Is Jazz in Europe European Jazz? Countries, Continents, and Cultural Ownership

This chapter addresses some of the questions involved in the historiography of the jazz diaspora in Europe. The understanding of jazz in Europe tends to be shaped in dialogue with American jazz histories. But what does it mean to call a practice such as jazz, European or American? How do we ascribe cultural ownership, and what problems emerge as a consequence? Can we speak of European jazz?
The vast majority of jazz texts still focus on the music’s history in The US, which all too often invites a US-centric perspective. Recent overviews that deal with jazz in Europe run the risk of working from a similar essentialist vantage point, yielding equally EU-centric texts replete with local chauvinisms. One of the persistent criticisms that European jazz studies face is that the focus on individual countries obliterates jazz’s (presumed) universality. This chapter argues that while transnational perspectives are valuable and needed, many commentators underestimate how culturally diverse Europe is, and any reception history that ignores that diversity risks overlooking crucial points.