PRJC Zoom Jazz Talk: "Jazz à la Creole" featuring author Caroline Vézina

FREE ONLINE via Zoom: "Jazz à la Creole: French Creole Music and the Birth of Jazz" is a captivating exploration of the roots and evolution of jazz music.

PLEASE NOTE: RSVP ON MEETUP DOES NOT REGISTER YOU FOR THIS EVENT! YOU MUST REGISTER USING THIS LINK BY 5 PM ON THE DAY OF THE EVENT TO RECEIVE THE LOGIN INFORMATION TO ATTEND THE EVENT!

Jazz à la Creole: French Creole Music and the Birth of Jazz (University Press of Mississippi, 2022).

Winner of the 2023 Award for Excellence for Best Historical Research in Recorded Jazz from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections.

During the formative years of jazz (1890–1917), Creoles musicians played a significant role in its development as teachers, bandleaders, instrumentalists, singers, and composers, Indeed, free or enslaved, the French Creoles all danced, played music or sang on multiple and diverse occasions, whether on plantations, at home or at church, in orchestras or even in the military, and their music incorporated African, European, and Caribbean elements decades before early jazz appeared.

They also composed or improvised Creole songs, some of which became part of their professional repertoire. As such, they belong both to the Black American folk music that gave birth to jazz, and to Franco-American folk music, thus reflecting the rich cultural heritage of Louisiana as they are still being played and recorded today.

Based in Montreal, Caroline Vézina is an independent scholar specializing in the study of music and culture. She holds a BFA specialized in Jazz Studies and a MA in Music and Culture (2014). After graduation, she split her time between her hometown and New Orleans for many years to further her research on the music of the French Creoles. She is now completing a Certificate in Songwriting with Berklee Music Online.

Register before 5:00p.m. the day of the presentation to receive the Zoom link. This is a FREE talk, but we appreciate contributions toward the program via "Donation Tickets" which help offset the cost of the program.

The PRJC has been bringing trad jazz and swing music to the DC area for 52 years in the way of concerts, jams, and talks. Our Jazz Talk series centers around early jazz topics and features top musicians and historians. As these are all hosted on Zoom, you can enjoy them wherever you are.

The PRJC began its Jazz Talk series during the pandemic shutdown as a way to support musicians who were less able to work. The series has blossomed into an ongoing project featuring speakers from across the country focusing on trad jazz and swing topics.

Registration for this talk is required by 5pm the night of the event. You will receive the link by email about 30 minutes before the program begins.

You can support the PRJC or our Educational Talks and Concerts with a donation using the Paypal link.

More info is on the Events page of the PRJC web site.

Video recording of the event will be posted on the PRJC YouTube channel after it is completed.

PRJC’s programs are supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council and the Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County.