An Intro to Jazz

The word “Jazz” in itself is a word of unknown origin, but it began to be commonly used in 1915. It began on the West Coast of the U.S. as a term to describe a new style of music that began in Chicago. There is no definitive style of Jazz, but the more commonly accepted definition is that Jazz allows for musical freedom and the expression of the individual artist, combining many different styles of music into one distinct genre. Jazz is a style of music that is primarily American, but gathers its roots from many different styles around the world. There are many different subgenres of Jazz, such as classical Jazz, the earliest Jazz known in America, which rose to greatness during the Great Depression. Others include Big Band Jazz, swing, and the more recent smooth Jazz.