Paper short abstract:

Jazz figures from Louis Armstrong to Wynton Marsalis have been forces for change in the world. Many have been Trickster figures who have served to undermine notions of accepted reality. While this feature was most noticed during the 1960s, it has always been part of the music, usually under the guise of humor, as used by Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie. When looked at in the broader picture of African music, the perspective comes into clearer focus.

Paper long abstract:

African musicians have traditionally had a major roe in speaking truth to power. The African musician Fela, who sought to unite all Black music in his own amalgam, exemplified this characteristic. He learned a great deal from jazz about humor and protest, especially from Dizzy Gillespie. In turn, Gillespie admitted that he had learned a good deal from his friend, Louis Armstrong. He also saw the darker side of that process in his closes friend, Charlie Parker. Lester Bowie carried on the tradition in his Art Ensemble of Chicago. I explore the meaning of the Trickster figure in jazz, its desire to create and confound, needing to tear down before recreating the world. It has always taken pomposity as a target and sought to gain respect for the oppressed. Although somewhat muted today, it still breaks out in the very process of creation. Jazz's relationship to the creative mysticism of African music is further explored in this paper.