Is Jazz Dead?

Is Jazz Dead? examines the state of jazz in America at the turn of the twenty-first century. Musicians themselves are returning to New Orleans, Swing, and Bebop styles, while the work of the '60s avant-garde and even '70s and '80s jazz-rock is roundly ignored. Meanwhile, global jazz musicians are creating new and exciting music that is just starting to be heard in the United States, offering a viable alternative to the rampant conservatism here. Stuart Nicholson's thought-provoking book offers an analysis of the American scene, how it came to be so stagnant, and what it can do to create a new level of creativity. This book is bound to be controversial among jazz purists and musicians; it will undoubtedly generate discussion about how jazz should grow now that it has become a recognized part of American musical history. IsJazz Dead? dares to ask the question on all jazz fan's minds: Can jazz survive as a living medium? And, if so, how?

Stuart Nicholson is an award-winning author of several best-selling books on jazz, including Reminiscing inTempo: A Portrait of Duke Ellington , Jazz-Rock: AHistory , Billie Holiday: A Biography , and EllaFitzgerald: A Biography . He writes regularly for leading US and European newspapers and jazz journals. He lives in England.

Introduction 1 Where Do We Go From Here? The Jazz Mainstream 1990-2000 2 Between Image and Artistry: The Wynton Marsalis Phenomenon 3 Prophets Looking Backwards: Jazz at Lincoln Center 4 Djà Vu All Over Again: Jazz Singers and Nu-Crooners 5 Jazz Education: Teachers Teaching Teachers 6 Altered Realities and Fresh Possibilities 7 Out of Sight and Out of Mind: Jazz In The Global Village 8 Celebrating the Glocal: The Nordic Tone in Jazz 9 Marketplace or Subsidy: A Question of Survival