Porgy and Bess host Book Release panel discussion on “The History of European Jazz”

Last October, we published Peter Jones review of the epic work “The History of European Jazz” edited by Francesco Martinelli. This review was one of the most popular articles published last year with over 48k views.

The History Of European Jazz
The Music, Musicians and Audience in Context – Edited by Francesco Martinelli

On Wednesday the 24th of April Francesco Martinelli will host a Book Release panel discussion to speak about the book and the process of putting together such a monumental work. Joining Francesco will be Jazz Promoter, Journalist, Editor with ÖRF, Andreas Felber and Croatian Radio Editor and Journalist Vid Jeraj. The event will be held at Porgy and Bess in Vienna in the “Strengen Kammer”.

The History of European Jazz with its 742 pages and 45 contributors from across the continent is a monumental work of international scholarship, which has been part-funded by the EU. The importance of this book is largely due to the fact that it is published in just one language – English. At last, we have a single publication that brings together a vast collection of knowledge and ideas and traditions, many of which have never travelled beyond certain national boundaries. Each chapter not only narrates the development of jazz in each country but includes a separate bibliography and listening guide.

In the course of almost a century, European jazz musicians not only produced a corpus of work worthy of much wider appreciation but also adopted strategies to adapt to the varied reception that the music evoked, which ranged from joyful acceptance to outright prohibition, the latter often involving survival and protest in equal measure. As the first organic overview of the history of jazz in Europe, and covering the subject from its inception to the present day, this volume provides a unique, authoritative addition to the musicological literature.

Entries are written in a narrative style and are presented on a country-by-country basis. Each article is authored by a jazz history specialist from the specific country who contextualizes the music in the cultural landscape of that country, discussing the most influential figures of its development and referencing the sometimes considerable literature available in the national language. This unprecedented pool of authors makes much of this information available in English for the first time. Further chapters cover related subjects: the history of African-American entertainers before jazz, the cross-national traditions of Gypsy and Jewish music, festivals, films, and avant-garde music. The book also draws on the newly available resources created by the extensive work being done nationally by various jazz archives. Chapters contain in-depth bibliographies, rare photographs and illustrations, and suggested listening lists.