[Dixielandjazz] Re: Jazz and mental health

[Stephen Barbone]

> From: Jazzjerry at aol.com wrote:
>
> This must be the quote of the year:- :"He said jazz music arose from the
> attempts of a cognitively impaired performer to execute novel performances."

(Referring to Buddy Bolden and adding that Bolden couldn't read music and
therefore was impaired)

> Otherwise the article seems to be a load of old cobblers and typical of the
> useless gibberish often spoken by so called experts.

Right on JJ. Improvisation in music certainly did not start with Buddy Bolden.
The article's premise is just a load of trash. Improvisation was common in
European classical music well before Bolden. And then common in Gottschalk's
American "pre rag time" music which was one reason so little of Gottschalk's
work reached the printed stage. And also common in rag time. To have it occur
also in jazz is not a very big stretch, just a natural progression of following
in the footsteps of those who walked before.

Unless, of course, all composers and musos who engage in improvisation are
cognitivrly impaired. ;-)

Cheers,
Steve Barbone