An old paper from a few years ago. Don't bother reading. Seriously.
It is a music lacking structure, a music of true and complete improvisation, a music of atonal chaotic noise, a music that broke conventions in jazz, and a music of spirituality according to John Coltrane. Avant-garde jazz would come to represent the discontent of black America at the horrendous treatment they received from a society of supposed equals. As anger grew, nonviolent slogans became “Black Power” focused, and the arena of jazz reflected this. Many players of this “New Thing” or “New Black Music,” as the musicians preferred to call it, felt as if it was their responsibility to spread the philosophy of this movement (Maultsby, 54). People like Ornette Coleman, Cecil Taylor, Archie Shepp, Sun Ra, and John Coltrane are a few of a number of individuals who are responsible for shaping the sound of “free jazz”-of which has influenced many of today’s jazz musicians. The movement of avant-garde jazz, part of an even larger-scale upheaval in the art community, was the response to forced tradition after WWII (Knight). It was a voice that shouted for change.
New and interesting directions in the art community marked the fifties and sixties. Individualism reigned supreme and opposition grew towards the elders who came before. Abstract expressionism became a part of nearly all art forms. Painters like Jackson Pollock, William de Kooning, Mark Rothko, and John Marin were leaders in their respective fields. William Faulkner was recognized for his writing on peace-only a few years after World War II-and Ernest Hemingway gained fame for many of his works. In addition, the Beats-including Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs, Ferlinghetti, Allen Ginsberg, and Gregory Corso-attempted to bring the emotions of life to their literature and lived by spontaneity. Mediums such as photography, dance, and movies were all further ways for artists to express how they felt. A few notables of these mediums include the photographer Diane Arbus, the choreographer Merce Cunningham, and Terence Young (who directed the James Bond films). However, many of these forms-with exception to the James Bond movies-became less about pleasing an audience and more about making a political or non-political statement (“Arts of the 1950’s and 1960’s”).
The one aspect of art society that may have changed the most is the music world-a social revolution, rather than elitist like in other mediums, occurred in music. This change is not only limited to the jazz realm either. For example, the average blue-collar audience was greatly attracted to the music of Hank Williams, Ernest Tubb, Jim Reeves, and George Jones. Leonard Bernstein wrote West Side Story for Broadway and composer John Cage received attention at the other end of the classical end of the spectrum. Above all else, however, rock ‘n’ roll led by the likes of Elvis Presley, Little Richard, and Chuck Berry was king. In the world of jazz, in the early fifties (before free jazz), Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Sonny Rollins played bebop. Each tested the traditions of harmony and rhythm in jazz. This was the environment that “The New Black Music” was birthed from (“Arts of the 1950’s and 1960’s”).
Unarguably the most significant factor that influenced free jazz though was the awful treatment of African Americans, which is the element that links it to the “Black Power” ideology of the time. Many felt that Whites had taken control of many black concerns: primarily organizations like SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) that were part of the Civil Rights movement, but also their creative outlets. For instance, they were able to control what music was heard because they owned the record companies, the rights to the artist’s music (which groups like JCOA, the Jazz Composers Orchestra Association, would later fight against), and nightclubs. The only thing the musicians owned was their own playing ability (Baskerville, 485-488). This is the reason why many groups like SNCC, led by Stokely Carmichael, began to whistle a different tune. They adopted a new ideology that aimed at fighting back: they tried to do this by taking matters into their own hands, uniting as a group, and distancing themselves from white control. This, although, was much easier said than done.
First, they had to find a way to get out of the clubs. The owners of these establishments were less than caring of the musician’s welfare and did only what benefited their selves. They were only interested in bringing in as many people-which often meant not hiring these revolutionary musicians-so they could make money by selling drinks. Frank Kofsky shows that on an average night the club owners made approximately $1600 profit, while the whole band (of probably 3-5 members) was paid only $300 an evening. Also, the sets of the performers (full of lengthy improvisations) were often cut short because more sets meant more money for the owners: club owners required listeners to buy a set number of drinks per set. This and particularly poor working conditions hurt the artistry of the music. To get away from such treatment, the musicians took to their lofts and coffee shops. They protested by ceasing to play at these establishments and promoted their own shows at their own apartments. One common spot that Larry Neal recalls seeing such a jazz performance is at 27 Cooper Square (LeRoi Jones’s loft). Many of the supporters of avant-garde jazz-students, artists, blacks, and political radicals-followed this music from the clubs to lofts like this (Baskerville, 488-490).
As well as dealing with club owners, the avant-garde artist had to deal with categorization. Many held that these identifications (placed by Whites) greatly hurt the community of black music. Archie Shepp went as far as to state, “If we continue to call our music jazz, we must continue to be called niggers. There, at least, we know where we stand.” This is much where the debate over the label for this new music began-the winner among the musicians being “The New Black Music” or “The New Thing.” It was chosen because it supposedly acknowledged the entire history leading to this music (including the drum rhythms of Africa). The idea was that if the musicians were placed under one label, instead of separate smaller ones, it would be easier for them to unite and defeat the restraints placed by Whites (Baskerville, 486-487).
One final adversary players had to overcome, who often was behind this categorizing, was the White critic. As Kofsky states in his essay, there existed “a peculiar relationship, in which, what was good for the record companies was good for the critic.” So, instead of writing honest reviews that may have helped the musicians’ careers, they wrote what they felt would help their own careers. In most cases, therefore, it was in the critic’s best financial interest to give bad reviews to those seen as Black Nationalist musicians. These reviews tried to convince listeners that the free jazz sound was revolting and even “antijazz.” Critics also dismissed the idea that “The New Black Music” was in any way linked to the “Black Power” movement-and wrote that even if it was, music was supposed to be apolitical. Two jazz critics, and fine examples of this point, include Martin Williams and Leonard Feather (Baskerville, 493).
Despite the view of the critics of that era, it is quite evident today that this new music was greatly impacted by this ideology. The empowerment that it gave musicians helped them break free from the conventions of jazz (Baskerville). This music, the result of this new sense of freedom and extreme creativity, is what lead to the music called avant-garde jazz. In a sense, all that came before and all the obstacles musicians had to surmount were merely fuel for the emotions of the music. The most important artists of this genre were those that could harness these emotions and express them in their music.
Among the many innovators of Avant-garde jazz was a man by the name of Ornette Coleman. Born in Texas in 1930, Coleman began playing the saxophone during his childhood and eventually went on to play in several different R & B bands during his teen years. After growing tired of working odd jobs, Coleman ventured out to Los Angeles with other up-and-coming jazz musicians (Encarta). While playing these clubs, he developed his unconventional style. In his music, Ornette Coleman wanted to be able to use a great deal of improvisation so that he was not forced to use any specific type of harmony or melody.
In 1960, Coleman released an album entitled Free Jazz, which is a classic example of Coleman’s strong emphasis on improvisation (Encarta). The album sparked worldwide attention. Many music lovers praised the album because of its lack of traditional sound, while others thought of it as musical anarchy (Encarta). Coleman had placed avant-garde jazz on the map.
Throughout the 1960’s, Coleman continued in his efforts to turn the world on to avant-garde jazz. He would go on to teach himself to play the violin and trumpet and play many cities in the United States and Europe (Encarta). While on tour, Coleman introduced a new theory that he had constructed called “harmelodics.” In harmelodics, musicians play the same melody at different pitch levels in different keys (Encarta). Coleman used this form of play to escape from the typical style of Western music because he did not want a style that musicians had used time and time again. He felt that an important part of writing and playing music was for musicians to develop their own ideas. By doing this, they allow music to grow.
Another popular innovator of the avant-garde jazz style was a man by the name of John Coltrane. Like Ornette Coleman, Coltrane was a saxophonist who was a strong supporter of the use of free style music. After working with Charlie Parker, Coltrane perfected his own way of playing the tenor saxophone (Encarta). His high notes were played with a great deal of emotion. Examples of such emotional play can be heard in his collaborations with Miles Davis, including the 1959 album Kind of Blue.
In the mid 1960’s, John Coltrane moved further into the free jazz style by often omitting certain musical notes and trying to make new sounds with his instruments. One album, released in 1965, that embodies these changes is titled Ascension (Knight). In addition, another way Coltrane was better able to experiment with different sounds was by changing the makeup of his recording groups. Often times, he had a number of different combinations of bassists and drummers to choose from (Encarta). For his 1967 album, Interstellar Space, Coltrane recorded a series of duets of himself and a single drummer (Encarta). Also, long solos were something that Coltrane enjoyed implementing into his music (Encarta). Many of these solos were over twenty minutes in duration. These solos added to the complexity of his music and left other jazz musicians with very large shoes to fill. John Coltrane set the standard for musical intensity in the world of jazz. Few could match the intense sound of his solos (Encarta). While many
have tried to imitate his style, they fail to re-create the original Coltrane sound as only he
could play.
Avant-garde jazz was not limited to saxophone players. Musicians who excelled in the playing of other instruments also threw their hat into the avant-garde ring. Among these musicians was none other than Cecil Taylor. Taylor, a classically trained piano player, once said that he tried to imitate the leaps and movements that a dancer makes (New Grove). This might explain the many technically complex rhythmic patterns that are heard in his music. Growing up, he admired such jazz greats like Fats Waller, Bud Powell, and the great Duke Ellington. In his formative years, he attended the New England Conservatory of Music. This paved the way for him to become the great
inspirational musician that he is.
As Taylor began to explore the many aspects of avant-garde jazz, he chose to change the style of melodies in his music. In his early work, Taylor played melodies consisting of single-note sequences (New Grove). During the late 1960’s, he added more notes to the melodies of his music. To do this, Taylor tested different ways of moving his fingers, elbows, fists and palms across the piano (New Grove). Taylor’s 1961 album, Mixed, is a fine example that demonstrates these techniques and showcases his sound (Knight). As different melodies arose in his virtuosic style, his music began to take on an entirely different sound. It could no longer be classified as traditional jazz (New Grove).
While men like Coleman, Coltrane and Taylor laid the groundwork for avant-garde jazz, other musicians followed in their footsteps. Archie Shepp was influenced by the music of John Coltrane and had the opportunity to work under the tutelage of both Coltrane and Cecil Taylor. Shepp played in Taylor’s quartet for two years and recorded with Coltrane in the mid 1960’s (New Grove). After working with Coltrane and Taylor, Shepp formed his own groups and became a leader among the free jazz musicians. Shepp felt that free jazz was a form of political expression (New Grove). In his music, Archie Shepp often borrowed ideas from powerful poetry that dealt with harsh topics like life in black ghettos (New Grove).
Many of the things that Shepp put into his music were things that he had learned while working with John Coltrane and Cecil Taylor. For instance, Shepp liked to toy with melodies like Cecil Taylor. He also used harsh tones and wide vibrato that he learned from John Coltrane (New Grove). Therefore, the complexity of a work like Shepp’s On this night closely resembles the work of Coltrane (New Grove). As more and more musicians started borrowing from those who came before, avant-garde jazz seemed to soar in popularity. It was something that they had never heard before and they wanted more of it.
Albert Ayler was one musician who had who had strong ties to the music of John Coltrane as well. Coltrane was one of the first to develop free form playing, but Ayler can be credited with expanding upon this idea by completely breaking the song down in structure-harmony and rhythm. Brian L. Knight writes, “The two artists felt their music was a step ahead of the conventional music of their era. By breaking music tradition through the exploration of new tonalities, Ayler and Coltrane offered an avenue of enlightenment through their music.” However, Albert Ayler’s career was short-lived. He mysteriously died in 1971, his body was discovered floating in the East River (Knight).
Sam Rivers, another important artist, began playing saxophone in many of Cecil Taylor’s bands. He was inspired by Ayler’s style and unconventional compositions. In a comparison between Ayler and Rivers, Brian L. Knight states that “Rivers was a virtuoso who went through his career virtually unheralded. Ayler was a less skilled player who made bold statements through his compositions.” Rivers not only was a gifted saxophone player, but he also became an excellent flute player, which is shown in his later recordings. Furthermore, Rivers was a unique act to see live. His sets were very free and informal. This lack of structure positively correlates with his musical compositions. A number of short live albums he recorded, from various venues and Universities, were made towards the end of his career.
Musicians were continually inspired by avant-garde jazz into the 1970’s. As time went on, musicians began to put new twists into the genre. For example, Sun Ra, also known as Herman “Sonny” Blount, mixed improvisation and Latin dance in his album, A Call For All Demons (New Grove). In addition to new blends of improvisation, Sun Ra spent time toying with new types of instruments. Eventually he opted away from the typical saxophone, trumpet and piano used by previous avant-garde musicians (New Grove). Instead he became fascinated by percussion instruments. Ra liked the way he could alter standard jazz tunes by improvising new solos, which were often heavy with electronic effects (New Grove). With his use of new instruments, Sun Ra went where no other musician had gone before.
Sun Ra was very successful in his attempt to use percussion instruments in avant-garde, but he was not the only one who wanted to make changes in instrumentation. The Art Ensemble of Chicago had many new ideas as well. The group used a combination of traditional instruments like the saxophone and trumpet together with percussion instruments and other less known instruments from continents like Africa (New Grove). Such instruments included cymbals, gongs and woodblocks (New Grove). Members of the ensemble would often dress up in costumes and perform dances that combined with background music from Africa, America and Europe (New Grove). Avant-garde jazz, originally an American endeavor, began to borrow from cultures around the world.
The world of the Avant-garde was not solely restricted to the instrumentalist either though. One diverse vocalist that dabbled in the world of free jazz is Flora Purim. With a vocal range of six octaves and a wide variety of musical collaborations, she has graced many new musical grounds in her thirty-year career. In her lifetime, the Rio native has had two Grammy nominations in the category of “Best Female Jazz Vocalist” as well as Downbeat magazine's Best Female Singer accolade four different times (“Flora Purim Biography”).
Flora was an integral part to the “Electric Jazz Movement” in the early 1970’s. Duke Pearson was the first American jazz artist to invite Flora Purim to accompany him on his recordings (“Flora Purim Biography). She later went on tour with Gill Evans. After this tour, Flora returned to the studio with a barrage of fellow jazz innovators and released two albums that were part Avant-garde and part early Jazz Fusion. These classic albums include “Return to Forever” and “Light As a Feather” (“Flora Purim Biography”).
In the 1990’s, Flora was still going strong. She collaborated with many contemporary jazz musicians like Billy Cobham, Freddie Ravel, George Duke, David
Zeiher, Walfredo Reyes, Alphonso Johnson, Changuito, Freddie Santiago, Giovanni Hidalgo and even her own daughter (Diana Purim Moreira) to record her novel album
“Speed of Light” (“Flora Purim Biography”). Flora’s music has always been
experimental, but armed with her extraordinary voice, she has been able to make
transitions through the different jazz styles during her entire career. She has definitely made her mark in the realm of Avant-garde and in other jazz styles.
The Impact of Avant-garde Jazz is a profound one. Many Avant-garde musicians of the past have truly paved the way for the jazz artists of today. Avant-garde brought us true musical freedom: freedom of structure, and the freedom of total creative
expression. Many of the people who have grown up listening to these musicians had become Free Jazz artists themselves. They have incorporated this postmodernism and brought it to new levels.
Probably one of the most significant and prolific figures in the modern Avant-garde/ Free Jazz movement is William Parker. Parker is a workingman, drawing influences from a variety of Avant-garde forefathers like Duke Ellington, Charlie Haden, John Coltrane, and Ornette Coleman. As well as being an accomplished and extremely talented musician, he is also a painter, writer and published poet (Mandel, 32).
Over the course of his twenty-five year career, Parker has collaborated with many people. Since 1972, he has worked alongside the likes of Derek Bailey, Cecil Taylor, John Zorn, and lesser-known artists like Roy Campbell Jr., Charles Gayle, Daniel Carter, and Denis Charles (Mandel, 32). He considers the Avant-garde to be the most underrated form of jazz currently in existence. He likes it because it gives him total creative freedom and he firmly believes there is no other genre out there that would allow him to do this (Mandel, 35). He says that when playing free jazz, one needs to discover
their own sound, and can’t just copy others. One has to stop trying and let things happen because that’s when music becomes “magical.”
Another successor to the genre of Avant-garde jazz includes Detroit native,
James Carter. He was taught to play the saxophone through private lessons with veteran musician, Donald Washington. At the age of seventeen, Carter began touring with Wynton Marsalis and gained national recognition for his skills (Fitzgerald). After seeing Carter play live, Beatrice Richardson once stated, “James Carter has the ability to play in any jazz style from the slap tongue staccato of early 20's tenors and Dixieland to swing, bop, 1950's R&B, free form and funk while still sounding like himself, a high-powered player skilled on most reeds, Carter often switches quickly and unexpectedly between style and the effect can be exhilarating or numbing.” As a result of his talent and musicianship, many people say it is only a matter of time before James Carter is placed along side of the Avant-garde greats.
Avant-garde jazz is an ever-changing music style, not only structurally but culturally as well. It cannot now be considered strictly the movement of black society because its musical influence has expanded as far as overseas to the continent of Asia. The jazz group, Beijing Trio, have been credited with carrying the torch of free form jazz and introducing it into their native land. Consisting of only a Piano, drums, and an erhu (two-string Chinese violin), this avant-garde trio are making radical changes to an already radical genre.
In many ways, Avant-garde has been given a negative connotation. It can be considered an acquired taste because of its lack of boundaries and structure, but nonetheless, it is pure genius. It is no longer just a cutting edge development
within jazz, but rather its own specific genre. Today’s Avant-garde musicians continue a music that is not merely a conglomeration of a group of sounds, but to the many who once played it, this represented a war cry and call for freedom.