The Sept. 20 obituary of Richard M. Sudhalter discussed his book Lost Chords: White Musicians and Their Contribution to Jazz, 1915-1945.
The obituary failed to mention that the book was widely praised for correcting the notion that the roots of jazz were only in African American culture and that its development was virtually without significant contribution by white musicians. Sudhalter thoroughly researched and documented the involvement of myriad white jazz musicians, including Bix Beiderbecke, Jack Teagarden, Jimmy Dorsey and Mildred Bailey.
As Sudhalter made clear, “Though this is not a book about black musicians, they are a consistent and necessary presence throughout, helping to shape the work and attitudes of the white players as surely as white traditions, attitudes, and musicianship shaped theirs." He added, regarding black musicians, “Their primacy, and the reverence in which they are held, belong to the unquestioned foundation on which the entire edifice rests."
-- W. Royal Stokes
The obituary failed to mention that the book was widely praised for correcting the notion that the roots of jazz were only in African American culture and that its development was virtually without significant contribution by white musicians. Sudhalter thoroughly researched and documented the involvement of myriad white jazz musicians, including Bix Beiderbecke, Jack Teagarden, Jimmy Dorsey and Mildred Bailey.
As Sudhalter made clear, “Though this is not a book about black musicians, they are a consistent and necessary presence throughout, helping to shape the work and attitudes of the white players as surely as white traditions, attitudes, and musicianship shaped theirs." He added, regarding black musicians, “Their primacy, and the reverence in which they are held, belong to the unquestioned foundation on which the entire edifice rests."
-- W. Royal Stokes
For more information contact All About Jazz.
