Dear All About Jazz Readers,

If you're familiar with All About Jazz, you know that we've dedicated over two decades to supporting jazz as an art form, and more importantly, the creative musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made All About Jazz one of the most culturally important websites of its kind in the world reaching hundreds of thousands of readers every month. However, to expand our offerings and develop new means to foster jazz discovery we need your help.

You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky Google ads PLUS deliver exclusive content and provide access to future articles for a full year! This combination will not only improve your AAJ experience, it will allow us to continue to rigorously build on the great work we first started in 1995. Read on to view our project ideas...

History of Jazz

HISTORY OF JAZZ March 2, 2018

Monk's Trumpets

By MATT LAVELLE

Thelonious Monk's recording career as a leader only lasted twenty-four years, from 1947 to 1971. When it comes to horn players, most people interested in Monk associate him with the tenor saxophone, and rightfully so as Johnny Griffin, Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane, and Charlie Rouse stand tall in Monk's recorded legacy. The alto saxophone was present from his first record as a leader, but no alto players were able to contribute substantially beyond strong work as sidemen. Gigi Gryce stands ...

HISTORY OF JAZZ June 14, 2017

Pittsburgh Jazz: A Brief History

By STEVE ROWLAND

This article was first published at the Explore PA History website. At first glance, Pittsburgh might not seem the most likely place to produce great jazz musicians. Situated on the western edge of the state, “Smoketown" was a gritty industrial city, better known for being the center of the nation's steel industry, than for its popular music or culture. Like jny: Philadelphia, its industries attracted many African Americans from the south, men and women who were looking for ...

HISTORY OF JAZZ May 24, 2017

Philadelphia Jazz: A Brief History

By JACK MCCARTHY

This article was first published at the Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia website.Jazz began to emerge as a distinct musical style around the turn of the twentieth century, a merging of two vernacular African American musical styles--ragtime and blues--with elements of popular music. New Orleans, the “cradle of jazz," was the most important city in this process, with jny: Chicago and New York playing particularly significant roles in the 1920s and 1930s. By the mid-twentieth century Philadelphia had become ...

HISTORY OF JAZZ April 22, 2004

History of Jazz Timeline: Roots of Jazz

By AAJ STAFF

African and European Fusion African music featured complex cross-rhythms, slurs, melissma, falsetto, vibrato and simple melodies. Call and response form was employed. The leader would throw out a line and a chorus responded. Griots were African historians who kept complex records in their heads and related them via song. The Blues form may have derived from this West African culture. Derision songs were popular. European music featured complex melodies and ...

HISTORY OF JAZZ April 22, 2004

History of Jazz Timeline: Suggested Reading

By AAJ STAFF

HISTORY OF JAZZ April 22, 2004

History of Jazz Timeline: Bibliography

By AAJ STAFF

“Another View of Coleman," Downbeat 27:11 (26 May 1960):21. Arnaud, Gerald and Chesnel, Jacques. Masters of Jazz. Edinburgh: W & R Chambers Ltd 1991. Barlow, William. Looking Up at Down: The Emergence of the Blues Culture. Philadelphia: Temple University Press 1989. Bergerot, Frank and Merlin, Arnaud. The Story of Jazz Bop and Beyond. Harry N. Abrams, Inc. Bergreen, Laurence. Louis Armstrong: An Extravagant Life. New York: Broadway Books ...