Jazz Migrations

Since the 1990s, migrant musicians have become increasingly prominent in New York City’s jazz scene. Challenging norms about who can be a jazz musician and what immigrant music should sound like, these musicians create a mobile and diverse notion of jazz, while inadvertently contributing to processes of gentrification and institutionalization. Jazz Migrations assesses the impact of contemporary transnational migration on New York jazz, examining its effects on educational institutions, club scenes, and jam sessions. It urges the reader to reconsider the meaning of genre boundaries, senses of belonging, and ethnic identity in American music.