Jazz Matters - by David Ake (Paperback)

About the Book

"Ake offers an engaging and eclectic alternative to much jazz studies fare by examining seldom-considered subjects and reading familiar ones through unconventional means. I came away from "Jazz Matters" knowing that I had learned something new regarding the practices of writing about, listening to, and playing jazz."--Eric Porter, author of "What Is This Thing Called Jazz?"
"Smart, interesting, engaging, thoughtful, and stimulating, this book opens up a lot of what we often take for granted about jazz. A fitting sequel to "Jazz Cultures," "Jazz Matters" will no doubt be just as important to jazz scholarship."--Gabriel Solis, author of "Monk's Music: Thelonious Monk and Jazz History in the Making"
""Jazz Matters" is intellectually stimulating as much as emotionally involving. It deals with sides of the acts of creating jazz and listening to it that were hitherto little or no discussed, and does it with first-hand knowledge, empathy, and a wide range of references to literature, philosophy and art, adding something deeply valuable at the vast literature on jazz currently available."--Francesco Martinelli, Director of Centro Studi sul Jazz "Arrigo Polillo" - Fondazione Siena Jazz

Book Synopsis

What, where, and when is jazz? To most of us jazz means small combos, made up mostly of men, performing improvisationally in urban club venues. But jazz has been through many changes in the decades since World War II, emerging in unexpected places and incorporating a wide range of new styles. In this engrossing new book, David Ake expands on the discussion he began in Jazz Cultures, lending his engaging, thoughtful, and stimulating perspective to post-1940s jazz. Ake investigates such issues as improvisational analysis, pedagogy, American exceptionalism, and sense of place in jazz. He uses provocative case studies to illustrate how some of the values ascribed to the postwar jazz culture are reflected in and fundamentally shaped by aspects of sound, location, and time.

From the Back Cover

"Ake offers an engaging and eclectic alternative to much jazz studies fare by examining seldom-considered subjects and reading familiar ones through unconventional means. I came away from Jazz Matters knowing that I had learned something new regarding the practices of writing about, listening to, and playing jazz."--Eric Porter, author of What Is This Thing Called Jazz?

"Smart, interesting, engaging, thoughtful, and stimulating, this book opens up a lot of what we often take for granted about jazz. A fitting sequel to Jazz Cultures, Jazz Matters will no doubt be just as important to jazz scholarship."--Gabriel Solis, author of Monk's Music: Thelonious Monk and Jazz History in the Making

"Jazz Matters is intellectually stimulating as much as emotionally involving. It deals with sides of the acts of creating jazz and listening to it that were hitherto little or no discussed, and does it with first-hand knowledge, empathy, and a wide range of references to literature, philosophy and art, adding something deeply valuable at the vast literature on jazz currently available."--Francesco Martinelli, Director of Centro Studi sul Jazz "Arrigo Polillo" - Fondazione Siena Jazz

Review Quotes

"Along comes a fresh, thoughtful, carefully reasoned book discussing topic that have not been done to death, and one realizes that there may be more left to say on this heavily analyzed musical genre...'Jazz Matters' is one such book."-- "Generally Eclectic Review" (4/20/2011 12:00:00 AM)

"David Ake doesn't pretend to stand on a mountaintop and deliver the Truth about jazz. Instead, he takes a wider view, showing that the Truth is really a series of possibilities, each one exciting enough in itself to keep us enthralled by the music no matter how much we think we know."-- "Blurt" (10/20/2010 12:00:00 AM)

"Jazz Matters will surely benefit the jazz community at large as well as spark interest from interdisciplinary fields of study."--Michael Donovan "Ethnomusicology Forum" (9/22/2011 12:00:00 AM)

"Tells new jazz stories while finding fresh truths in the old."--Peter Kenagy, New England Conservatory of Music, Massachusetts College of Art and Design "American Music" (2/4/2013 12:00:00 AM)

About the Author

David Ake is Professor and Chair of the Department of Musicology at the Frost School of Music, University of Miami.