Urban Studies and Planning Commons^™

Small Jazz Ensembles And Ideals Of Urban Social Interaction, Kaori Otera Chen

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

There is general consensus in urban theory that "community" is good. Nevertheless people in communities may or may not interact to a significant extent with one another nor engage in intertwined social lives, yet tend to claim within-group unity and harmony. A musical model of interaction and engagement may offer a new perspective on the dynamics of community. By listening closely I explore how musicians in small jazz ensembles interact with one another and function during their collective music-making processes and find a set of musical behaviors that exhibits an ideal model for human interaction and engagement in the social …