Art Essay on How Jazz Music Has Affected American Culture

Jazz music originated from soul and blues music. Both of them came from the hearts of the black tortured slaves. Louis Armstrong, one of the most influential Jazz music artists, was born on 4th July 1900 in New Orleans. He changed the culture of American musical figures to the public. Louis Armstrong became a public figure in America. To the musicians of his day, he brought to them a technical mastery, vocal presence, and an artistic genius. He became a model to them leaving an imprint on the music (Evans 120).

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Most of Armstrongs songs remind the American people of why the world is still a better place and how beautiful it is. They promote the virtue of peace, love, and unity. His work precedes the growing interests in civil rights change to the American people today. But his music also brought a negative view of Jazz among the blacks because it was a race factor. Some people argued that the middle-class blacks wanted to fit into the white society (Evans 123).

Herbie Hancock was born on 12th April 1940 in Chicago. He is one of the most influential musicians of modern Jazz piano. Hancock is a true icon of modern music. He succeeded in expanding the possibilities of musical thought which has placed him in the visionary annals of this century. Hancock is the chairman of Thelonious Monk Institute if Jazz. He has influenced millions of people around the whole world to the rich cultural heritage of Jazz (Evans 120). He is a 14 time Grammy awards winner. His five-decade music career and all his songs amaze audiences and expand the public vision of what music is all about today to the American people.

George Duke was one of the greatest Jazz composers in the late 20th century. He toured the world as a bandleader and a piano player for over fifty years. His recordings are the most popular Jazz of the big band era today. He joined other well-known musicians and composers. Among the youth, he was the role model of the traditional music modes sands the perfect example of surpassing those modes. His music has positively impacted on the American society. It is used as a way of transforming compassion, grief, anger and desire for change positively. It also helps confront concealed truths and disturbing facts in peoples lives. Dukes music has negatively impacted on the American people where it was viewed as black music hence promoting racism (Evans 123).

Eddie Harris was born in Chicago on 20th October 1934. He was an original saxophonist, and his love for experimentation made him popular with audiences than critics who belittled him for his commercial success. Eddie made his sound by switching brass and reed mouthpieces. Eddie Harris had many accomplishments during his career including receiving universal acclaim as the best player of the electric baritone sax; he became the first jazz artist to release a gold-selling record (Gioia 153).

He was the first major jazz musician other than the guitarist to advance into the electronic age. His music was sociologically current, and he left a mark for future generations of fusion artists. His compositions and sound helped to diversify the jazz culture despite the fact that he was not viewed all the time as playing serious music by jazz purists (Gioia 153).

John Coltrane, born in 1926 was an iconic figure, saxophonist, and composer. He became a major African-American idol after overcoming drug addiction and later played a significant role as a major innovator in jazz. He is associated with the radical style free jazz. His brilliance and creativity influenced artists, and the idea of his spirituality drew disciples to him. His constant experimentation, diverse interests and how he lived contrary to the mainstream made him a hero to a generation whose hopes were powered by the energy of the Black Arts movement. Coltranes music evoked cultural, aesthetic and spiritual ideas that linked to African American revolts (Brown 70). He received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and to date, his music is an integral part of the landscape and a great inspiration for young musicians. Coltrane continues to impact society today; his music is studied by novices and veterans alike. He still inspires artists even from other genres and has a church devoted to his name (Brown 73).

B.B. King was an American guitarist and singer regarded as the greatest guitarist of all time. He came up with his style of playing the guitar by bringing together elements of traditional blues, pop, and jazz. He joined the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll hall of fame. King drew his music and personality in overcoming the limitations of the genre that was common for many musicians thus he became and international identity as a cultural ambassador (Evans 120).

He supported underprivileged children through the organization Little Kids Rock that helps provide free music instruction and instruments. B.B King also cofounded an organization called Foundation for the Advancement of Inmate Recreation and Rehabilitation ( FAIRR ). He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George W. Bush. Kings story is the perfect case of an American who rose and worked his way from poverty to achieving the highest award as an American citizen (Gioia 140).

Dizzy Gillespie born in 1917 was among the best trumpeters of all time. He was a teacher overflowing with enthusiasm, and he wrote down his musical ideas that he was ready to explain to next generations. He won his scope as soloist and showman and derived his sound from the unusual shape his trumpet had that became a trademark. He initiated be-pop, a great and fast revolution that has put its mark on the most enduring style. He later developed a new genre by incorporating Afro-Cuban into jazz (Gioia 140). Jazz and Latin music would have been very different today without the complicated arrangements and fusion of Latin rhythms and jazz harmonies. Be-pop also develops its fashion sense of thick glasses and a beret, led by Gillespie. Dizzy Gillespies efforts in creating the cultural fusion between Latin and jazz (Evans 120).

Dave Brubeck was an artist under the general roof of jazz but incorporated melody and musical concepts from other genres and cultures bringing together exotic music ideas from other continents into a sound of his own. He had a legacy that influenced other artists outside jazz. While serving in the army, he led a band that was racially integrated, something uncommon during that time. Dave Brubeck was a humanitarian and civil rights activist who was intolerant to racism and prejudice. He applied music to fight against racial vices and was an advocate for civil rights and racial unity (Evans 123).

References

Evans, Nicholas M. Writing Jazz: Race, Nationalism, and Modern Culture in the 1920s. 2015,

Brown, Leonard L. John Coltrane and Black America's Quest for Freedom: Spirituality and the Music. Oxford UP, 2010,

Gioia, Ted. The History of Jazz. Oxford UP, 2011,