5. Jazz and its Interdisciplinary Effects on Culture and Society.

     Coming into this course I had not realized how much American art and culture owes to jazz. I was aware that jazz was an art form that I enjoyed. I assumed jazz lived in the crevices of society, nostalgic memories of a bygone era. I thought all that remained were the period speakeasies of San Francisco and iconic jazz clubs in New York, with the occasional reference in book and film. It had not crossed my mind that modern culture was shaped irreversibly by this uniquely american music we call jazz. 

     In the mid twentieth century new forms of jazz spurred a change in all other fields of creative expression. Jazz, specifically bebop, provided inspiration in its formalism and content to the beatnik movement and abstract expressionist artists. Jazz created a symbiotic relationship between artistic pursuits in reflection of the interdisciplinary nature of traditional African art. 

     After World War II, America saw a divide between the nationalistic pride elicited by victory in Europe and in the Pacific and a counter culture dissatisfied with the human condition. This split is best seen in the art produced in the late forties through the fifties. Through a marriage of the existential movement from France and the still ailing Black American community at home, the sociopolitical climate after the war had permanently shifted. 

     Intentionally or otherwise, Jazz musicians crossed paths with a multitude of artists in New York's Greenwich Village. "Playing at the Cafe Bohemia down in the Village got me into another kind of social situation with people. Instead of being around a lot of pimps and hustlers, now I found myself around a lot of artists- poets, painters, actors, designers, filmmakers, dancers. I found myself hearing about people like Allen Ginsberg, LeRoi Jones (now Amiri Baraka), William Burroughs (who would write Naked Lunch, a novel about a junkie), and Jack Kerouac" (Davis, 203-4). These meetings always yielded something new. Inspiration grew out of these new communities, the intersection between cultural backgrounds and modes of expression became American popular culture.

     All these artists had a common goal in mind as Miles Davis puts it:"As a musician and as an artist, I have always wanted to reach as many people as I could through my music... I always thought that music had no boundaries, no limits to where it could grow and go, no restrictions on its creativity " (Davis, 205). This creativity without bounds was present across all disciplines in the 50s and 60s; and championed by jazz musicians like Miles Davis.
     From the disciplined freedom, unbounded but sharply honed came a new sense of creativity  (Stuart). Visual art was similarly unbounded by medium or subject matter; each artist brought a new view to the scene. Jackson Pollock pioneered action painting, his splatter creations relying on the act of painting over the final product, free and yet constrained by the colors he chose and the method of application (much like the few chord progressions Miles Davis would bring to recording sessions). Likewise, Marc Rothko's color washed squares were created to invoke deep emotion given how the paint catches the light, not for depicting a conceivable reality. Much like improvisational jazz, reproductions of Rothko's work in print or on the web are meaningless next to the connection one has when standing a few feet from an original.
     As an art history student this rigorous connection between modern art and music was unexpected and rather exciting.


(Commented on Jacob Weverka's blog)

4. Jazz in Symbiosis with Community

     The natural formation of community is a defining quality that sets jazz apart from other musical genres. Artistic genius feeds off society in large part because of the symbiotic relationship between art and the public. Thelonious Monk was one such genius who owed his success to the neighborhood of San Juan Hill and those in it who helped foster his talent. There was an inbreed love of jazz in the community of San Juan Hill. The neighborhood's dedication to jazz music inspired Thelonious and provided a multitude of uncommon opportunities. "Everybody had a piano, and they used to play rolls all the time. So I had one too. That's all people listened to, mostly piano music." (Kelley, 25). This unique community allowed Monk to take up the piano, provided music teachers, inspiration and audiences. Jazz requires a conversation between performers and audiences, and thrives under collaborative efforts, fortunately for Monk, all these aspects were provided for in San Juan Hill.
     The community was able to support Monk emotionally and professionally. "The neighborhood was the center of his social universe; here he earned the respect of his peers and developed a few deep and lasting friendships" (Kelley, 32). Monk met many of his lifelong friends in the small village like community including his wife Nellie. His friendship were the emotional charge he required, while his teachers provided the necessary technical training. Robin Kelley's biography on Monk emphasizes the dedication the whole community had to jazz music. Everyone in San Juan Hill appreciated jazz wether they played, danced, or just listened. "The Monks' apartment was a popular hangout not only for Harold Francis but for many of the young neighborhood musicians. Barbara's doors were alway open for her children's friends, and she enjoyed the music they played. Marion remembers those impromptu jam sessions fondly" (Kelley, 32). Music and specifically jazz pervaded all aspects of life in San Juan Hill. Churches were a huge part of the social scene in black communities and church was an event that transcended traditional services, gospel hymns were required repertoire. "The church proved to be another critical source of Monk's musical knowledge" (Kelley, 27). The all inclusive reach of jazz music in 1920's New York City was vital to fostering jazz geniuses.
     It is this all encompassing reach of music in New York that allowed jazz to flourish as it did. In many ways New York is jazz. The city combines community, creativity, and genius, all while fostering progress and the avant garde. Jazz would be nothing without the urbanity of New York City and the opportunities it affords. Like the big apple, Jazz is a creative hotbed that would be insignificant without the people that create and support it.
     The relationship between community and artistic expression is mirrored in Leimert Park. Jazz was a way to bring together the neighborhood surrounding the park. The hot beds of creativity centered around small businesses like 5th Street Dick's, the local coffee shop, a locale that fostered community interaction (Lindsay). Leimert Park was more purposeful in its support of jazz music. Communities were not organically grown through time but enforced by community organizations like the local writers workshops. Leimert park followed the precedence of San Juan Hill and others like it, attempting to invoke the same success that other communities had been able to achieve.

     Community and artistic expression are inextricably linked, one cannot exist without the other. The beauty of jazz lays in its ability to create a symbiotic relationship between people and the art they produce. Community would not have developed in the same way without jazz, and jazz would not exist without community.

(Commented on Michelle Kaplan's Blog)