. The Bebop or Bop genre comprises small ensembles unlike swing and big band.

These ensembles are usually in the form of the trio, quartet, and quintet. Here the emphasis is largely on technique and virtuosity. The drummer is an interactive member of the group here. He or she is not someone who just backs up the band with a rhythm. Now, the drummer even provides the basic rhythm of the piece and complements the soloists.

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Then it had to go through years of improvisation and polishing for new forms to develop out of it. You’ll come across many interesting facts about jazz when you begin studying about it. Here, we’ve tried to include some of them:

1. The invention of jazz

Before jazz music became a thing in America, blues was popular in many places of the country, especially Louisiana. This genre used the trumpet sound generously. During the late 19th century, the more fast-paced dance tunes of the Black population gained popularity.

Musicians began mixing up both these sounds by using brass instruments. As a result, jazz as a musical genre emerged. The inventor of jazz is believed to be Charles ‘Buddy’ Bolden. He was an African-American band leader and was called by Donald Marquis as the ‘first man of jazz’.

2. Uniqueness of jazz

Jazz expressed the culture of the African-American community living in the United States. These expressions came out not only through words but also through the tunes. It was a genre that was born in the United States and created by the African-Americans. It was more of a medium to express their struggles as slaves. Jazz also gave them an outlet to express the hardships they had to face for gaining social status.

Through jazz, the Black population of America managed to retain their music as well as African roots. Despite being subject to racism, the Black population lived in the same society as White people. This was one of the unique things about this genre of music.

3. Inspiration behind jazz

There was a time when the White people painted their faces black and took to the stage in New Orleans. They then sang and danced to the new music that was gradually becoming popular. Soon, jazz became a mix of classical music and the folk songs from the African slave culture.

Today, this musical genre combines elements from other genres, such as rock, funk, and pop. They say that jazz wasn’t written initially, but passed on to generations of music lovers. They then used what was inherited by them for creating something new.

4. Places where jazz music is still popular

The United States of America is undoubtedly the country that has the maximum number of jazz listeners. There are some clubs where you can find the greatest number of jazz music fans. When someone listens to this genre of music, France is what comes to the mind. The people of France have always been influenced by jazz to a great extent. There was a Jazz Age in France in the early 20th century.

This influence still exists in the country. France has the best jazz clubs in Europe. Another place where jazz is extremely popular is South Africa. Of course, it doesn’t have the same number of fans as in France or America. Nevertheless, the capital city of Cape Town is famous for hosting the Cape Town International Jazz Festival. It is one of the most renowned jazz festivals in the world.

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