Did you know that jazz was born in the United States?

Did you know that the drum set was invented by jazz

musicians? Did you know that the word "cool" and "hip" were originally jazz terms?

Join us in learning more about the history of jazz from its birth in New Orleans, Louisiana, to the music we

hear on the radio today.

Late 1800s–Today

The Blues: Back to the Source

Born in the South, the blues is an African American-derived music form that recognized the pain of lost love

and injustice and gave expression to the victory of outlasting a broken heart and facing down adversity. The

blues evolved from hymns, work songs, and field hollers — music used to accompany spiritual, work and

social functions. Blues is the foundation of jazz as well as the prime source of rhythm and blues, rock 'n' roll,

and country music. The blues is still evolving and is still widely played today.

You shouldn't have to feel sad when listening to the blues. Wynton Marsalis explains why.

To learn more the blues, click here.

1900s

New Orleans: The Melting Pot of Sound

"New Orleans had a great tradition of celebration. Opera, military marching

bands, folk music, the blues, different types of church music, ragtime, echoes of

traditional African drumming, and all of the dance styles that went with this Mardi Gras in New Orleans at the turn

of the century
music could be heard and seen throughout the city. When all of these kinds of
Photo: Library of Congress, Prints and
music blended into one, jazz was born." —Wynton Marsalis
Photographs Division, Detroit

Publishing Company Collection.

Listen to this traditional New Orleans standard called "Second Line." The melody is repetitive and very

singable. Notice the banjo rhythms in the background, and listen to the musicians break away from the

melody into collective improvisations.

To learn more about New Orleans jazz, click here.

1901

Louis Armstrong is born: The Jazz Original

"Through his clear, warm sound, unbelievable sense of swing, perfect grasp of

harmony, and supremely intelligent and melodic improvisations, he taught us all

to play jazz." —Wynton Marsalis

Louis Armstrong

Louis Armstrong was one of the most influential artists in the history of music. Photo: William P. Gottlieb/Ira and

Leonore S. Gershwin Fund Collection,

Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on August 4, 1901, he began playing the
Music Division, Library of Congress.
cornet at the age of 13. Armstrong perfected the improvised jazz solo as we know it (see Improvisation).

Before Armstrong, Dixieland was the style of jazz that everyone was playing. This was a style that featured

collective improvisation where everyone soloed at once. Armstrong developed the idea of musicians playing

during breaks that expanded into musicians playing individual solos. This became the norm. Affectionately

known as "Pops" and "Satchmo," Louis was loved and admired throughout the world. He died in New York

City on July 6, 1971.

Listen to the drama expressed by the trumpet and clarinet solos in "Potato Head Blues."

To learn more about Louis Armstrong, click here.

Improvisation: The Expression of Freedom

Improvisation is the most defining feature of jazz. Improvisation is creating, or making up, music as you go

along. Jazz musician play from printed music and they improvise solos. From the collective improvisation of

early jazz to the solo improvisation of Louis Armstrong to the free jazz of Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, and

John Coltrane, improvisation is central to jazz.

Listen to Mr. Marsalis's explanation of improvisation.

To practice improvising, click on PBS's "Improvisation Station." (You will need to download a free plug-in.)

Mid–1930s

Swing: Sound in Motion

Swing is the basic rhythm of jazz. Swinging means being in sync with other people and loving it. Swing as a

jazz style first appeared during the Great Depression. The optimistic feeling of swing lifted the spirits of

everyone in America. By the mid-1930s, a period known as the "swing" era, swing dancing had become our

national dance and big bands were playing this style of music. Orchestra leaders such as Duke Ellington,

Count Basie, Fletcher Henderson, Paul Whiteman, and Benny Goodman led some of the greatest bands of

the era.

Learn about the swing rhythm and listen to how the vocalists accent the second and fourth beats to create

that rhythm. These accents give the music a sense of motion and make you want to dance.

To learn more about the swing era, click here.

Duke Ellington: Master Composer

One of the most significant figures in music history, Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was born on April 29,

1899, in Washington, D.C. He began studying the piano at the age of seven. He started playing jazz as a

teenager, and moved to New York City to become a bandleader. As a pianist, composer, and bandleader,

Ellington was one of the creators of the big band sound, which fueled the "swing" era. He continued leading

and composing for his jazz orchestra until his death in 1974. "Ellington plays the piano, but his real instrument

is his band. Each member of his band is to him a distinctive tone color and set of emotions, which he mixes

with others equally distinctive to produce a third thing, which I like to call the 'Ellington Effect.'" —Billy

Strayhorn, composer and arranger

Listen to Wynton Marsalis explain the "Ellington Effect."

To learn more about Duke Ellington, click here.

Duke Ellington

Photo: Library of Congress

1940s

Bebop: The Summit of Sound

"If you really understand the meaning of bebop, you understand the meaning of freedom." —Thelonious

Monk, pianist and composer

In the early 1940s, jazz musicians were looking for new directions to explore. A new style of jazz was born,

called bebop, had fast tempos, intricate melodies, and complex harmonies. Bebop was considered jazz for
intellectuals. No longer were there huge big bands, but smaller groups that did not play for dancing audiences

but for listening audiences.

Listen to a short history of the beginning of bebop, and learn how to scat!

To learn more about bebop, click here.

Dizzy Gillespie: A Jazz Visionary

"The first time you hear Dizzy Gillespie play the trumpet, you may think that the tape was recorded at the

wrong speed. He played so high, so fast, so correctly." —Wynton Marsalis

Trumpeter, bandleader, and composer John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was born on October 21, 1917, in

Cheraw, South Carolina. He got his first music lesson from his father and took

off from there. He moved to New York City in 1937 and met musicians such as

Thelonious Monk and Charlie Parker. Together they experimented with jazz and

came up with the bebop sound. Dizzy also helped to introduce Latin American

rhythms to modern jazz through his collaborations with artists such as Machito

and Chano Pozo. His bold trumpet playing, unique style of improvisation, and Dizzy Gillespie

inspired teachings had a major influence, not only on other trumpet players, but Photo: William P. Gottlieb/Ira and

Leonore S. Gershwin Fund Collection,

on all jazz musicians in the years to come. He died in Englewood, New Jersey,
Music Division, Library of Congress.
on January 6, 1993.

How did Dizzy get his name? Wynton Marsalis explains his famous nickname and what made Dizzy so

unique as a musician.

To learn more about Dizzy Gillespie, click here.

1950s

Latin and Afro-Cuban Jazz: Beyond the Borders

"Afro-Cuban jazz celebrates a collective musical history. Through its percussive beat, it unites ragtime, blues,

swing, and the various grooves of Cuban music. It proclaims our shared musical heritage." —Wynton

Marsalis

The combination of African, Spanish, and native cultures in Latin America created a unique body of music

and dance. Jazz musicians from Jelly Roll Morton to Duke Ellington to Dizzy Gillespie combined their music

with this Latin sound to create a powerful blend. In the 1940s and 50s, when musicians from Cuba began to

play with jazz musicians in New York, the circle was complete. By combining the musical traditions of North,

South, and Central America, Latin jazz celebrates our musical differences and helps us to find a common

ground.

Gillespie and Chano Pozo, a Cuban musician, created a new form of Latin jazz called CuBop. Listen to the

difference between swing and Latin grooves.

To learn more about Latin and Afro-Cuban jazz, click here.

To meet Artistic Director of Jazz at Lincoln Center Wynton Marsalis, click here.

RAGTIME
(1880s-early 1900s)

Next: The Blues

Ragtime was one of the early musical styles that contributed to the
development of jazz. Originating in the southern United States during the
late 1800's, ragtime was composed primarily for the piano. It combined a
sixteenth-note-based syncopated melody with the form and feel of a march. On
the piano this was achieved by the pianist's left hand playing a steady "boom-
chic" bass and chord pattern and the right hand playing the syncopated tune.
Playing in this syncopated style was called "ragging," which is probably the origin
of the term "ragtime."

Important musicians of the time included pianists Scott Joplin, Artie Matthews,
James Scott, and Tom Turpin.

THE BLUES
(1900s-1920s)

Previous: Ragtime Next: Dixieland

Like ragtime, the blues was an important influence on the development of jazz. A
highly expressive, predominantly vocal tradition, blues songs expressed the
stories and emotions of African-Americans at the beginning of the 20th century.
The blues were not only a type of music, but a state of mind and way of life for
many African-Americans during this time.

A blues songs usually includes words which form a three-line stanze. The first
line is sung twice, the third rhymes with the first two (aab form). The melody is
performed over a 12-bar chord progression consisting of three chords built on the
1st, 4th, and 5th notes of the major scale. These three chords are referred to by
the Roman numerals I, IV, and V. The distinct sound of the blues melody is in
large part due to the use of notes outside the major scale, called "blue notes."

Usually blues vocalists accompanied themselves on the guitar or sang with

instrumental accompaniment of guitar, piano, harmonica, or sometimes
homemade instruments. Blues performed on the trumpet or saxophone, for
example, often imitate the vocal effects of blues singers by bending pitches,
rasping, and recreating the growl of the voice.

Important blues musicians of the early twentieth century include Ma Rainey, Bessie
Smith, and W.C. Handy.
 DIXIELAND
(1917-1920s)

Previous: The Blues Next: Early Big Band

Blues and ragtime, along with a rich local brass band tradition and many other
influences, came together in the late teens to early 1920s in New Orleans,
Louisiana to create a new type of music called Dixieland jazz. Dixieland is also
known as traditional jazz or New Orleans jazz. As jazz gained in popularity, it
spread north from New Orleans to Chicago, New York, Kansas City, and across
the Midwest to California.

The name "Dixieland" was most likely derived from the Original Dixieland Jazz
Band, a New Orleans group who made the first publicly available recording of
this style of music in 1917. The recording was very popular and the band gained
international prominence as a result.

Common instruments in a Dixieland jazz-style group included trumpet-cornet,

clarinet, trombone, and occasionally the saxophone. The rhythm section could
include the banjo, piano, drums, string bass, or tuba. Dixieland was usually
performed without a vocalist. The music was characterized by a steady, often
upbeat, tempo, 4/4 meter, and rhythms performed in an exaggerated triplet
swing style. Frequently the tuba or string bass plays on the first and third beats
of each measure, with the banjo or piano playing chords on beats two and four.
This is known as "two-beat" style, and gives the music a sound similar to
ragtime. The other instruments of the ensemble play melodies and
countermelodies simultaneously and take turns playing solos. Musicians often
play familiar melodies from memory adding their own bluesy inflections
throughout the song.

Dixieland jazz greats included trumpeter Louis Armstrong, pianist Jelly Roll
Morton, trumpeter Bix Beiderbecke, trombonist Edward "Kid" Ory, clarinetist
Sidney Bechet, and bandleader and trumpeter King Oliver.

BIG BAND MUSIC: THE EARLY YEARS

(1920's)

Previous: Dixieland Next: Big Band Boom

Following the rise of Dixieland jazz in the 1920s was a new style performed by a
large ensemble usually consisting of 10 players or more. These bands, called big
bands, relied increasingly on saxophones instead of clarinets and emphasized
sectional playing. The overall instrumentation was broken into three groups of
instruments: brass (trumpets and trombones), reed (saxes, with players
sometimes doubling on clarinet), and rhythm section (piano, bass, drums, guitar,
and in later years, vibes). Generally big band arrangements followed a standard
form: (a) the melody was played by the entire band in unison or harmony; (b)
soloists improvised based on the tune's melody, style, and chord progression,
and (a) the melody was restated sometimes in a varied or more elaborate
setting.

The music performed by big bands was called swing, a type of music that people
could dance to easily. It was performed in a triplet swing rhythm style. This
energetic dance music was wildly popular for almost two decades, with the
swing era extending through the mid-1940s. During this time, thousands of big
bands played across the United States. They performed written arrangements of
popular and jazz tunes, sometimes with a vocalist. Some groups, like the big
bands of Fletcher Henderson, Duke Ellington, and Benny Goodman, toured a great
deal and had national recognition, but many only had local or territorial appeal.
These "territory" bands," as they were called, performed regionally in the dance
halls of both big cities and small towns.

Two prominent early big band leaders were Fletcher Henderson and Paul Whiteman

BIG BAND BOOM

(1930's-1940's)

Previous: Early Big Band Next: Postwar Big Band

Despite the challenges as a result of the Great Depression and World War II, big
band music continued to grow in popularity during the 1930's and '40's.
Musicians played together in jam sessions after hours at bars and clubs. Radio
broadcasts spread interest in big band music by bringing it into peoples' homes.
Ballrooms such as the Savoy and the Roseland in New York City were wildly
popular venues for hearing the latest big band sounds.

The big band boom of the 1930's and '40's brought together the greatest jazz
musicians of the day playing together in bands led by clarinetist Benny
Goodman, trombonist Tommy Dorsey, clarinetist and saxophonist Jimmy Dorsey,
trombonist and arranger Glenn Miller, clarinetist and saxophonist Woody Herman,
pianist and composer Duke Ellington, and pianist Count Basie. Some of the most
well-known singers from this era appeared with bands like Ellington's, Basie's,
Goodman's, and Herman's, and included suc legends as Billie Holiday, Ella
Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, and Joe Williams. During the big band
boom, leaders and musicians were as idolized as rock stars are today.

BIG BAND MUSIC: POSTWAR TO PRESENT

(1940's-Present)

Previous: Big Band Boom Next: Bebop

Big bands continued to be popular throughout the 1940s, but the 1950s marked a
decline in the raging popularity and sheer number of big bands. The big bands
that continued seemed to change with the times, reflecting the influences of
bebop, 20th-century art music, cool jazz, and pop and rock styles.

Important big band musicians of this period are Stan Kenton, Thad Jones, Buddy
Rich, and Maynard Ferguson. Other well-known bandleaders and musicians of the
postwar big band era include: bandleaders Rob McConnell, Maria Schneider,
and Toshiko Akiyoshi, baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan, tenor saxophonist
Bill Holman, and trumpeter Doc Severinsen.

BEBOP
(1940's-1950's)

Previous: Postwar Big Band Next: Cool Jazz

Bebop emerged in the 1940s a as a style of jazz in great contrast to the music of
the big bands. It featured a small group of musicians -- four to six players --
rather than the 10 or more associated with the big bands. The smaller
size allowed more solo opportunities for the players. The music itself
was characterized by more complex melodies and chord
progressions, as well as more emphasis on the role the rhythm
section. Furthermore, phrases within the music were
often irregular in length, making bebop interesting to
listen to, but in contrast to music of the big bands,
unsuitable for dancing.

The development of bebop is attributed in large part to trumpeter

Dizzy Gillespie and alto saxophonist Charlie Parker. The unique
styles of Gillespie and Parker contributed to and typified the
bebop sound. They experimented with unconventional
chromaticism, discordant sounds, and placement of accents in melodies. In
contrast to the regular phrasing of big band music, Gillespie and Parker often
created irregular phrases of odd length, and combined swing and straight eighth-
note rhythms within the swing style.

Other influential bebop musicians included saxophonists Sonny Stitt and Dexter
Gordon, trumpeters Red Rodney and Kenny Dorham, trombonists J.J. Johnson
and Bennie Green, guitarists Tal Farlow and Kenny Burrell, pianists Oscar
Peterson, Bud Powell, and Thelonius Monk, drummers Kenny Clarke and Max
Roach, and bassists Charles Mingus and Paul Chambers.

COOL JAZZ
(1940's-1950's)

Previous: Bebop Next: Latin Jazz

During the 1940's there were many different styles of music evolving
simultaneously. Cool jazz developed during the late 1940's at
approximately the same time as bebop, and remained popular for
several decades. Cool jazz was more subtle, moody, muted, and
restrained than bebop, and may have been influenced by the
harmonies of 20th-century art music composers like Stravinsky and
Debussy.

Two of the most important contributors to the cool jazz style were
trumpeter Miles Davis and pianist, bandleader, and composer-arranger Gil Evans.
Other cool jazz musicians were saxophonists Gerry Mulligan and Lee Konitz,
trumpeters Chet Baker and Conte Candoli, trombonists Frank Rosolino and Bob
Brookmeyer, guitarists Wes Montgomery and Barney Kessel, pianists John
Lewis, Dave Brubeck, and Lennie Tristano, bassist Red Mitchell, and drummers
Shelley Manne and Mel Lewis.

LATIN JAZZ
(1930's - present)

Previous: Cool Jazz Next: Free Jazz

Latin-influenced jazz is characterized by Latin dance rhythms combined with

jazz melodies and chord progressions. Latin influences began to enter
mainstream American popular music in the 1930's. During the 1950's and 1960's
these influences became particularly strong, with Latin dances such as the
mambo, cha-cha-cha, samba, and bossa nova becoming extremely popular in
the United States. Other Latin dances such as the salsa and merengue continue
to be an influence today.

Latin music has its own unique sound. Eighth notes are played straight, not
swung as in other style of jazz, but syncopation is still common. A wide variety of
Latin percussion instruments also flavor the music. Congas are Afro-Cuban in
origin, played with the palms of the hands and with the fingers. Bongos are also
Afro-Cuban, but are higher-pitched and thinner in tone quality than congas. Other
common instruments include timbales, claves, and cowbells.

Some bandleaders who infused a Latin element into their bands are Dizzy
Gillespie and Stan Kenton. Other musicians who incorporate Latin elements into
their music include Brazilian drummer Airto Moreira, Peruvian percussionist Alex
Acuña, Cuban trumpeter, pianist, composer and protegé of Dizzy Gillespie Arturo
Sandoval, pianist Eddie Palmieri, percussionists Tito Puente and Poncho
Sanchez, bandleader Mario Bauza, trombonist Steve Turré, and alto saxophonist
Paquito D'Rivera.

FREE JAZZ
(1960's)

Previous: Latin Jazz Next: Fusion

Free jazz is a term often used to categorize a new direction in jazz in the
1960's. Experimental, provocative, and challenging for many listeners, free jazz
was characterized by a high degree of dissonance. Pitch and tone quality were
manipulated by players on their instruments to produce squeaks, shrieks, and
wails. New sounds from non-western music traditions like those of India, China,
the Middle East, or Africa were sometimes used. Collective improvisation,
where all players improvise simultaneously and independently without the
framework of a chord progression, was also common. All this sometimes lent to
the feeling of "organized chaos." Free jazz was praised by some of the
prominent musicians of the time, but was not widely accepted by the public.

Two of the major contributors to the evolution of free jazz were alto saxophonist
Ornette Coleman and pianist Cecil Taylor. Other free jazz musicians included
saxophonist Roscoe Mitchell, pianist Muhal Richard Abrams, and composer,
pianist, and bandleader, Carla Bley.