Chapter 10 notes

Virtual Production & Distribution

  • 1970s expectations: jazz technologists predicted synthesizers/electric guitars would reshape sound; instead, the true revolution unfolded off-stage.
  • 1{,}000 CDs + jewel cases advertised at \$890 ➔ DIY physical publishing below \$1 per disc.
    • Eco-friendly options: trays from recycled soda/water bottles.
    • Added promo services: mailers to DJs, labels, licensers.
  • Quantity boom: Ted Gioia receives >1{,}000 self-financed jazz CDs per year; estimates total monthly output now exceeds an entire 1950s year.
  • Paradox: CD glut occurs while the medium is becoming obsolete—downloads & streams send files globally “at the click of a mouse.”
    • Millions of tracks on paid & free sites; illegal options abound.
    • Essential modern-era tools: MySpace (legacy), Twitter, Facebook, YouTube (>$1$ million “jazz” hits).
  • Digital track often usurps live performance:
    • Norway’s Punkt Festival: immediate post-concert remixes in an “Alpha Room.”
    • Dave Douglas: sells downloads within hours of a gig.
    • Dave Brubeck 2007 BBC link-up: pianist in NYC, orchestra in London (latency-defying tele-collab).
    • Remote lessons & jams: Budapest ↔ Hollywood.
    • Zenph Studios: software-generated “virtual” legends; Finale & Sibelius provide orchestral mock-ups.

Technological Disintermediation

  • Corporate term: disintermediation = “cutting out the middleman.”
    • Targets: record stores, distributors, CD manufacturers, agents—possibly even musicians (via AI).
  • Outcome: Artists act as entrepreneurs/label owners.
    • Contrast to 1950s–1980s rarity (e.g., Marian McPartland, Horace Silver labels).
  • New models: ArtistShare (\$2001$; founder Brian Camelio).
    • Crowdfunds projects; perks include studio invitations & liner-note credit.
    • Maria Schneider’s 2004 “Concert in the Garden” wins Grammy; donor attends ceremony as “executive producer.”
    • Resembles classical patronage era.

Post-9/11 Earnestness & Changing Aesthetics

  • Cultural shifts (\$9/11$ trauma + economic malaise) dampen 1980s–90s postmodern irony.
  • Historical analogs: bebop’s gravity (mid-1940s), avant-garde seriousness (early 1960s).

Pianistic Case Studies

  • Brad Mehldau (b.1970):
    • Quotes Nietzsche; academic paper: “Smashing the Framework with a Piano Hammer.”
    • Stage gravitas; refracts pop/rock—Beatles, Paul Simon, Radiohead—into complex jazz art songs.
    • Example: “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” in 7/4 with dense textures.
    • Pushes beyond Bill Evans comparisons: advanced two-hand orchestration, synergy with Larry Grenadier & Jorge Rossy/Jeff Ballard.
  • Matthew Shipp (b.1960):
    • Miscast as Cecil Taylor disciple; operates “on the edge,” balancing tonality & atonality.
    • Diverse influences: Stevie Wonder, Earth Wind & Fire; experiments with hip-hop loops yet excels acoustically.
    • Tension between analytical architecture & raw intensity defines allure.

Twenty-First-Century Jazz Vocalism

  • Dominant commercial trio: Diana Krall (b.1964), Norah Jones (b.1979), Eva Cassidy (1963–1996).
    • Traits: stripped-down microtonal nuance, introspection, avoidance of flashy scat.
  • Krall: ultra-slow ballads (<40 BPM), bossa nova, emotional exposure; celebrity amplified via marriage to Elvis Costello.
  • Jones: 25-million-selling “Come Away with Me”; blends jazz phrasing with country twang; influence of Ravi Shankar noted.
    • Sparks wave of singer-songwriter-oriented jazz releases.
  • Cassidy: posthumous stardom; haunting readings of “Autumn Leaves,” “Fields of Gold,” “Over the Rainbow.”
  • Counter-examples:
    • Jamie Cullum—athletic showmanship.
    • Kurt Elling—Beat-poet energy & vocalese.
    • Patricia Barber—literary deconstruction & originals (e.g., Paris live set opening line about falling pianos).
    • Retro revivalists: Michael Bublé, Matt Dusk, Peter Cincotti, Tony DeSare (Sinatra lineage sans deep jazz feel).
    • Bobby McFerrin: career zigzags; 1988 “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” a one-man overdub; duets with Jack Nicholson, Yo-Yo Ma, Chick Corea; conducts orchestras.
  • Rich supporting cast: Cassandra Wilson, Dianne Reeves, Luciana Souza, Esperanza Spalding, Gretchen Parlato, Tierney Sutton, etc.; industry image-fixation threatens long-term support.

Trumpet Traditions & Ideological Detente

  • Trumpet often safeguards history: Marsalis, Payton, Blanchard, Roney (Miles Davis heir).
  • Post-2000: less factionalism—echo of Daniel Bell’s “end of ideology.”
  • Exemplars:
    • Tom Harrell: schizophrenia battle; music > doctrine.
    • Roy Hargrove (b.1969): big band to hip-hop RH Factor; versatility without irony.

Saxophone Pluralism

  • Joe Lovano: Ornette tributes, Gunther Schuller collabs, bop albums, Sinatra/Caruso theme discs; categories meaningless.
  • Joshua Redman (b.1969): Harvard grad; Ornette covers, funk Elastic Band, chamber-jazz “Compass.”
  • James Carter (b.1969): multi-reed master; baritone sax polls; stylistic omnivore from Ayler energy to jam-band grooves.
  • Other standouts: Chris Potter, Kenny Garrett, Miguel Zenón, Donny McCaslin, Mark Turner, Anat Cohen.

Education, Professionalism & the Post-Berklee Era

  • Jazz now codified like \text{calculus}:
    • Berklee College: 4{,}000 students, >70 countries, >500 faculty, 80\% music-career placement.
    • Other hubs: UNT, Manhattan School, William Paterson, NYU, USC, CalArts, New School.
  • Impact: cleaner phrasing, technical polish, unprecedented talent reservoir.
    • Notable players: Kurt Rosenwinkel, Marc Ribot, Ben Monder, Nels Cline, Julian Lage; Ben Allison, Avishai Cohen; Stefon Harris; Brian Blade; Béla Fleck; Regina Carter; etc.

Globalization & “Glocalization”

  • Jazz = “America’s classical music” yet thrives abroad; Stuart Nicholson’s term glocalization captures local infusions.
  • European labels (ECM, ACT, HatHut, CAM) & >300 Italian festivals among thousands continent-wide.

European Renaissance

  • Historical foundations: 1919 Ansermet Bechet review; early 1930s Benelux festivals; critics Delaunay, Panassié, Goffin.
  • Django Reinhardt creates jazz manouche.
  • Past expats: Shearing, McPartland, Thielemans, McLaughlin, Zawinul.
  • Modern breakout: e.s.t. (Esbjörn Svensson Trio)—rigorous touring (>200 gigs/yr), stylistic shifts, tragically ended 2008.
  • Innovative acts: Nik Bärtsch’s Ronin (“zen funk”); collective culture via F-ire & Loop (UK), Instabile Orchestra (Italy), Norrbotten (Sweden).
  • Key European artists by instrument:
    • Piano: Bollani, Pieranunzi, Wasilewski, Wollny, Bjørnstad, Django Bates.
    • Trumpet: Stanko, Rava, Fresu, Molvaer, Vloeimans, Eick.
    • Sax: Brötzmann, Evan Parker, Cafiso, Garbarek.
    • Others: Trovesi (clarinet), Petrella (trombone), Bennink (drums), Nguyên Lê (guitar).
    • Vocalists: Jamie Cullum, Roberta Gambarini, Solveig Slettahjell.

Latin America & Afro-Cuban / Brazilian Currents

  • NY as economic hub for Afro-Cuban music ➔ Machito’s 1940s bands; 1957 “Kenya.”
  • Tito Puente elevates timbales/front-stage presence.
  • Notable migrations: Santamaría (1950), Palmieri family (1925), D’Rivera (1981), Danilo Pérez (1984).
  • Brazil: self-sustaining scene—Jobim, João Gilberto, later Gismonti, Pascoal, Eliane Elias; sophisticated pop (Nascimento, Veloso) shapes global jazz.

Asia-Pacific & South Asian Fusions

  • Miles From India (\$2008$) symbolises long-distance Indo-jazz synergy.
  • Rudresh Mahanthappa & Vijay Iyer: U.S.-based second-generation innovators merging Carnatic/Khyal ideas with post-bop.
  • Japan: robust ecosystem—artists (Akiyoshi, Hiromi, Hino) + jazz cafés/clubs; audience gradually champions domestic acts.

Africa: The Anticipated Return

  • Historic township jazz: “hard bop without the bop.”
  • Abdullah Ibrahim endorsed by Ellington; Blue Notes / Jazz Epistles alumni (Masekela, Moeketsi).
  • Barriers: poverty, touring logistics; success stories (Lionel Loueke) require U.S. relocation.
  • Prediction: African sonic wealth poised to shape jazz’s next chapters.

Overarching Implications & Future Outlook

  • Jazz’s core trait: restless hybridization—an “attitude” of openness rather than fixed practices.
  • Technology, education, and globalization democratize creation & distribution while challenging traditional gatekeepers.
  • Ethical/economic tension: Who gets displaced? Middlemen, labels, perhaps musicians via AI.
  • Philosophical layer: Return to patronage (ArtistShare) mirrors classical era; community becomes co-creator.
  • Practical takeaway for students & practitioners:
    • Embrace multi-platform presence (social + live + virtual).
    • Cultivate versatility & technical excellence via education yet maintain personal voice.
    • Engage with global idioms—your “local” can now be part of jazz’s universal language.