Hear me out. Take it from a girl who went years without listening to jazz and only just got back into listening to it after taking a Jazz Course in college: you really should be listening to jazz. Don’t worry I get it. For a while in the beginning, and even in that gap between high school and now, I didn’t really get jazz either. But if you listen to music and love music, you don’t have to get jazz to love jazz.
I should tell you upfront that I have a bit of history with jazz, so it’s a bit unfair of me to ask you to listen to it when I love it so much. I played in a jazz band all throughout high school and played the saxophone for ten years, the jazziest of all jazz instruments. But the technicalities and the culture around jazz really shouldn’t push you away from listening to it.
If you recently watched Disney Pixar’s Soul and liked the music behind it, but didn’t think you could actually get into it, well you really can. Just start out small. There are some great contemporary jazz musicians out there playing amazing styles like electro jazz-pop, or brass house, that sound incredibly similar to pop music and EDM.
What makes jazz so versatile, and why I urge you to try it is the number of genres within jazz. There is a style of jazz out there for everyone. Do you like old classic rock from the ’80s? Try out jazz-rock, or fusion styles – listen to some Miles Davis and his album Bitches Brew.
Is rap more your style? Acid jazz is literally so cool and you should definitely give it a try. Bebop, electric swing, and big band jazz are also some of my favorite styles that I recommend checking out, too. Some great artists to look out for are Grace Kelly, Snarky Puppy, and Too Many Zooz.
Jazz isn’t just for the innovators, the academics, or the instrumentalists. It’s for everyone. Even though I’ve played an instrument and been a musician for a long time, I’ve never considered myself a professional. I love jazz because the people who play it have just as much of a passion for music as I do, and I probably couldn’t even get a sound out of my saxophone anymore if I tried.
There is a joy in listening to jazz music that exceeds musical skill and knowledge, and that is something that you can only experience for yourself if you just give jazz a chance.
For those of you who are still on the fence about listening to jazz music, here are some tips that can help you when listening to jazz.
- Try to focus on one part of the music at a time, like the percussion section, horns, or piano.
- Listen to how a solo moves and if the choices a soloist makes make sense or not – it’s really satisfying to break solos down!
- Listen to anything and everything until you find something you like; listening to more jazz will only help you appreciate it more!