Collectives, a socio-economic, political and aesthetic phenomenon

The example of the Association à la Recherche d'un Folklore Imaginaire

Abstract

One general truth about jazz, which seems to flourish less than classical music, is that its collective practice and evolution are very largely dependent on inter-mingled socio-economic and cultural factors. This inter-mingling is particularly interesting in France where the system is principally based on the public sector and the introduction since 1981 of a specific policy on jazz. Given the overwhelming precarity here and their uncertain working conditions, several jazz musicians give rise to associations of musicians and musical ‘collectives’—the Lubat Company in Uzeste, the Continuum collective in Montpellier, the Yolk collective in Nantes, the Circum collective in Lille and the ARFI (Association for Imaginary Folklore) in Lyon, which we shall examine to answer the following questions. While economics appear to be the primary motivation for the emergence of these collectives, may one ask whether their appearance is solely the consequence of a strategy aimed at getting one’s group better known to the public and institutions in order to obtain funding? Musicians may want to become more visible to the public and public-sector institutions but does the creation of a collective not stem from the artistic desire to join up with other professional musicians? Sharing the same musical tastes and desire for a pleasing aesthetic result also seems an obvious factor here, judging from the ever-changing composition of these groups, in which one often sees the same musicians appearing.