Every now and then I come across a disparaging comment concerning Jazz, which just happens to be our family musical genre. In a book I read a few years ago (genre: pop novel), a female character chooses Country Western over the jazz her boyfriend plays during meal prep. She doesn't just choose Country Western, she also makes a negative comment concerning jazz in the process. Yesterday afternoon, I saw the beginning of a television show set at a highschool. In this scene jazz was being played behind an information fair style booth, and two female characters make an even more disparaging comment--about jazz.
I understand that jazz is different from other musical genres popular today. It's roots are in Blues, and it is much more closely related to classical music than it is to pop. It takes more attention to appreciate than other more widely commodified forms. People don't complain about jazz in the same way that I complain about Adult Contemporary (AC); in most cases they are more insulting with less cause. Most of what I've encountered is similar to the remark I heard during my last trip to Barnes and Noble, "What kind of Barnes and Noble is this; it's cold in here!" This remark was more disparaging of Tuscaloosa than it was of Barnes and Noble, and maybe that is the point.
3 comments:
I think you've pretty much explained it. It takes Too Much Work to appreciate jazz. Plus, there are some jazz songs that just overwhelm my brain. I listen to music to relax or to discharge stress. Jazz sometimes just adds to the stress because of the intentional dissonance the musicians create.
I think, with jazz, sometimes the musicians are more interested in pushing/exploring the limits of their technical skill, rather than creating beauty.
The most important factor in the jazz-prejudice, however, is probably just acclimation. My ears are acclimated to AC/DC, Guns-N-Roses, Aerosmith, Led Zepplin, Kiss, Metallica, Quiet Riot, Def Leppard, Rolling Stones, etc. I suspect that the uninitiated would find some of that music pretty stress-inducing. Again, to the unacclimated ear, much of what I like is labeled "noise."
Jazz, like wine and cigars, is an acquired taste.
Indeed, Jazz is an acquired taste. Jazz and Classical music are not intended to be consumed like other types of music common to Westerners. These idioms are far closer to language and conversation between the musicians than they are to "entertainment" for the audience. And, like Jim says, most people use music for a purpose, which is not typically to work their brain, but to relax. If you were to participate in a conversation, but treat it like background noise, it would be considered rude; much like coughing at a classical or jazz concert. Demanding jazz be like pop music reminds me of a saying Wes has used: sprinting through an art gallery.
One could consider listening to these forms of music as like listening to other people speak in a foreign language. Our natural reaction is to interpret those sounds as gibberish, even though we know something is being communicated, because we have no other choice. It's only when we learn the language and are familiar with its sounds can we begin to appreciate it. It's not difficult to understand most other forms of music, so those are more popular.
The disparaging remarks about jazz are often another example of people thinking "the universe requires my personal approval." The usual presumption is if jazz doesn't conform to my assumptions of what music should be, then it is not good music. To suggest that I might have to change myself, to learn something to appreciate the music is absurd!
I have to admit, though, sometimes what's passed as music is not music at all. If you can't understand the words (if there are any), you can't tell that chords are actually being played, and you certainly can't pick out real tones, it could be just noise.
Jim, I wouldn't have pegged you for a metal listener. Oh well, shows what I know.
I don't have much to say about why people don't like Jazz except that they commonly associate it with muzak/elevator music/smooth jazz/easy listening. If that is the case, then a certain level of derision should be expected. Also, a lot of Jazz music doesn't have words. If I can be a condescending jerk for a moment, a song without words is like a book without pictures.
But I also think the harshness of the expressed distaste is based upon expected audience. For example, you mentioned that you saw the beginning of a show about high schoolers. From this information I think I can safely assume that, unless these high schoolers were on a dude ranch, the show was probably pretty awful, and also that the target audience was probably teenage girls.
Since the set of teenage girls who are jazz lovers is very small, they can make such statements for a cheap chuckle and only alienate three or so people.
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