Early Jazz is one of the seminal books on American jazz. Written by the renowned composer, conductor, and musical scholar Gunther Schuller, it is the first of three volumes on the history and musical contribution of jazz, taking us from its beginnings as a distinct musical style at the turn of the century to its first great flowering in the 1930's. Schuller explores the music of the great jazz soloists of the twenties--Jelly Roll Morton, Bix Beiderbecke, Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong, and others--and the big bands and arrangers--Fletcher Henderson, Bennie Moten, and especially Duke Ellington--placing their music in the context of the other musical cultures of the twentieth century and offering analyses of many great jazz recordings. Early Jazz provides a musical tour of the early American jazz world. A classic study, it is both a splendid introduction for students and an insightful guide for scholars, musicians, and jazz fans.
Editorial Reviews
"Here, at last, is the definitive work...written in the best intellectual tradition. It is clear, thorough, objective, sophisticated and original. A remarkable book by any standard, it is unparalleled in the literature of jazz." --Frank Conroy, The New York Times Book Review
"A remarkable breakthrough in musical analysis of jazz. I emphasize musical because that's the element of jazz least often written about with this degree of skill and clarity." --Nat Hentoff
"A superb job, in its thorough scholarship, its critical perception, and its love and respect for its subject. All future commentary on jazz--indeed on American music--should be indebted to Schuller's work." --Martin Williams
"The best informed and most thorough work of jazz criticism thus far...It is just what we who began to love jazz thirty-five years ago wanted but could never find." --Hudson Review
"Jazz...has inspired an enormous literature. The writer always mentioned first among buffs and scholars in Gunther Schuller; his Early Jazz...is a basic book." --Wilson Quarterly
"A milestone in technical ethnomusicology, offering an abundance of musical illustrations." --Leonard Feather, Los Angeles Times
About the Author
Gunther Schuller began his professional career in 1943, at age seventeen, when he played French horn with the Cincinnati Symphony and later served as first horn in the Metropolitan Opera. A prominent American composer, he has written a wide range of orchestral and chamber music, as well as jazz compositions.
