The History of Jazz & Blues
Blues and jazz both came out the American South. Blues grew out of the work songs and spiritual music sung by slaves and their descendents. Jazz came out of blues and other styles of African and European music. Jazz branched out to many different styles from Dixieland to big bands and Bebop. Both blues and jazz are characterized by their passionate sound and unique musicality.
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Origins of Blues
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Blues music was born in the southern United States. Blues were sung on plantations by slaves and the music was passed down to their descendents. The music started during the 19th century and was influenced by gospel, traditional African chants and work songs. Blues were rooted in the South until the 1930s, when the sound began to spread northward. As the music spread, the sound diversified. What had once been played with a single acoustic guitar or piano became electrified and played in groups. The blues, while still played traditionally, was a precursor to jazz.
Origins of Jazz
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Jazz music originated in the United States in the early 20th century. The city of New Orleans is often thought of as the birth place of jazz. In the early 1900s, many people from different cultures settled in the city. Jazz was born out of the combination of European music styles, African-American blues, marching band music and ragtime. Because jazz was one of the only music styles to originate in the United States, it became known as "America's classical music."
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Blues Pioneers
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Many well known blues pioneers emerged during the 1920s. Among them were Son House, Charles Patton and Robert Johnson. These pioneers were the first to be professionally recorded, with some of their records being released by Paramount and Aristocrat. During the 1940s, after blues had made its way north, Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf dominated Chicago blues style. Chicago blues incorporated electric guitars and drum sets, with a much louder and raucous sound than traditional blues.
Jazz Styles
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Jazz music has many different styles. One of the earliest forms of jazz was Dixieland. Dixieland jazz, sometimes referred to as New Orleans jazz or "traditional" jazz, typically features the cornet, clarinet and trombone. These instruments created Dixieland's distinguishing polyphonic sound. Big Band Music became popular in the 1920s and typically consisted of at least a 10-piece ensemble. Big Band groups primarily played swing music. In the 1940s, Bebop jazz emerged. Bebop used smaller ensembles, usually of 4 or 5 musicians. The music concentrated more on complex melodies, chord progressions, improvisation, and rhythm than earlier styles of jazz. In the 1960s, a new style of jazz called "free jazz," or "avant-garde" spun jazz in a new direction. Free jazz was much more experimental and unstructured, using atonal chords and squeaks or wails to manipulate tone.
Characteristics
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Blues can be characterized by its 3 chord, 12 bar patterns. Blues lyrics are typically very personal and concern the trials and tribulations of life. Because jazz has so many styles, it is difficult to define jazz as a whole. Louis Armstrong defined jazz as "music that's never played the same way once." All the styles of jazz come from the same roots. Underlying it all is blues, the relation of one instrument to another and improvisation. Those characteristics define jazz and put all the styles under one roof.
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