Later Jazz to Modern Jazz

As swing music grew into the most popular form of music in America, musicians became more and more likely to play jazz and experiment with the style of music. With rapid and diverse population growth and concentration of people in cities, along with the introduction of the mass media, it became easier for the music to become widespread. Big band leaders like Duke Ellington were the first to become famous. He directed his big band from the time he started it in the mid 1920's until his death in 1974. Throughout this entire time period, he managed to maintain popularity with his innovative swing music. In the 1940's and 50's, a new form of jazz, called bebop, emerged. This style was generally played by smaller combos as opposed to big bands. Musicians like Charlie Parker and John Coltrane pioneered this complex, demanding, style of jazz. The improvisation became more difficult than ever, as they experimented with constantly changing harmonic variations and rhythms. Not only did they push the boundries of music at the time, but they pushed the boundries of their social standings, as many bebop musicians also were very involved in the civil rights movement.

"jazz." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 9 Feb. 2010. .