MUS 235 - History of Jazz

Course unit(s): 1
Meets GAR: Meets general academic requirement AR, DE, and IL.
Prerequisite(s): Ability to read music or permission of the instructor.
History of Jazz will trace the roots and origins of Jazz from the late nineteenth century to recent innovations in the twenty-first century. Swing, the big band, bebop, modal jazz, free jazz, and “modern” jazz will be explored applying three methodological approaches: musical-theoretical, ethnomusicological, and historical. The musical-theoretical approach will focus on structural and technical aspects of the music from a compositional and performance perspective. Ethnomusicological approaches will be used to examine issues of race, power, and identity from social, political, and economic perspectives through primary and secondary “texts” including books, articles, films, and interviews. Finally, historiographic readings of musical-theoretical and ethnomusicological methodologies will be considered to evaluate the ways in which methodological theories and practices evolve over time.