Jazz today
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- Start Date: 05 Nov 2025End Date: 03 Dec 2025Wed (Daytime): 13:00 - 15:00In PersonFull fee £149.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £104.00
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What is the course about?
Did the history of jazz really come to an end in the 1970s as some critics maintain and, if not, what happened?
We will pick up the threads of several narratives as we seek to make sense of the incredibly rich and diverse music scene we experience in the 21st century.
What will we cover?
- What is jazz today? Who are the innovators? Is it jazz?
- Why did the history of jazz “end” for some observers ?
- The role of the record company: ECM and Manfred Eicher
- Jazz and World Music
- The New York Loft scene and the AACM in Chicago
- Must it be new to be valid?
- Music as product or art?
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
- Understand and explain the evolution of jazz from 1970 to the present day
- Identify at least ten lesser known musicians from this period and place them and their music within their historical context
- Explain how digital recording techniques and social media have influenced and are influencing the development of the music.
- Produce a personal listening plan with which to further explore new music.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
No previous knowledge of jazz is required but students who have completed The essential history of jazz in 20 cuts or other City Lit jazz history courses will find this course a logical progression.
You need to be able to follow written and verbal instructions and engage in class discussion in English, and to take your own notes.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
Tutor presentation, guided listening and watching, class discussion.
Course materials will be shared via Google Classroom, with recommendations to encourage further exploration outside class.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
Please have a pen and notebook to make your own notes during class. You may wish to purchase some of the music books or recordings discussed in class; links to these materials will be available after each session. You may also wish to attend live performances.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
City Lit offers a wide range of Music history courses, including others on topics in Jazz, popular and World music. For more information, visit our Guide to the Music history programme.
You may also be interested in practical courses in Jazz and popular music
aLbi is a mostly self-taught saxophonist and composer, obsessed with jazz and its evolution since his early teens when he stumbled across his father’s precious vinyl collection of half a dozen discs. Perhaps something of the emotional nuance and intensity of John Coltrane and Stan Getz resonated with his own adolescent turmoil. aLbi was stunned to discover that Coltrane and Getz were playing the same instrument, tenor sax, so different were the “voices” they projected, and came to understand that the striving for a personal sound and expression were integral to the music. He became immersed in that world and its history. aLbi has formed bands playing original compositions, a sort of neo punk, jazz, reggae, funk, calypso with surreal and comic lyrics, often manically theatrical and at one point popular in the pubs, clubs and colleges of Kent. He has since become involved with theatre companies composing and collaborating and has written, produced and appeared in two original musicals. In 2007 one collaborative project was awarded the Samuel Becket Trust award for new and original theatre. aLbi has taught a variety of jazz history courses at City Lit since 2014.
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.
