[Dixielandjazz] New Orleans Jazz OR . . . Dixieland?

[Stephen G Barbone]

Below is excerpted from an article in the Victoria, (British Columbia, Canada) Times.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband


Don't say Dixieland. Best to say "traditional New Orleans Jazz." Or just New Orleans Music

So says Ben Jaffe. And he ought to know.

Jaffe is son of the co-founders of Preservation Hall, the famed New Orleans music venue. His late father, Allan Jaffe, bought the hall 51 years ago and is credited with spearheading the revival of New Orleans music in the 1960s.

Ben Jaffe plays tuba with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, performing tonight at the Royal Theatre as part of TD Victoria International JazzFest. The show, nearly sold out as of Friday . . .i

Jaffe, who phoned recently from a New York hotel lobby, knows Dixieland is a popular term for New Orleans jazz from the early 20th century. Some of the old tunes are still popular, such as When the Saints Go Marching In and Basin Street Blues.

The problem with "Dixieland," says Jaffe, is that for New Orleans musicians, the term conjures up associations with the Old South, Dixie and the Confederacy. If you're a black American, that isn't particularly music to your ears.

"You'd never ever hear, in New Orleans, an African-American musician refer to what we do as Dixieland music," he said. "They actually consider it to be a derogatory term."

As well, Dixieland has come to be associated with a watered-down, commodified version of New Orleans jazz, Jaffe said.

"It's usually guys in straw hats and striped vests and garter belts on their arms, playing this loud and raucous music very fast. And usually it's white guys.". . . .

It's all about balance. Jaffe wants to protect the precious Preservation Hall legacy started by his parents. At the same time, he's aware music has to be a living and breathing thing.

"Interestingly, I have a real problem with the word 'preservation,' because it does imply creating a museum-like atmosphere.

When you preserve something, you put it in a jar and put it on a shelf." . . .

What he especially likes about Preservation Hall Jazz Band concerts is their inclusivity. Typically three - and even four - generations of music lovers will show up. And sometimes they dance.

"I feel like, the more people who listen to Preservation Hall, the happier we are as a world, as a universe. That's ultimately why I think we make music, to make us better people." . . .