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KUAF Arts Beat: Exploring 'Some of the biggest tensions in American culture' through Jazz

Fayetteville gets extra jazzy this weekend, thanks to the Fayetteville Jazz Festival. Learn more from organizers Kim and Chris Teal of the University of Arkansas Community Music School.

"Jazz has been such an interesting way to approach scholarship because it's given me a really interesting lens on the history of the United States and American culture," explains Kim.

"I'm really interested in issues of how identities like race and gender and those intersections influence the music that we listen to. Jazz is a very rich place to explore some of the biggest tensions in American culture."

Few performers are as evocative of the spirit of jazz as Ella Fitzgerald. She's the subject to an interactive workshop presented by Kim Saturday, April 12, at the Fayetteville Public Library.

"I feel like she is this great figure for getting into jazz for the first time," says Kim. "She has an enormous crossover appeal to listeners of all different genres of music, but at the same time she is an immaculate performer."

Another highlight includes a performance from artist in residence Doug Stone.

Learn more in the on-demand streaming link to the full interview.

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