Jazz Synthesis Essay

Jazz has been called, among other things, America's "only original form," showing it's clear cultural roots in America. In addition, jazz historians have touted jazz's pedigree as "American's Classical Music." An appreciation and analysis of jazz history forces one to question both the "American" and "Classical" descriptors that past historians have used to label jazz music. Using primarily sources such as "From Somewhere in France" by Charles Delaunay and "An Interview with Wynton Marsalis" by Lolis Eric Elie, I argue that although jazz grew out from a distinctive African American tradition, the influx of influences in its development throughout the years as well as it's transcending appeal have made jazz much universal as opposed to American.
This classification arguably stemmed from the traditional Cartesian mind/body split and the tendency to for jazz to fall on the devalued side due to it's physicality and sensuality. Categorizing jazz as a form of classical music would seemingly elevate it's aesthetic value by distinguishing it as cultural and appreciated by the mind. This innocent attempt to make jazz seem "on par" with classical music does have its dangers, though. For one, it assumes that classical music is the standard by which all music should be judged, which is clearly not true. Classical music was, for the most part, merely a European phenomenon, whereas jazz, as argued above, involved so much more. In addition, classical music should not be seen as the pinnacle of musical technical greatness either. Jazz, for example, incorporates improvisation, an aspect of music almost completely absent in classical music; jazz musicians also developed a host of new musical skills to suit their styles. Wynton Marsalis, himself a player of classical music in his earlier days states flatly that "classical music is not as difficult as jazz." To label jazz as "classical" is arguably a belittling insult disguised as a