What Is Jazz? A Guide to the History and Sound of Jazz

Jazz music is a broad style of music characterized by complex harmony, syncopated rhythms, and a heavy emphasis on improvisation. Black musicians in New Orleans, Louisiana developed the jazz style in the early twentieth century. Long considered one of the musical capitals of the United States, New Orleans fostered a robust ragtime and blues tradition. Early jazz musicians like Jelly Roll Morton and Louis Armstrong built on these blues and ragtime forms and improvised over them, which led to a brand new genre of American music.

Jazz rapidly spread throughout America, and before long, New York City became the jazz capital of both America and the entire world. The musical form evolved to embrace popular music standards, modal music, pop, rock, funk, and even true avant-garde compositions.

Jazz has a long and storied history that spans the twentieth century.

• Early 1900s: Music historians trace jazz music to early twentieth century New Orleans, where musicians like Jelly Roll Morton, King Oliver, and Louis Armstrong borrowed heavily from ragtime, blues, and second-line horn sections from parades. Even New Orleans funeral music inspired early jazz musicians. Southern jazz from New Orleans eventually became known as Dixieland jazz.
• 1920s and ’30s: Other early jazz capitals included Chicago and Kansas City (where Count Basie based his orchestra for a long period of time), but it was New York City that established jazz as a touchstone of American culture. Big bands led by bandleaders like Duke Ellington and Fletcher Henderson performed for nightclub audiences. Ellington in particular was famous for his original compositions, which drew from classical music and highlighted soloists within the Ellington Big Band.
• 1940s and ’50s: In the 1940s, New York musicians like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, and Art Blakey developed a jazz subgenre called bebop. This style of music involved lightning fast playing, prolific soloing over chord changes, and routine syncopation. Musicians like Ornette Coleman and the Modern Jazz Quartet challenged the harmonic rules of traditional jazz. Coleman, in particular, is credited with creating a genre called free jazz that largely disposed of the song form that guides most jazz standards.
• 1960s: Post-bebop (or post-bop) slowed down the tempo and added harmonic sophistication. Musicians like Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, and Miles Davis cut their teeth in bebop but became better known for their post-bop compositions. Davis developed a genre called cool jazz, which emphasized slower tempos, more minimal textures, and modal playing. Virtuoso saxophonists John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins were equally skilled in bebop, cool jazz, and even post-tonal improvisations like Coltrane's Ascension album. Meanwhile, musicians like Herbie Hancock and Joe Zawinul merged jazz with funk and rock to create a new genre known as fusion. Others, like Pat Metheny and Bill Frisell, found inspiration in folk music and added that genre to their jazz performances.

Jazz music overlaps with nearly every genre of music, from blues to rock to classical. This creates a wide array of jazz subgenres. A few central jazz elements unite nearly all forms of jazz, including swing music, big band, bebop, and cool jazz.

• Distinctive rhythms: Traditional jazz rhythms are known for their swinging eighth notes, where the first note in an eighth note pair gets added emphasis and the second note is lighter as it "swings" toward the next note. Meanwhile, Latin jazz, which is built on the music of the Caribbean, does not swing, but it does involve syncopated rhythms, often pulled from Afro-Cuban traditions.
• Harmonic sophistication: Jazz music rarely uses three-note triads that define pop, country, and folk music. Nearly all jazz chords feature the seventh chord tone, and many include tensions like ninths, elevenths, and thirteenths.
• Improvisation: Perhaps more than anything else, the spirit of improvisation unites nearly all forms of jazz music. All members of a jazz band, from players of lead instruments to the rhythm section to lead vocalists, may be called upon to improvise over a jazz tune.

Nearly any instrument can be part of a jazz band, provided that it allows the player to improvise. Eight instruments are particularly common in jazz ensembles:

1. 1. Drums: Drums anchor a jazz rhythm section. Usually jazz drummers play a four- or five-piece drum kit. Latin jazz ensembles may include hand percussion or cajon in addition to the drum set. Famous jazz drummers include Art Blakey, Max Roach, and Billy Cobham.
2. 2. Bass: Nearly all jazz bands use either a double bass or a bass guitar. Famous jazz bassists include Charles Mingus, Ray Brown, Dave Holland, and Gary Peacock.
3. 3. Keyboard: Jazz keyboard (either a piano or a digital keyboard) is a classic part of a jazz combo. Bud Powell, Thelonious Monk, Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett, and Jason Moran are just a few of the many legendary jazz pianists and keyboard players.
4. 4. Guitar: Guitar is second only to keyboard as the most common chordal instrument in a jazz ensemble. Charlie Christian, Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, Pat Metheny, and Mike Stern are among the many well-renowned jazz guitar players.
5. 5. Trumpet: From the very early days in New Orleans, jazz bands featured a trumpeter. Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, and Wynton Marsalis are all iconic jazz trumpeters.
6. 6. Trombone: Although not quite as flashy as the trumpet, the trombone has been a fixture in jazz big bands and modern ensembles. Robin Eubanks and Turk Murphy are stars of jazz trombone.
7. 7. Saxophone: Saxophone's lightning fast capabilities and the relative of ease of playing in tune make it an excellent lead instrument in jazz. Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Ornette Coleman, and Michael Brecker are among the most renowned saxophonists in jazz history.
8. 8. Lead vocals: Compared to other forms of popular music, jazz is less dependent on a lead vocalist. Nonetheless, many jazz vocalists achieved worldwide fame, including Sarah Vaughan, Billie Holiday, and Ella Fitzgerald.

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