A jazzhagyomány konstruálása
A jazzhagyomány konstruálása
A jazz historiográfiája
The paper surveys a number of different and contradictory ways of telling the story of jazz. Jazz history is organised around values, such as the celebration of an ethnicity or the rejection of capitalism. Writers often depend on what Harrison White called modes of narration, such as the “Tragic” mode of self-destructive musicians like Buddy Bolden or Bix or the „Romance” of Louis Armstrong or Benny Goodman, who prevailed against many disadvantages to become virtuosos and stars. The paper criticizes the widespread use of metaphors of growth and evolution in jazz history, which minimize the contestation and uncertainty that have accompanied musical changes. Yet one has to besensitive to the practical problems of teaching jazz history without undermining the useful of narrative explanations. The paper emphasizes the constructedness and interestedness of traditions, and how they can distract us from history – from the meanings jazz has had at particular times and places.