Culturally, the world of the 60’s epitomized these two main trends - the evolutionary based on previous values and practice and the something beyond revolutionary - a rejection of the the past as irrelevant to the ‘Now’ and a search for behaviors, vocabulary, beliefs, and systems to order and make comprehendible a world of rapidly - almost daily - newness. It was a search for new rules in a world where the rules had suddenly changed - or was rapid, accelerated, and constant change the only rule?
Jazz was and is a part of the cultural environment - it could do nothing but reflect this environment and express the emotions of those experiencing this cultural, social, and musical reinvention.
The historical documentation of Jazz is nothing more than a chronicle of the stylistic changes that occurred within the music. These changes were adaptions of the music to the cultural and social forces that occurred within the environment - this has been the main content of these articles. One of the fundamental characteristics to be changed [with Bop] was Jazz’s functional shift from Dance Music to Art Music. This resulted in the music responding to ‘Art’ driven forces rather than the ‘pop’ market. A immediate result was that change increasingly originated with the artists involved - and their need to adapt the music’s language to new artistic demands.
By the end of ‘50’s, two major engines of stylistic change came to the forefront - a dramatic increase in the technical skill of individual soloists and the increased complexity of compositions accepted or modified for the jazz idiom. The technical side of this put pressure on the music to provide improvisational ‘space’ to showcase this technique but it also influenced the next generation of players - which not only built upon this technical evolution but then expanded upon it. The complexity of the compositions are a result of this pressure - to provide a musical vehicle equal to the artist’s technique - but also a contributing factor for future change. While the respect for preexisting material remained a definitive factor; substantial changes took place with the enrichment of the harmonic content and the shift from an eight note to a sixteenth note pulse subdivision. This is the foundation for Jazz in the ‘60’s - an ‘art’ driven music, an enriched harmonic vocabulary, and a redefined underling pulse.
The ‘60’s took two paths. The first was a continuation of the evolutionary pattern of using preexisting styles and patterns: a maintenance of functional harmony, exploration within the limitations of these styles and performance practices, a division of labor between the rhythm section and ‘front line’, and a regular and reoccurring accented pulse. The second was a disintegration of the structural background of the music: an intentional assault on the rigidity of the historical framework, a replacement by a new system of order to fill the vacancy left by the assault on this framework, a growing interest in other musical systems, a new attempt to synthesize Jazz and the Contemporary European Fine Art Tradition [already 50 years into its own revolution]. These two paths provided opportunity for a stylistic diversity unprecedented in the history of Jazz. Again, the evolutionary and revolutionary appear, not as a matter of emphasis, but as two simultaneous occurrences - it is the revolutionary which is most obviously revealed in the elements of Jazz.
Jazz, for its entire history, was realized on a relatively small number of European instruments [Trumpet, Trombone, Clarinet, Saxophones, Piano, Tuba, String Bass, Guitar, Drums, and Voice] with secondary additions of Violin, Flute, Vibes, and French Horn. Variety of color was achieved by contrasting instrumental families and use of tonal effects exclusive to Jazz performance practice. The emphasis on color was most obvious in the Cool School of the ‘50’s - the ‘60’s gave this element even more consideration.
Now, an unprecedented assortment of instrumental resources and coloristic effects enter into the music:
Exotic instruments from non western cultures, a renewal of African concepts of tone production and vocal practice, an acceptance of all European instruments, practices from the Fine Art Avant-guarde, Electronic or electrically modified instruments, and new orchestral combinations. This exploration of ‘outside’ coloristic resources was also a reflection/result of current social forces: musicians began to take new musical interest in the ‘Third World’ of Africa, Asia, and South America, the rise of Islam in the Afro-American community ignited an interest in the music of North Africa and Arabia, and a general interest in the mysticism of Asia - all opened an easy access to cross-cultural musical influences.
True ‘folk’ instruments were introduced into the jazz performance - reed and wooden flutes, whistles, thumb piano, animal horns, and a variety of bells, rattles, and drums. While usually employed in an accompanying role, they added atmosphere and spice in improvisational support. Accompanying this was a renewed interest in the concepts of African Tone Quality - especially those which parallel the African Tonal Languages.
Complex rhythmic textures were also adapted: the use of multiple drummers, layering of polyrhythmic and polymetric activity, and an increase of rhythmic density. The development of ‘melodic’ drumming
[as a consideration of pitch in drumming practice] was influenced by the drum languages of Africa.
A movement toward collective expression and improvisation broke down the division of labor between the ‘front line’ and the rhythm section. Now everyone was responsible for ‘keeping the time’ - not just the drummer. This had the effect of not only allowing ‘melodic’ drumming but liberated the entire rhythm section - allowing the section to expand their role beyond time keeping.
The search for knowledge of African music sparked a number of visits by American Jazz musicians.
They went not only as a pilgrimage, but to learn and experience first hand the musics of Africa - Randy Weston come notably to mind.
Interest in the Classical music of India and other Asian cultures introduced Oriental flutes and percussion, the Japanese Koto, and Indian instruments to Jazz. The Indian influence - focused on the Raga - brought Ravi Shankar to the United States and initiated experiments seeking a common ground between the musical cultures - Don Ellis formed the Hindustani Jazz Sextet for this express purpose.
The emergence of the Bossa Nova - a uniquely Brazilian style - generated interest in Afro-Brazilian percussion and rhythmic practices. It parallels the Afro-Cuban focus of the late “40’s and initiated a mutual exchange with Brazilian musicians - Gilberto, Jobim, and Bonfa among many others.
Spurred by the Third Stream proponents, many more European instruments were accepted into the Jazz environment - the entire Orchestral percussion family, Soprano Sax, Flugelhorn, all ranges of flutes, Violin, Tuba, Cello, Oboe, Bassoon, and Clarinet were added or reappeared. Some of these instruments
[as with the Indian instruments] were aided by the advancements in amplification. This was also accompanied by the expansion of the Sound Vocabulary of these instruments: an expanded range in the wind instruments to the very extremes of the possible, unconventional means of tone production
[manual manipulation of the Piano strings, Harmonic and ‘false’ tone production, and experiments in the use of voice and instrumental combinations].