Jazz has always enjoyed a peculiar, privileged relationship with film because of its unpredictable nature. Thanks to their intense emotional charge, many jazz songs have helped cement some of history books’ most unforgettable cinema moments.
Whether you’re a film soundtrack enthusiast or a casual film watcher, you’ve probably heard more jazz in those soundtracks than you may think. Keep reading to learn more about the worldwide influence of jazz in movie soundtracks.
The Early Days of Jazz in Film
The impact of jazz on cinema goes back to the early methods of sound films of the 1930s and 1940s. Jazz was an up-and-coming music style at that time, and it was all over the scene with its syncopated rhythms, improvisations, and different instrumentation.
The first uses of jazz within movie scores can be heard in film noir classics such as The Big Sleep (1946). These films typically used jazz to create tension and atmosphere and punctuate salient dramatic moments, thus setting the stage for jazz in Hollywood for years to come.
Alex North’s music for A Streetcar Named Desire is another excellent example of one of the best-known jazz scores from this period. Where North had used jazz for the score, it heightened emotional undercurrents in the film, lending a raw and powerful emotive backdrop to the narrative.
The use of jazz in this respect was quite new and signaled that the genre was capable of complex emotions other than light-hearted ‘swing’ or ‘dance tunes.’ This led to its use in numerous films both then and today.
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Jazz’s Golden Era in Film
By the 1950s and the 1960s, jazz was in high demand in movie soundtracks as the genre picked up momentum within popular culture. Some of the most famous jazz film scores were composed by legendary jazz composers in film, like Duke Ellington and Miles Davis. Not only did Ellington add melodies to Anatomy of a Murder, but he also produced an elaborate score to match the film’s complex storytelling.
Another milestone is Davis’ Ascenseur pour l’échafaud, which perfectly encapsulated jazz music in films. Both Ellington and Davis showed how the jazz composer could mobilize the improvisational character of the medium to create music that was immediate, intimate, and thoroughly entwined with a film’s emotional topography.
The Lasting Impact of Jazz on Cinema
Jazz continues to be relevant in film music, especially in scenes of tension or emotional complexity, because of its improvisational and tensile nature. Films like La La Land, Soul, and Whiplash carry jazz not only in the soundtrack but even in the narrative, helping to revive interest in such a genre, especially among young audiences. This proves the genre is still very much ‘relevant’ and ‘cool.’
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The Wrap Up
The continued use of jazz in films underlines how the genre can still beguile an audience and, most importantly, younger generations with its enduring appeal. From the golden era of cinema to today’s blockbusters, jazz materializes as much more than just plain background music; it’s a crucial tool in building mood, tension, and emotional depth within a film’s storytelling.
Jazz is an emotive genre. It promotes soul deep expression few other genres can offer. Be it infectious, energetic, calm, or excitement, the range of emotion and its versatility ensure that jazz will remain one of the most influential and enduring presences in movie soundtracks for years to come.
