‘Jazz’ at large
‘Scapes’ and the imagination in the performances of Moses Molelekwa and Nah Youn-Sun
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/jazz.v4i1.43Keywords:
globalization, hegemony, jazz, Korea, scapes, South AfricaAbstract
A number of scholars have discussed how ‘jazz’ has been constructed as being the creative product of the United States of America. The article draws on some of the ideas of Arjun Appadurai in order to show how the music of two non Americans, Moses Molelekwa (South Africa) and Nah Youn-Sun (South Korea), may be understood as challenging which sounds may be classified as ‘jazz’, and who may be included in its audiences. I will focus on their active involvement in—frequently trans-global—collaborations with artists outside or on the peripheries of ‘jazz’. The article also explores the conditions of globalization that make possible such reconfigurations and how these dynamics relate to broader processes of reimagining global geographies of power and music. In discussing the musical performances of these ‘jazz’ artists, I hope to reflect on the role of the imagination in the process of genre definition.
References
Allen, L. (2005) ‘Circuits of Recognition and Desire in the Evolution of Black South African Popular Music: The Career of the Penny Whistle’. South African Journal of Musicology 25: 31–51.
Anderson, I. (2007) This is Our Music: Free Jazz, the Sixties, and American Culture. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Appadurai, A. (1996) Modernity at Large: Cultural Dimensions of Globalization. Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press.
Atkins, E. T. (2003) ‘Toward a Global History of Jazz’. In Jazz Planet, ed. E. T. Atkins. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.
Berliner, P. (1993) Soul of Mbira: Music and Traditions of the Shona People of Zimbabwe. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Collier, J. L. (1978) The Making of Jazz: A Comprehensive History. London: Macmillan.
Hisama, E. (1993) ‘Postcolonialism on the Make: The Music of John Mellencamp, David Bowie and John Zorn’. Popular Music 12(2): 91–104. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0261143000005493
Jones, A. F. (2003) ‘Black Internationale: Notes on the Chinese Jazz Age’. In Jazz Planet, ed. E. T. Atkins. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.
Mazzarella, W. (2004) ‘Culture, Globalization, Mediation’. Annual Review of Anthropology 33: 345–67. http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.anthro.33.070203.143809
Meintjes, L. (1990) ‘Paul Simon's Graceland, South Africa, and the Mediation of Musical Meaning’. Ethnomusicology 34(1): 37–73. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/852356
Molasky, M. (2003) ‘A Japanese Story about Jazz in Russia: Itsuki Hiroyuki’s “Farewell, Moscow Gang” ’. In Jazz Planet, ed. E. T. Atkins. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.
Moore, H. (2007) Inside British Jazz: Crossing Borders of Race, Nation and Class. Aldershot: Ashgate.
Muller, C. (2001) ‘Capturing the “Spirit of Africa” in the Jazz Singing of South African-Born Sathima Bea Benjamin’. Research in African Literatures 32(2): 133–52. http://dx.doi.org/10.2979/RAL.2001.32.2.133
——(2007) ‘South Africa and American Jazz: Towards a Polyphonic Historiography’. History Compass 5(4): 1062–1077. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1478-0542.2007.00437.x
Nicholson, S. (2005) Is Jazz Dead? (Or Has It Moved to a New Address). New York and London: Routledge.
Stockfelt, O. (1997) ‘Adequate Modes of Listening’. In Keeping Score: Music, Disciplinarity, Culture, ed. D. Schwarz, A Kassabian and L. Siegel. Charlottesville, VA and London: University Press of Virginia.
Stokes, M. (2003) ‘The Global Politics of World Music’. In The Cultural study of Music: A Critical Introduction. New York and London: Routledge.
Taylor, T. (2007) Beyond Exoticism: Western Music and the World. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.
Tsing, A. (2000) ‘The Global Situation’. Cultural Anthropology 15(3): 327–60. http://dx.doi.org/10.1525/can.2000.15.3.327
Recordings
Molelekwa, Moses (1995) Finding Oneself. B & W Music, UK, BW 053 and South Africa BWCD 2.
——(1998) Genes and Spirits. MELT2000, UK/South Africa, BW079 and BWSA079.
Nah Youn-Sun with Refractory (2005) Nah Youn-Sun with Refractory. EMI EKJD-0148.
Nah Youn-Sun Quintet (2007) Performance on 26 June at the Rose Theatre, Patrick P. Rose Hall, Lincoln Center, New York.
Sting (1987) …Nothing Like the Sun. A&M, B00000I2I7.
Anderson, I. (2007) This is Our Music: Free Jazz, the Sixties, and American Culture. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Appadurai, A. (1996) Modernity at Large: Cultural Dimensions of Globalization. Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press.
Atkins, E. T. (2003) ‘Toward a Global History of Jazz’. In Jazz Planet, ed. E. T. Atkins. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.
Berliner, P. (1993) Soul of Mbira: Music and Traditions of the Shona People of Zimbabwe. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Collier, J. L. (1978) The Making of Jazz: A Comprehensive History. London: Macmillan.
Hisama, E. (1993) ‘Postcolonialism on the Make: The Music of John Mellencamp, David Bowie and John Zorn’. Popular Music 12(2): 91–104. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0261143000005493
Jones, A. F. (2003) ‘Black Internationale: Notes on the Chinese Jazz Age’. In Jazz Planet, ed. E. T. Atkins. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.
Mazzarella, W. (2004) ‘Culture, Globalization, Mediation’. Annual Review of Anthropology 33: 345–67. http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.anthro.33.070203.143809
Meintjes, L. (1990) ‘Paul Simon's Graceland, South Africa, and the Mediation of Musical Meaning’. Ethnomusicology 34(1): 37–73. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/852356
Molasky, M. (2003) ‘A Japanese Story about Jazz in Russia: Itsuki Hiroyuki’s “Farewell, Moscow Gang” ’. In Jazz Planet, ed. E. T. Atkins. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.
Moore, H. (2007) Inside British Jazz: Crossing Borders of Race, Nation and Class. Aldershot: Ashgate.
Muller, C. (2001) ‘Capturing the “Spirit of Africa” in the Jazz Singing of South African-Born Sathima Bea Benjamin’. Research in African Literatures 32(2): 133–52. http://dx.doi.org/10.2979/RAL.2001.32.2.133
——(2007) ‘South Africa and American Jazz: Towards a Polyphonic Historiography’. History Compass 5(4): 1062–1077. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1478-0542.2007.00437.x
Nicholson, S. (2005) Is Jazz Dead? (Or Has It Moved to a New Address). New York and London: Routledge.
Stockfelt, O. (1997) ‘Adequate Modes of Listening’. In Keeping Score: Music, Disciplinarity, Culture, ed. D. Schwarz, A Kassabian and L. Siegel. Charlottesville, VA and London: University Press of Virginia.
Stokes, M. (2003) ‘The Global Politics of World Music’. In The Cultural study of Music: A Critical Introduction. New York and London: Routledge.
Taylor, T. (2007) Beyond Exoticism: Western Music and the World. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.
Tsing, A. (2000) ‘The Global Situation’. Cultural Anthropology 15(3): 327–60. http://dx.doi.org/10.1525/can.2000.15.3.327
Recordings
Molelekwa, Moses (1995) Finding Oneself. B & W Music, UK, BW 053 and South Africa BWCD 2.
——(1998) Genes and Spirits. MELT2000, UK/South Africa, BW079 and BWSA079.
Nah Youn-Sun with Refractory (2005) Nah Youn-Sun with Refractory. EMI EKJD-0148.
Nah Youn-Sun Quintet (2007) Performance on 26 June at the Rose Theatre, Patrick P. Rose Hall, Lincoln Center, New York.
Sting (1987) …Nothing Like the Sun. A&M, B00000I2I7.
Published
2011-11-15
Issue
Section
Articles
How to Cite
Schutte, J. H. (2011). ‘Jazz’ at large: ‘Scapes’ and the imagination in the performances of Moses Molelekwa and Nah Youn-Sun. Jazz Research Journal, 4(1), 43-56. https://doi.org/10.1558/jazz.v4i1.43
