Author Description

Experiencing Jazz is an integrated textbook, website, and audio anthology for jazz appreciation and history courses. Geared toward the non-music major, this textbook introduces the elements of music, the roles and characters of different instruments, and then covers prominent artists and styles. It places important musical trends in a larger cultural and historical context, helping the reader relate jazz history to other familiar events. Readings, study questions, listening guides, graphic examples, stylistic comparisons, artist profiles and audio interviews, instructional videos, and other materials are all designed to introduce the novice to jazz. The anthology of music includes key jazz recordings made by leading artists. Listening Guides in the textbook help students hear the key features of these works. The companion website is a rich resource, and hosts many of the listening guides in an interactive format. The second edition has been thoroughly updated and includes new essays introducing each chapter, more discussion on prominent women in jazz and coverage of jazz in Europe. With a much-revised audio collection the author has worked to present a comprehensive overview of the music and to continue his goal of presenting jazz within a cultural perspective along a timeline of historical events.