Jazz and Death: Reception, Rituals, and Representations (Transnational Studies in Jazz) - Hardcover

Van De Leur, Walter

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1138553417 ISBN 13: 9781138553415

Publisher: Routledge, 2023

Synopsis

Jazz and Death: Reception, Rituals, and Representations critically examines the myriad and complex interactions between jazz and death, from the New Orleans "jazz funeral" to jazz in heaven or hell, final recordings, jazz monuments, and the music’s own presumed death. It looks at how fans, critics, journalists, historians, writers, the media, and musicians have narrated, mythologized, and relayed those stories. What causes the fascination of the jazz world with its deaths? What does it say about how our culture views jazz and its practitioners? Is jazz somehow a fatal culture?

The narratives surrounding jazz and death cast a light on how the music and its creators are perceived. Stories of jazz musicians typically bring up different tropes, ranging from the tragic, misunderstood genius to the notion that virtuosity somehow comes at a price. Many of these narratives tend to perpetuate the gendered and racialized stereotypes that have been part of jazz’s history. In the end, the ideas that encompass jazz and death help audiences find meaning in a complex musical practice and come to grips with the passing of their revered musical heroes -- and possibly with their own mortality.

About this title

About the Author

Walter van de Leur is Professor of Jazz and Improvised Music in the Department of Musicology at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, on behalf of the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, where he is a Research Coordinator and docent.

Edition details

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 2023
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1138553417
• ISBN 13: 9781138553415
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 200