What is the history of the Jazz genre?
The great pianist Jelly Roll Morton said he invented the word Jass, as it was originally spelt, to distinguish his style from ragtime, in 1902. He made claim to many things, including the invention of Jazz itself. According to musicians memories, the first band to play Jazz, before it was given that name, in New Orleans was that of Charles Buddy Bolden (1868-1931), barber, scandal-sheet editor and cornettist. New Orleans continues to be called the cradle of Jazz. The Blues, as we now know it, is an essential part of the World of Jazz. In its origins, the Blues developed, in part, by African/Americans sense of rhythm and the human voice. Work songs, in which a leader sings a line and his colleagues respond and accompanying labour, were often used to pass messages among the workers, or for just telling a story. The tradition of Blues music as an integral part of life is clear, and unlike Jazz, owes little to any influence other than the African. Jazz & Blues are now a truly international
