Students find appreciation for jazz with UCLA course

  MOHAMMAD ALAVI Professor Gerald Wilson
demonstrates a jazz riff on the piano for his Development of Jazz
class Tuesday in Schoenberg Auditorium.

By Rebecca Cohen
Daily Bruin Contributor

Charles Sharp cherishes the fond memories he harbors of
afternoons spent listening to jazz with his father, a jazz
musician.

“I grew up listening to jazz from day one probably,”
said Sharp, an ethnomusicology graduate student. “I used to
go hear my dad play all the time and he would play it all the time
in the house.”

At UCLA, Gerald Wilson’s ethnomusicology 120B class,
Development of Jazz, offers the opportunity to explore the past,
present and future of the musical genre.

While jazz is nostalgic for Sharp, the music elicits highly
personal responses in music listeners.

“One of the main things about jazz is there’s a
feeling that has to go with it,” Wilson said.

Listening to jazz is a highly personal experience. “The
music is really inspiring to listen to ““ the improvisations
and melodies,” said ethnomusicology graduate student Kelly
Salloum. “The innovative soloists give me ideas and take me
places I wouldn’t normally think of going when I’m
listening to other types of music.”

Salloum enjoys exposing students to jazz music.

“People find jazz … when it’s right for them and
what they’re doing in their lives,” Salloum said.
“And I think a lot of people, when they’re exposed to
jazz, are unexpectedly pleased by what they hear.”

In addition to introducing the sounds of jazz to students,
Wilson’s class teaches them that there is an amazing history
behind each individual element that goes into jazz. The people, the
music, the dress and the culture associated with the music are
often taken for granted.

For example, Salloum said that jazz has had an important effect
on race relations in the U.S.

“It introduced people to the music of African Americans in
America,” she said.

Though jazz originated in America, it has since become a popular
form of music world wide.

“It’s obvious that jazz’s influence is very
big because you can find jazz in all parts of the world,”
Wilson said. “We find that it is, of course, a music that can
be understood very easily.”

However, Wilson pointed out that jazz doesn’t have the
exposure it once had.

“Jazz at one time was the pop music of the day,” he
said. “I don’t know if it’ll reach that height
again.”

While jazz may not be as popular as it once was, Salloum
believes that jazz isn’t in danger of dying out.

“I think that there has been a revitalization of the
genre,” Salloum said. “When I was just out of high
school there weren’t that many really great jazz musicians in
their late teens, early 20s, but now when I listen to the students
who are in their early 20s here at UCLA, their level of skill is
astounding.”

Christine Chow, a third-year psychology student currently taking
ethnomusicology 120B, thinks that classes which teach people about
the history of jazz will help them enjoy the music more.

“It will help people relate to it,” Chow said.
“I think if classes like this continue to teach young people
about jazz, it won’t die out, and I think people like us who
enjoy jazz will keep it going.”

Chow also added that professors like Wilson have helped
cultivate enthusiasm for the music genre.

“I really enjoyed being in 120B with Gerald Wilson. I
think he’s a wonderful professor and he not only brings jazz
into my life, but also joy. I think he brightens every
student’s day.”