Chapter: Modern Jazz

This is a preview of the educational program A Jazz Improvisation Almanac which is under development for the Outside Shore Music Online School. Feel free to browse this preview and learn what you can from it. For a more completed product, though, check out the original freely browsable jazz textbook, A Jazz Improvisation Primer.

In this chapter, I discuss some of the current trends in jazz. I should note first that many jazz musicians continue to play in the mainstream styles described in the previous chapter. I do not mean to imply there is anything "old-fashioned" about those styles. In fact, it is likely that the majority of the jazz being played today is hard bop and post bop in nature. The developments that have taken place in jazz since the 1960's have not always been accepted into the mainstream of jazz, and that is why I describe the current developments in a separate chapter from the mainstream.

Some of the styles discussed in this chapter are often referred to as "free jazz", which is misleading because there is almost always some structure being followed by the musicians. These styles are also at times called "avant-garde", a term generally applied to new advances on the leading edge of development in any form of art. This phrase implies experimentation and often carries a negative connotation. Yet this music has been around for forty years and developed its own traditions. At some point, one needs to consider these as fully developed styles. I believe this time has arrived.

The term "modern jazz" is used by some to describe styles as old as bebop, but this usage also seems decidedly outdated. I have therefore taken the liberty of appropriating the phrase "modern jazz" to describe the styles that were once called "avant-garde". I realize this will be a controversial decision, but these are, after all, only labels. I could have called the music "George" and that would not have diminished its validity. I also realize that the use of the term "modern" to describe this music will soon seem as quaint as applying that term to bebop. Again, it is important to kep in mind these labels are just conveniences; they are not meant to capture some great truth about the music.

The following sections describe some approaches to playing modern jazz. While there is often considerable overlap between them, it is becoming apparent that several distinct styles have emerged out of what is otherwise known as free jazz or the avant-garde. Some critics and many musicians who play in these styles are rejecting the latter terms, although few offer alternate descriptions in their place; indeed, many of these musicians resist any attempt to label their music. The terms I use in this chapter are far from being standardized, but they can be considered a step forward in the effort to acknowledge the existence of tradition in this music and the significance of these styles as something more than merely an experiment. I am indebted to critic Kevin Whitehead for suggesting several of these labels and definitions in one of his articles for the Village Voice, and to discussions on the Internet newsgroup rec.music.bluenote for helping to refine these concepts.

The last section in this chapter, Postmodernism, actually describes a variety of different approaches to playing modern jazz, some of which are considered completely mainstream and not avant-garde.

Copyright 2000 Outside Shore Music
Authored by Marc Sabatella

Chapter: Modern Jazz