Jazz Icons
Heroes, Myths and the Jazz Tradition
Published on 17. January 2013
Book
Paperback/Softback
227 pages
978-1-107-61082-8 (ISBN)
Description
Today, jazz history is dominated by iconic figures who have taken on an almost God-like status. From Satchmo to Duke, Bird to Trane, these legendary jazzmen form the backbone of the jazz tradition. Jazz icons not only provide musicians and audiences with figureheads to revere but have also come to stand for a number of values and beliefs that shape our view of the music itself. Jazz Icons explores the growing significance of icons in jazz and discusses the reasons why the music's history is increasingly dependent on the legacies of 'great men'. Using a series of individual case studies, Whyton examines the influence of jazz icons through different forms of historical mediation, including the recording, language, image and myth. The book encourages readers to take a fresh look at their relationship with iconic figures of the past and challenges many of the dominant narratives in jazz today.
Reviews / Votes
Review of the hardback: 'If the cultural construction of the music - including the education of young musicians - is to move beyond the individualist mythology into a more pragmatic sense of collective achievement, then we will indeed need, as Whyton says, a far more critical engagement with the existing icons of jazz.' Andrew Blake, The Times Higher Education Supplement Review of the hardback: 'Jazz Icons is essential reading for anyone interested in better understanding their relationship with jazz icons and it will no doubt change the way many of us perceive our relationship with jazz. Highly recommended.' Ian Patterson, allaboutjazz.comMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
10 Halftones, unspecified
Dimensions
Height: 244 mm
Width: 170 mm
Thickness: 13 mm
Weight
405 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-107-61082-8 (9781107610828)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Book
04/2010
Cambridge University Press
€116.30
Shipment within 15-20 days
Person
Tony Whyton is Director of the Salford Music Research Centre at the University of Salford. As Professor of Jazz and Musical Cultures, he co-edits the internationally peer-reviewed Jazz Research Journal and, in 2011, edited the jazz volume of the Ashgate Library of Essays on Popular Music. He is the Project Leader for the HERA-funded Rhythm Changes: Jazz Cultures and European Identities programme and author of the forthcoming book Beyond A Love Supreme.
Content
Introduction: jazz narratives and sonic icons; 1. Jazz icons, heroes and myths; 2. Jazz and the disembodied voice; 3. Not a wonderful world: Louis Armstrong meets Kenny G.; 4. Men can't help acting on impulse!; 5. Witnessing and the jazz anecdote; 6. Dispelling the myth: essentialist Ellington; 7. Birth of the school.