30 January: Jazz Day

Today is Jazz day, marking the occasion when the Original Dixieland Jass Band made one of the first jazz recording titled The Darktown Strutters' Ball in 1917. 10 things you might not know about jazz:

1. No-one knows for sure how the word jazz came about. It’s thought it started out as a slang word that was nothing to do with Music at all, but was in fact Baseball slang, a word meaning verve, vim, and fighting spirit. The earliest written record of the word jazz is in a 1912 article in the Los Angeles Times in which a baseball pitcher described a pitch which he called a "jazz ball" "because it wobbles and you simply can't do anything with it". Another theory holds that it derives from African slang words with sexual connotations.
2. Defining jazz isn’t straightforward, either. It encompasses a wide range of music spanning a period of over 100 years, including ragtime, European chamber elements, marching band music and blues. Just about every genre of music has a jazz sub-genre – rock jazz, acid jazz, rap jazz, even punk jazz. One of its defining elements, however, is that the musicians improvise. Hence the same piece of music may never be played in exactly the same way twice.
3. Because there’s so much improvisation, jazz musicians have developed secret signals in order to communicate with each other, so they all know when an improvised solo is about to end and it’s time to go back to playing the main melody. A nod of the head, or pointing at the head, are two of the signals used.
4. The origins of jazz are thought to lie with African slaves in the US. The people brought over as slaves came from places with rich musical traditions, some of which, such as African drumming, were forbidden in America. There was nothing to stop people using their hands, or household items such as washboards, boxes, jugs or bowls to create the rhythms, which they’d do at social gatherings.
5. Some jazz musicians say they were influenced by Indian classical music, as well. Saxophonist John Coltrane and guitarist John Mclaughlin both claim it as one of their major influences, since, like jazz, Indian Hindustani and carnatic music encourages improvisation.
6. In the early days of jazz, classically trained musicians saw it as something of a threat, because a lot of the performers were self taught and hadn’t been through music school and taken exams. There was an organized movement in the music industry against jazz before it was fully adopted as a new, exciting genre of music.
7. Since jazz was often played in the illicit speakeasies during prohibition in the US, it was seen as decadent and immoral by many. Add to that the age old situation where the older generation never takes to the music their kids embrace and it’s hardly surprising that Henry van Dyke of Princeton University wrote, "it is not music at all. It's merely an irritation of the nerves of hearing, a sensual teasing of the strings of physical passion;" or that the New York Times tried to spread the rumour that Siberian villagers used jazz to scare away bears, or that it had caused a famous conductor to have a fatal heart attack.
8. Jazz gave rise to new types of dance as people wanted to move to the music. We have jazz to thank for the Charleston, black bottom, Argentine Tango, and the trot.
9. Studies have suggested that jazz is actually rather good for you, especially your Brain. Jazz musicians were found to be using the medial prefrontal cortex, which allows self expression, and two jazz musicians having what is termed a "musical conversation" are using the language centres of their brains. Just listening to it has been found to be beneficial, too. Listening to jazz activates theta brain waves (4-8 hertz), the brain waves associated with creativity. So listening to some jazz makes it more likely that you’ll come up with a creative solution to a problem. Other studies have found that listening to jazz is as relaxing as a massage, reduces anxiety and even boosts the immune system. (But don’t expect the establishment to confirm that because Big Pharma can’t cash in on music.)
10. The term “hipster” was derived from the jazz age. In the 1930s, “hep” was a term to describe someone who was cool and knowledgeable. They became known as hepster cats, alongside the term “jazz cat”, and the word hipster evolved from that.

Who's That Girl?

Matt Webster lives in a tower block and attends a failing school. He dreams of being a spy like James Bond. Little does he know that he is being watched by someone who can make him into even more than that – a superhero.

His first solo mission is to attend a ball at the Decembrian Embassy and discover who is planning to steal a priceless diamond. While there, he meets the mysterious Lady Antonia du Cane, and is powerfully drawn to her. It soon becomes clear, however, that Lady du Cane is not what she seems. Matt’s quest to discover who she really is almost costs him his career.

A modern day Guy Fawkes gathers a coterie around him with the aim of blowing up Parliament with a nuclear bomb. To achieve this, they need money. Lots of it. Selling the Heart of Decembria Diamond will provide more than enough. All that stands in their way is the Freedom League – but the League is beset by internal disagreements. Can the heroes put their differences aside in time to save the day?

Prime Minister Richard Miller and his wife Fiona grieve for their daughter, Yasmin, who has been missing for three years, and is presumed to be dead. Viper agent Violet Parker could hold the key to what happened to Yasmin, but Violet is accused of giving away the organisation’s secrets. She is to be executed without trial. Will she take her knowledge of what happened to Yasmin with her to her grave?

Available on Amazon:

Paperback

E-Book