It's well known that throughout the 20th century, fed up with
poor working conditions and racism in their home country, many American
jazz musicians chose to leave the US in order to live and work in
Europe. What's less well known is how their music developed and evolved
during their time on the continent, and how the experience of being a
musician in Europe was to shape their respective lives.
Over the years countless jazz concerts, festivals and recordings
featuring American jazz musicians have taken place all over Europe, yet
it's remarkable how few of these musical artifacts have been evaluated
by the jazz community. We seek to assess the European experiences of the
American jazzmen, with a specific focus on the progressive sounds of
modal jazz and the avant garde. We examine the recordings made by those
who crossed the Atlantic just to take in a short tour, as well as those
who made more frequent trips, and of course those for whom Europe
ultimately became their permanent place of residence.
Radical new jazz sounds created as renowned ex-pat American jazzmen
mingled with the creme de la creme of their European counterparts. Early
developments in world music inspired by trans-global cultural
excursions to Asia, Africa and beyond. Exchanges of ideas and a cultural
meeting of minds as revolutionary jazz festivals took place behind the
Iron Curtain. Advances in rhythm and sound where modal jazz and the
prophetic music of John Coltrane merged with European folk traditions.
This is Spiritual Jazz - as played by Americans in Europe.
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