Articles by Jeff Perry

Jazz: America's Original Diversity Success Story

by Jeff Perry
January 23, 2007

Long before the Civil Rights Act, long before Brown vs. The Board of Education, and long before President Truman's integration of the armed forces, black and white jazz musicians where breaking social taboos in order to share and learn from each other. In the 1920s white musicians in Chicago would head down to the south side after their gigs for after-hours jam sessions with black musicians. In the 1930s Benny Goodman, perhaps the most popular band leader of the time, ...

Jazz & Innovation: How the Jazz Culture Fosters Creativity

by Jeff Perry
February 10, 2004

Innovate - n. To begin or introduce something new; be creative (American Heritage Dictionary)

What do you think of when you hear the word jazz - smoky, candlelit nightclubs? Street performers on the steamy sidewalks of New Orleans? The swing dance craze? Or do you think of the word as a verb ' to 'jazz up' a presentation for example? What you might not think of first when you hear the word jazz is innovation. That is, unless you are ...