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Aspects of Jazz: On- And Off-Stage
by Peter Chan '03

Abstract

This study looks at features of performing jazz in its social context. A survey of racial experiences among jazz musicians and audiences from the 1900s to the 1970s shows how jazz brought whites and blacks together during this time in which American society discouraged such racial integration. This situation presented a predicament for both black and white members of jazz community who shared the same interest in the music. The project addresses typical experiences and relations between the following pairs of groups: white and black bands, black bands and white audiences, and, from an individualistic standpoint, black and white jazz musicians. An essay following examines in-depth the diligence that saxophonist John Coltrane applied to his exploration of an assortment of scales and emotional effects in his works, along with the integration of his works with international music from India, Africa, and Latin America. Coltrane left his mark in the jazz community with his recordings that, as jazz critic Joel Dorn claims, "expanded the modern language of jazz." The project also includes "Night," an original work based on McCoy Tyner's compositional style and a performance of Tyner's composition "Señor Carlos."