Jazz in Context

A study of jazz and its social meanings. Starting with an overview of jazz styles and European idioms\ud closely bound to jazz history, the course will give students a basic aural education in musical\ud forms, the process of improvisation, and the fabric of musical performance. Critical\ud methodologies, too, will loom large in our discussions, especially recent writings on art and\ud society, identity and difference, and acculturation and change. Students will discover (and learn\ud to question) how thought on jazz reflects deep-felt views about society and culture