Jazz Notes IV

I guess it might be a good time now to write something about the History of Jazz, where it came from and its origins.


Before waving goodbye to 2017, the 100th anniversary of the first jazz recording, we can only try to jot down some notes on the origins of jazz as there are various commonly held beliefs that are, in my opinion, still mysterious and vague.

The Original Dixieland Jass Band’s Livery Stable Blues was the first jazz recording but their later song Tiger Rag would be more influential (Wikipedia)

Where does the word "Jazz" come from?

The word "jazz" first appeared in San Francisco Bulletin in 1913 in the articles of Edward Gleeson who was an Irish sports reporter. The word had nothing to do with music but refer to a quality possessed by the baseball players. A common belief today is that the word "jazz" comes from "jass" which was the pronunciation of an Irish word "Teas"...

The word "Teas" (pronounced jass, chass or tas) meant heat, high spirit/energy, excitement and effervescent.

It is recorded that when the baseball players wanted to drink something bubbly in their training camps, they were asking it  as "jazzy water". Gradually the word was carried to the baseball field and when the coach wanted to energize the team, he shouted "c'mon guys, lets jazz it up".

We can say that the word "jazz" was not coming from New Orleans but to New Orleans from San Francisco and this did not happen before 1917.

There are many other rumors about "jazz" like certain sexual connotation, as reference to a woman's backside. Or rumors saying that it derived from "jas" short for the word "jasmine", a scent used by the New Orleans prostitutes.

What are the roots of Jazz Music?

If we leave the etymology aside, I guess it is safe to say that jazz music was born in New Orleans. It is also safe to say that its roots go back to African and European music. But how so?

I guess African impacts can be found in the music's rhythm and feel, its "blues" quality and the tradition of playing an instrument in one's own expressive way, making it an "extension" of their human voice.

On the other hand, it is fair to say that the harmony notion or the chords accompany the music along with the family of instruments came all the way from the other side of the Atlantic.

Buddy Bolden Band

The Original Creole Orchestra 1912

New Orleans was a perfect location for jazz music to evolve because it was a melting pot of cultures, very rich in brass band music, hymns, spirituals, minstrel music and plantation chants.

During the beginning of the century, the city allowed all of these elements to come together, as it was a port city (with people arriving from all parts of the world), a meeting place for people of different ethnic groups, and a city with a nightlife where musicians had the opportunity to play together, learn from each other, and blend all of these elements.

If we could travel in time, we would make couple of stops in different parts of the city and most probably could get a perfect glimpse of the origins of jazz.

Our first stop is in a cotton field where we hear a plantation worker singing a work song as he picks cotton.These workers are probably descendants of people who were slaves before the “Emancipation Proclamation” in 1863 granted them freedom. Although by this time free, few employment opportunities other than labor were available to African Americans. Singing as they worked was a way to ease the boredom of this difficult, exhausting, boring work. These songs would eventually become part of jazz. 

I be So glad, when the sun goes down

Second stop could be in a church at a worship service. When brought to the United States, Africans were forced to abandon their religious practices and adopt Christianity. They brought with them musical traditions from Africa where everyone participated in some way. People danced, drummed, clapped, sang, or moved with the music. Listen to the call and response patterns in the music and the emotion with which the song is sung. Many of these spirituals were composed during the days of slavery so the lyrics often referred to hopes of escape and freedom. These kinds of melodies, and especially the feelings with which they were sung, would later become part of jazz. As you play the track again listen to the call and think of how you would sing a "response.". This is also the beginning of the blues.

Roll Jordan Roll from the OST of 12 Years a Slave

Now it's night time. Work is finished, worshipping is finished. Where can one be headed to? The last stop is obviously the bar where you can listen to "Ragtime", from Scott Joplin if you are lucky. Scott Joplin not only performed as an entertainer, he composed many songs called rags or Ragtime for solo piano. These compositions were published as sheet music which people purchased in order to learn to play it on their own piano. The compositions were also "recorded" on piano rolls which people purchased to be played on mechanical player pianos.

Maple Leaf Rag - Scott Joplin

And from time to time people gathered altogether at funerals which was a great location for amazing music. As we march down the Basin Street, a parade is passing by. This particular parade is for a funeral which has just left the cemetery after burying a dear friend.

Oh didn't he ramble - Kid Ory's Creole Jazz Band

So here is a very brief introduction to the origins of jazz.

I wish everyone a very happy new year. See you all in 2018...