Table of Contents

1. Birth of Jazz
1.1 Louis Armstrong

2. Africa and Europe

3. The Birth of Jazz
4. The Jazz age
4.1 Swing Bands in the 20s
4.2 Duke Ellington

5. Post war Jazz

5.1 Free Jazz
5.2 Latin Jazz
5.3 Smooth Jazz
5.4 90s-present
1. Birth of Jazz

I view Jazz history as the cultural history of the United States-there is good and there is bad.
Its’ origins were developed by the fusion of cultures, the conditions of which were,
euphemistically, not the greatest.
It is a surprise that such a beautiful and lasting art form could spring from such
circumstances.
Born in America, jazz can be seen as a representation of this country's ethnic diversity and
individualism. An openness to all influences and personal expression through improvisation.
Jazz has straddled the realms of popular music and art music throughout its history and has
grown to a point that its styles are so diverse that one artists style can have nothing in
common with others.
Jazz can now be found in pubs, concert halls, universities, and massive festivals all over the
world, while it all started in bars.

1.1 Louis Armstrong

New Orleans, Louisiana, was an ethnic melting pot at the turn of the 20th century.
People from all over the world come together in a big port city, and musicians are
exposed to a variety of music as a result.

European classical music, American blues, and songs and rhythms from South America
came together to form what came to be known as jazz. The meaning of the word jazz is
widely debated, but it is believed to have been a romantic term originally.

Its emphasis on improvisation is one element that defines jazz music. A trumpet player
from New Orleans and then Chicago, Louis Armstrong is considered to be the founder of
modern jazz improvisation. His trumpet solos were playful and melodic and packed with
vitality that could only come from being written on the spot. After all, the beauty of Jazz
comes from the improvisations that are so carefully placed in the song. It can seem that
the artist had already prepared the piece beforehand, when in reality everything is
played by heart in the heat of the moment.

The music of Armstrong and others in New Orleans could reach a large radio audience
thanks to early records. As well as its sophistication, the popularity of the music began
to increase, and major cultural centers across the world began to host jazz bands. In the
1940s, Chicago, Kansas City, and New York had the most thriving music scenes, where
dance halls were packed with fans coming to see major music scenes.