The History of European Jazz; The Music, Musicians and Audience in Context; Francesco Martinelli

Edited by

Francesco Martinelli [+–]

Jazz Promoter, Journalist, Lecturer and Author

Francesco Martinelli is a jazz promoter, journalist, lecturer, translator and author. He is the author of magazine articles and monographs about Evan Parker, Joelle Léandre and Mario Schiano. Since 1999 he has taught the history of jazz and related subjects at the Siena Jazz Foundation courses as well as in other conservatories in Italy. He has lectured at NYU, Wesleyan and Columbia Universities in USA, at Bilgi and ITU in Istanbul, at the Paris Conservatoire Nationale, and many other institutions. His main research interests include the history of jazz in Italy, jazz’s relationships with visual arts, traditional musics from the Near East, discography, and the preservation and restoration of sound carriers. Martinelli is currently consultant for the Izmir European Jazz Festival and Director of the Arrigo Polillo Center for Jazz Studies in Siena, Italy’s most important jazz archive. He has translated more than 10 reference jazz books into Italian and is a contributor to Rough Guide to Turkish Music.

Nominated for the 2019 Association for Recorded Sound Collections Awards for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research
Nominated for the 2019 Jazz Journalists Association Jazz Awards for Book of the Year

In the course of almost a century, European jazz musicians not only produced a corpus of work worthy of much wider appreciation, but also adopted strategies to adapt to the varied reception that the music evoked, which ranged from joyful acceptance to outright prohibition, the latter often involving survival and protest in equal measure. As the first organic overview of the history of jazz in Europe, and covering the subject from its inception to the present day, this volume provides a unique, authoritative addition to the musicological literature.

Entries are written in a narrative style and are presented on a country-by-country basis. Each article is authored by a jazz history specialist from the specific country who contextualizes the music in the cultural landscape of that country, discussing the most influential figures of its development, and referencing the sometimes considerable literature available in the national language. This unprecedented pool of authors makes much of this information available in English for the first time. Further chapters cover related subjects: the history of African-American entertainers before jazz, the cross-national traditions of Gypsy and Jewish music, festivals, films, and avant-garde music. The book also draws on the newly available resources created by the extensive work being done nationally by various jazz archives. Chapters contain in-depth bibliographies, rare photographs and illustrations, and suggested listening lists.

Supported by the Europe Jazz Network with funding from the Creative Europe programme of the European Union, this volume will serve as an inspiration for new generations of listeners and musicians.

Series: Popular Music History

Introduction

Series Editor’s Note [+–] ix-x

Alyn Shipton FREE

Royal Academy of Music

The increased circulation of people and ideas within Europe is not matched by an awareness of a shared history among its jazz community. In the course of almost a century, European jazz musicians not only produced a corpus of work worthy of much wider appreciation, but also adopted strategies to deal with a variety of situations, ranging from outright prohibition to survival in the market and institutions. This volume provides an organic overview of European jazz history in order to serve as an inspiration for new generations of listeners and musicians independently of current marketing hype. It covers the linear narrative of jazz history in Europe from its inception to the year 2000 presented on a geographical basis country by country. Each article is authored by a jazz history specialist from the specific country contextualizing the music in the cultural landscape of that country, discussing the most influential figures of its development, and referencing the sometimes considerable literature available in the national language. An unprecedented pool of authors makes much of this information available in English for the first time. Further chapters cover related subjects like popular music in Europe, the history of African-American entertainers before jazz, cross-national traditions like Gypsy and Jewish music, festivals, film and avant-garde music. The book also draws on the newly available resources created by the extensive work being done nationally by various jazz archives; chapters are supplemented by suggested listening lists and bibliographies. This volume is published with the support of the European Jazz Network and funds from Creative Europe.

European Jazz: Stories that Needed to be Told [+–] 1-11

Francesco Martinelli FREE

Jazz Promoter, Journalist, Lecturer and Author

The increased circulation of people and ideas within Europe is not matched by an awareness of a shared history among its jazz community. In the course of almost a century, European jazz musicians not only produced a corpus of work worthy of much wider appreciation, but also adopted strategies to deal with a variety of situations, ranging from outright prohibition to survival in the market and institutions. This volume provides an organic overview of European jazz history in order to serve as an inspiration for new generations of listeners and musicians independently of current marketing hype. It covers the linear narrative of jazz history in Europe from its inception to the year 2000 presented on a geographical basis country by country. Each article is authored by a jazz history specialist from the specific country contextualizing the music in the cultural landscape of that country, discussing the most influential figures of its development, and referencing the sometimes considerable literature available in the national language. An unprecedented pool of authors makes much of this information available in English for the first time. Further chapters cover related subjects like popular music in Europe, the history of African-American entertainers before jazz, cross-national traditions like Gypsy and Jewish music, festivals, media (including films and broadcasting) and avant garde music. The book also draws on the newly available resources created by the extensive work being done nationally by various jazz archives; each chapter contains an in-depth bibliography and a suggested listening list.

Part 1: Western Europe

1. France [+–] 12-40

Xavier Prevost £17.50

Xavier Prevost was a radio producer for Radio France from 1982 to 2014, and head of the Jazz Department from 1997 to 2014. He has served on the board of directors of the National Jazz Orchestra and was also responsible for events for the Jazz Festival in Paris Associations, from 1983 to 1990. He is now retired, writing reviews and chronicles on websites : mainly Jazz Magazine and Les dernières Nouvelles du Jazz.

Early French jazzmen; Jazz versus classical; Jazz in the media; Suddenly, the war; The war is over, but the jazz war is coming; A new Django?; Young blood and French bop versus the New Orleans revival; Bebop, hard bop or cool jazz?; Americans in Paris: the 1950s and beyond; French jazz composers in the 1950s; The Belgian connection; Jazz in French movies; French jazz in the 1960s; Free at last!; Mainstream and modern mainstream in the 1960s; Free music: American players in France—and the European way; Contemporary jazz in the 1970s: another route; From playing jazz to teaching jazz; Jazz in French pop songs, and vice versa; A perpetual change; Young players of the 1980s; New labels, new clubs; Paris, the hub of jazz; French jazz fusion; Improvised music; Mainstream, bop, hard bop and the Coltranism revival; Big bands are back; Public cultural policy; The exponential growth of jazz festivals in France; The return of the accordion and Gypsy jazz; French singers and vocal groups; The final decade of the century: did French jazz lose its sense of direction?; Strictly European; New leaders, composers and improvisers; Women take the stage; French jazz is cosmopolitan; Jazz and the media; Jazz through the arts; French jazz in the new century; Acknowledgements; Listening guide; Bibliography; Websites

2a. Great Britain: 1900 – 1960 [+–] 41-56

Alyn Shipton £17.50

Royal Academy of Music

Beginnings; From the ODJB to Fred Elizalde; From Elizalde to Spike Hughes; The 1930s; World War II; The New Orleans revival; Listening guide; Bibliography;

2b. Great Britain: 1950-2010: Late-flowering Seeds of the Triangular Trade [+–] 57-82

Duncan Heining £17.50

Duncan Heining writes about jazz, improvised music and 20th century composition. Since 1997 he has written for Avant Magazine, Record Collector, The Independent, The Independent On Sunday, Jazzwise, Jazz UK and the All About Jazz website. In 2010 Scarecrow Press published his biography of African-American composer and musical theorist George Russell, George Russell – An American Composer. He is also the author of Trad Dads, Dirty Boppers and Free Fusioneers: British Jazz, 1960-1975 (Equinox, 2012).

Introduction; The modern jazz audience in Britain 1949–60; The rise of a British jazz; Can’t stop the rock; Never the twain; ‘New generations’: challenge and renewal; Conclusion; Listening guide; Interviews cited; Bibliography;

3. Ireland [+–] 83- 95

Cormac Larkin £17.50

The Irish Times

Cormac Larkin is a music journalist at The Irish Times.

Prologue; Introduction; Pre-history; 1900—45; 1945—70; 1970—present; Epilogue; Listening guide; Bibliography;

4. Germany [+–] 96- 119

Martin Pfleiderer £17.50

Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt, Weimar

Jazz in the 1920s: the formative phase;Jazz under the Nazi regime; Jazz after World War II; The ‘emancipation’ of German jazz. Part I: the Federal Republic of Germany; The ‘emancipation’ of German jazz. Part II: the German Democratic Republic; Fusion music and ethno-jazz: the 1970s; Jazz in Germany after 1980; Listening guide; Bibliography; Jazz magazines; Archives

5. The Netherlands [+–] 120- 142

Bert Vuijsje £17.50

Jazz Journalist

The early years; Pre-war jazz; Opposition to jazz; World War II; The post-war years; The 1960s; The New Thing; Experimentation and improv; A new generation; Listening guide; Bibliography;

6. Belgium [+–] 143- 160

Jean-Pol Schroeder £17.50

Independent Scholar

Introduction; Jazz bands everywhere (1919–30); Jazz and sequins (1931–39); The paradoxes of the occupation (1940–44); The American era (1944–49); Autonomy and marginality (1950–59); The sixties: rule and exception (1959–69); The electric decade (1969–79); Time for review (1980–2007); Coda; Listening guide; Bibliography;

7. Luxembourg [+–] 161-169

Marc Demuth £17.50

Jazz Musician

The early years; The 1930s: professional orchestras; Jean Roderes; The shadow of the Nazis; Radio Luxembourg; Liberation; The free jazz pioneers; Festivals and concerts;Jazz at the Conservatory: Gast Waltzing; Postscript; Listening guide; Bibliography; Filmography;

Part 2: Scandinavia

8. Denmark [+–] 172-193

Tore Mortensen £17.50

Aalborg University

Tore Mortensen is Associate Professor in the Department of Culture and Global Studies at Aalborg University.

The early years: up to 1930; Reaction to jazz in the 1920s; The first jazz orchestras; Enlightenment and ‘what jazz is’: the 1930s; The ‘golden age’ of Danish jazz: 1940—45; Bebop and revival jazz 1946–60: first encounters with American postwar jazz; The trad jazz scene; Jazzkredsen (‘The Jazz Circle’); The Montmartre era; Some Danish musicians; Reprisen: a new generation, a new venue; The fusion scene; ‘Rhythmic music’: the national subsidization of jazz and jazz education; The Nordic connection; Rytmekons; New jazz venues; Festivals; Internationalization, globalization and the break-up of jazz as a musical genre: 1976–2000; The Jazzpar award and jazz visitors; Status update on 20 years of Danish jazz; Entering the new millennium; Jazz archives in Denmark and the Nordic Jazz Conferences; Listening guide; Bibliography; Archives; Websites; Discographies;

9a. Sweden: 1919-1969 [+–] 194-216

Jan Bruer £17.50

From the beginning to 1930; 1931–36; 1937–39; 1940–42; 1943–47; 1947–51; 1952–55; 1956–59;1960–64; 1965–69; Listening guide; Acknowledgements; Bibliography;

9b. Sweden: 1970-2000 [+–] 217-223

Måns Wallgren £17.50

Rock influences; World influences; The 1970s: avant-garde to dixie; Clubs; Festivals; The 1980s; The 1990s; The future; Listening guide; Bibliography;

10. Finland [+–] 224-237

Juha Henriksson £17.50

Music Archive

The pre-jazz years; The arrival of jazz; Hot music and accordion jazz; Swinging dance music; Jazz outside Helsinki; Cool jazz and jazz schlagers; Original Finnish jazz; All kinds of fusion; Institutional jazz; International and professional; Crossovers; Listening guide; Bibliography;

11. Norway [+–] 238-263

Bjorn Stendahl £17.50

Independent Scholar

Early impulses: 1920–21; Norwegian pioneers; The great bandleaders; Pre-war small bands; Funny Boys; New impulses (1933–40); Rhythm clubs and swing clubs; Swinging into the war; String Swing (1938–43); From the Oslo Swing Club to the Seven Merries (1939–43); From gloom to hope (1943–45); The Hot Club period: hot and short (1945–47); Slow optimism and a new diversity (1947–50); Experiments, the lure of Sweden, foreign visitors and the golden year (1950–55); A small collapse (1956); The golden age: between the Marshall Plan and the Vietnam War (1957–64); The great collapse (1964–65); A slow revival (1965–73); A new golden age: from the Vietnam War to YAPs10 (1974–89); The 1990s; Listening guide; Bibliography; Appendix A; Appendix B; Appendix C;

12. Iceland [+–] 264-274

Vernhardur Linnet £17.50

Independent Scholar

Early jazz in Reykjavík; Jazz on the radio: wartime; The post-war years and the first all- Icelandic jazz band; Gunnar Ormslev; The bebop generation; Classical and rock; The revolution; A new generation; Around the turn of the century; The jazz scene; Listening guide; Bibliography; Websites in English;

Part 3: Central Europe

13. Poland [+–] 276-303

Krystian Brodacki £17.50

Independent Scholar

The inter-war years and the war; The early post-war years: 1945–49; In the catacombs: 1950–55; The mature phase: 1956–59; The 1960s: maturity; The 1970s: the development continues; The hot ’80s; The ‘free market’ era (1989–2000); Final thoughts; Listening guide; Bibliography;

14. Czech Republic [+–] 304-314

Yvetta Kajanova £17.50

Cornelius University, Bratislava

Jazz and classical; The 1930s and ’40s; Communism; Post-1968; Post-1989; Acknowledgements; Listening guide; Bibliography;

15. Slovakia [+–] 315-322

Yvetta Kajanova £17.50

Cornelius University, Bratislava

The swing era; Modern jazz; The trad revival; Emigration; New sounds; The 1980s; Post-1989; Acknowledgements; Listening guide; Bibliography;

16. Hungary: The road to independence [+–] 323-340

Gabor Turi £17.50

Journalist

Between two world wars; The aftermath of World War II; The descent of the Iron Curtain; Green light; Evolution without revolution; Three dimensions; Conformism and opposition; Gypsy flair; To the new millennium; Listening guide; Bibliography; Research and archives;

17. Romania [+–] 341-355

Virgil Mihaiu £17.50

Independent Scholar

The first decades, 1920–65: the good and the bad; 1965–71: an upsurge; 1971–89: stagnation and survival; 1989–2000: the ‘transition’ years — a sketch of Romanian jazz at the turn of the century; Listening guide; Bibliography;

18. Austria [+–] 356-377

Andreas Felber £17.50

University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna

Jazz in wartime; The occupation; Cool jazz; Traditional jazz after 1945; The mid-1950s: a turning point; The conservative 1960s: amateurs and unorthodox masters; Graz: Austria’s second jazz capital; Vienna’s reawakening in the late 1960s; Early postmodernism and the Vienna Art Orchestra; Back to Graz: Karlheinz Miklin and the student generation of the early 1980s; Vienna in the 1980s: polystylistic concepts; The 1990s: electronic sounds and Balkan music; 2000 on: a time of change; Listening guide; Bibliography;

19. Switzerland [+–] 378-389

Bruno Spoerri £17.50

Jazz Musician

From swing to bebop; Hot clubs: guardians of real jazz; The Zurich amateur jazz festival; Teaching jazz; Jazz and Swiss folk music; The birth of free jazz; Going abroad; Jazz labels; Swiss jazz today; Some biographies; Listening guide; Bibliography;

Part 4: Eastern Europe

20. Russia: Ninety-five Years in Search of an Identity [+–] 392-421

Cyril Moshkow £17.50

Journalist

The first ‘jazz’ in Russia; Between the wars: the changing political climate; The nine-year gap: ‘saxophone straightening’; Ady (Eddie) Rosner; Oleg Lundstrem; A new era?; Voice of America and the rebirth of Russian jazz; The story of a post-war Soviet jazz musician: Andrei Tovmasyan; The 1960s; The 1970s; The Little Ice Age; The 1980s: the Ganelin Trio and the avant-gardists; The 1980s: jazz at the cinema and ethno-fusion; The 1990s and the end of the Soviet Union; Hope for the future; Listening guide; Bibliography; Filmography;

21. Belarus [+–] 422-425

Dmitri Podberezsky £17.50

Journalist

Early years; Post-war; Turning point: Festival of Youth and Students; The 1970s onward; Bibliography; Listening guide;

22. Ukraine [+–] 426-435

Alexander Yudin £17.50

Independent Scholar

Pre-war; Post-war; The 1960s; Festivals; The 1970s and ’80s; Modern jazz legends; The 1990s onward; Listening guide; Bibliography;

Part 5: The Western Mediterranean

23. Spain [+–] 438-460

Chema Martinez £17.50

Journalist

Antecedents; A plague of ‘jazz-bands; They came from above; The first ‘golden age’; Flamenco meets jazz (and vice versa); The Hot Club of Barcelona is born; A jazz desert; Tete Montoliu: an oasis in the desert; The 1960s; Flamenco sketches: chapter 2; Iturralde; From the death of Franco to the democratic transition; Paco; Corea and on; Epilogue; Listening guide; Bibliography;

24a. Portugal: 1920-1974 [+–] 461-469

Pedro Cravinho £17.50

Birmingham Centre for Media and Cultural Research

View Website

Dr Pedro Cravinho is a Senior Research Fellow at the Birmingham Centre for Media nd Cultural Research (BCMCR), and the Keeper of the Archives at the Faculty of Arts, Design and Media. He co-leads the History, Heritage and Archives cluster at BCMCR. His research focuses on music, media and archives, particularly interest in the political, cultural, and social history of the twentieth-century jazz diaspora and its distinct media representation in the public sphere.

Early years: the 1920s; The 1930s and the New State; World War II; The post-war years and the Hot Clube de Portugal; The 1950s; The 1960s; The early 1970s and the last years of the New State; Listening guide; Bibliography;

24b. Portugal: 1974-2010 [+–] 470-481

Rui Eduardo Paes £17.50

Journalist

Background; Rão Kyao; Plexus and ‘Zíngaro’; Jorge Lima Barreto and the Conceptual Jazz Association; António Pinho Vargas, Zé Eduardo and Carlos Bechegas; New sounds: Nuno Rebelo and Sei Miguel; Carlos Martins, Mário Laginha and Maria João; El Fad and Carlos Barretto; Bernardo Sassetti and Rodrigo Amado; Free improvisation: Ernesto Rodrigues and Paulo Curado; João Paulo and Carlos Bica; Postscript: resistance and affirmation; Listening guide;

25. Italy [+–] 482-516

Francesco Martinelli £17.50

Jazz Promoter, Journalist, Lecturer and Author

Prelude in New Orleans; Dance music, artistic avant-gardes and political opposition in the 1920s; Hot clubs, Armstrong and orchestras; Wartime and after; Modern jazz musicians, festivals and media in the 1950s; New movements in the 1960s; 1970s: festivals, schools and labels; The 1990s and beyond; Listening guide; Bibliography;

Part 6: The Baltic States

26. Latvia [+–] 518-528

Indrikis Veitners £17.50

Jazeps Vitols Latvian Music Academy

Indrikis Veiners is the head of the jazz department at the Jazeps Vitols Latvian Music Academy.

1922–40: the arrival of jazz; 1940–53: disruption; 1953–91: The Latvian SSR; 1991 onwards: independence; Listening guide; Bibliography;

27. Lithuania [+–] 529-545

Ruta Skudiene £17.50

Independent Scholar

History and early years; Vic Briedis; Soviet occupation; Jazz festivals; Education; Conclusions; Selected biographies; Listening suggestions; References; Website;

28. Estonia [+–] 546-557

Tiit Lauk £17.50

Jazz Musician

World War II; Behind the Iron Curtain; Wider recognition (or the lack of it); The jazz festival tradition; Festivals today; Teaching jazz; The birth of an Estonian national jazz; Estonian jazz today; Listening guide; References; Online resources;

Part 7: South-East Europe

29. Greece [+–] 560-570

Sakis Papadimitriou £17.50

Jazz Musician

The prehistory: 1920–40; 1940–74; The blossoming: 1975–90; 1990 onwards; Listening guide; Bibliography;

30. Former Yugoslavia (including Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Vojvodina and Kosovo) [+–] 571-599

Mike Mazur,Iço Vidmar,Eleni Novakovska,Edin Zubčević £17.50

Independent Scholar

Independent researcher, music journalist, reviewer, translator, lecturer, columnist and radio host

National Library of Macedonia

Music Academy of Sarajevo

Introduction; Early years; Pre-World War II; The big band era; World War II; Post-World War II; Outside Zagreb; Zagreb International Jazz Fair; Boško Petrović; Jugoton; The birth of jazz in Slovenia; World War II; Post-war; Bled festival; 1982 and a cultural shift; Jazz praxis in modern Slovenia; Serbia; The early years; World War II; The post-war years; A new generation; Belgrade Jazz Festival and the YU All Stars; 1960–90; Macedonia; Beginnings: Gjakonovski-Shpato; 1950s–1960s; The 1970s: Macedonian jazz; The 1980s and onward: Skopje Jazz Festival; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Post-war beginnings: the Plesni Orkestar; Traditional roots and expatriates; The 1980s; The Bosnian War and its aftermath; Montenegro; Kosovo; Listening guide; Bibliography;

31. Bulgaria [+–] 600-606

Vladimir Gadjev £17.50

Independent Scholar

The first jazz in Bulgaria; Pre-war jazz; Post-war jazz; The 1960s and liberalization; The 1970s; Wedding music; The 1980s and the end of Communism; The future of jazz in Bulgaria?; Listening guide; Bibliography;

Part 8: Europe/Asia

32. Turkey [+–] 608-620

Hulya Tuncag £17.50

Jazz Boradcaster

Turkish pioneers; From the 1960s to 2000; The second new generation; Festivals; Education; Acknowledgements; Listening guide; Bibliography;

33. Azerbaijan [+–] 621-628

Rain Sultanov £17.50

Jazz Musician

Tofi̇g Guli̇yev; Rauf Hajiyev; Tofig Ahmadov; Parviz Rustambeyov; Cinema and radio; Tofig Shabanov; Qaya; Vagif Mustafazadeh; The 1990s; Rafig Babayev; Listening guide; Bibliography;

34. Armenia [+–] 629-640

Armen Manukian £17.50

Jazz Musician

The State Jazz/Pop Orchestra; Other orchestras; Jazz boom; Two pianists; The 1980s and ’90s; Jazz revival; Datevik; Into the twenty-first century; Avant-garde folk; Tigran Hamasyan; Levon Malkhasyan; Jazz events; Broadcast media; Past, present and future; Expatriate Armenians; Listening guide; Bibliography;

Part 9: Themes

35. Early African American Entertainers [+–] 642-652

Rainer Lotz £17.50

Independent Scholar

Rainer Lotz is a German discographer and jazz historian.

Black Europe; African Americans; Africans; Concluding remarks;

36. Django Reinhardt and jazz manouche [+–] 653-666

Michael Dregni £17.50

Jazz Writer

Michael Dragni is a writer and author of Django: The Life and Music of a Gypsy Legend published by Oxford University Press.

‘Gypsy jazz’; Django’s early life; Out of the fire; The Quintette; The war; Liberation; The final years; Django’s legacy; The frères Ferret; Django’s heritage; A new generation; The Roma’s rediscovery of Gypsy jazz; Re-emergence; The twenty-first century; Listening guide; Bibliography;

37. Jews and Jewish Music [+–] 667-677

Gabriele Coen £17.50

Jazz Musician

Gabriele Coen is a Jazz musician.

Klezmer music and its repertoire; Jazz and Judaism; Relations between jazz and Judaism in Europe; The modern scene; Listening guide; Bibliography;

38. The Avant- Garde: Black-and-White Atlantic Dialogues, c. 1960s [+–] 678-687

Michael Heffley £17.50

Baker College of Flint

Michael Heffley is a musician and scholar who teaches at Baker College of Flint.

Framing the dialogues; The American side; The European side; The press; The dialogue’s history; The dialogue now; Bibliography;

39. Film [+–] 688-706

Selwyn Harris £17.50

Jazz Journalist

Selwyn Harris is a jazz journalist and owner of Jazz on Film Records.

France; Germany; Spain; Britain; Poland; Scandinavia; Portugal; The Soviet era; Italy; Belgium, The Netherlands, Switzerland; Bibliography; Filmography;

40. Festivals [+–] 707-718

George McKay £17.50

University of East Anglia

View Website

George McKay is Professor of Media Studies at the University of East Anglia.

The first festivals; A patchy history; Festival culture and reputation; Idealism; The setting; A language of change; Not jazz?; A space for development; European identity; Research; Conclusion: the Wherever Jazz Festival?; Acknowledgements; Bibliography; Appendix A; Subject index; Index of works

End Matter

Subject Index [+–] 719-739

Francesco Martinelli FREE

Jazz Promoter, Journalist, Lecturer and Author

Index of Works [+–] 740-742

Francesco Martinelli FREE

Jazz Promoter, Journalist, Lecturer and Author

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Reviews

The History of European Jazz is a monumental work of international scholarship, which has been part-funded by the EU. The large format, two-column layout means that each page is twice the size you would find in a conventional book. There are 742 pages, with 45 contributors from across the continent.
The importance of this book [is that it is] published in just one language – English. At last, we have a single publication that brings together a vast collection of knowledge and ideas and traditions, many of which have never travelled beyond certain national boundaries. Each chapter not only narrates the development of jazz in each country but includes a separate bibliography and listening guide.
To call The History of European Jazz fascinating is something of an understatement. Every chapter is full of extraordinary information.
Peter Jones, Jazz in Europe

One of the most ambitious projects in jazz scholarship... the first extensive look at the history of indigenous European jazz as written by the experts of each country or region...covered in detail previously unavailable to English readers...
Named as one of the best jazz books for 2018
The New York City Jazz Record

As one slightly sceptical observer put it to me, “The project really is limitless in its scale.” Indeed so. Jazz in Europe over the past century is a vast, disparate and more or less inexhaustible subject. So it is definitely to the credit of those involved that they have not only managed to pack so much in between the book’s black covers, that they have given it such a sense of order and structure, and that the standard of the English and of the proofing are so good. It is also very well illustrated and the picture captions are detailed and highly informative.
...the cultural, historical and economic contexts in the different countries are never the same. And the approach of allowing a specialist from the country concerned to tell each story gives that authentic sense of where the music comes from.
...books on this ambitious scale are increasingly a rarity. The fact that this one has received the backing to actually come into being, and that it has been done this well, is nothing short of a miracle.
London Jazz News

It's taken some time, about a century in fact, but finally, thanks chiefly to editor and jazz historian Francesco Martinelli of Siena Jazz, the first comprehensive, pan-European history of jazz sees the light of day. And what stories they are too -complex, colorful and sometimes tinged with tragedy. Though jazz celebrated its centenary in 1917, what this book demonstrates time and again is the longer historical view, whereby the back and forth migrations of people between continents and across national borders over many centuries, and the cultural exchanges and assimilations along the way, have all fed, and continue to feed, into the complex mosaic that is jazz.
There have been excellent jazz histories of individual countries to be sure, and sweeping—and generally less satisfying—historical overviews of European jazz are not uncommon, but for its scope, detail and academic rigour The History of European Jazz: The Music, Musicians and Audiences in Context is simply unprecedented in its ambition. What also sets it apart from most general European jazz histories is the fact that the jazz histories of the forty-odd countries examined herein have been written by experts native to their respective countries, ensuring an authenticity and insight that would be missing from any single author's necessarily narrow overview.
The chapter authors are, without exception, distinguished jazz journalists, authors, promoters, academics and curators.
All About Jazz

A precious first step for both academia and music journalism.
Jazz Tokyo

Much to praise and enjoy in this book
Jazz Journal

Great for classrooms, libraries, and scholars, this work opens the door for anyone interested in jazz in Europe from its inception to the present and is a strong starting point for further research for scholars seeking to contribute to the field.
Library Journal

The History of European Jazz, edited by Francesco Martinelli, gets my vote as the most significant work of jazz scholarship of 2018.
Ted Gioia

The book is able to take the discourse about its topic to a level higher than ever achieved before.
Magyar Narancs

A worthy achievement and a wonderful reference source.
Jazzwise

As well as being a paean to the glorious polyphony of jazz history, The History of European Jazz will serve as a solid reference work. The book's ordered, nation-by-nation layout will ensure that it becomes an indispensable resource for anyone writing about jazz in Europe.
The comprehensiveness of The History of European Jazz is perhaps its biggest draw… The book adds valuable detail to the well-trodden paths of continental jazz history, such as the British ›traditional jazz‹ revival, the foundation of jazz festivals in Nice, Juan-les-Pins, or Montreux (to name only a few), or the numerous jazz scenes that emerged behind the Iron Curtain. But generous attention is also given to the many stories that have been previously neglected.
Samples (journal of the German Society for Popular Music Studies)

This book will become a valuable resource for musicologists and audiophiles worldwide. I look forward to owning my copy and recommend that any reader obtain a copy for themselves.
ARSC Journal

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Books and Journals in Humanities, Social Science and Performing Arts

The History of European Jazz

The Music, Musicians and Audience in Context

Francesco Martinelli [+–]

Jazz Promoter, Journalist, Lecturer and Author

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