From today until March 24 will take place for the very first time Jazz Happening. Launched by doctoral student in arts studies and practices at the University of Quebec in Montreal Alice Bourgasser, this event includes master classes, social dance evenings and a major happening, with renowned artists in the world of jazz.
“I quickly became passionate about jazz, for its historical context, its musical forms and its dances, but at the beginning of my learning, I evacuated its social and political dimensions. It was really in 2020, with the revival of the Black Lives Matter movement and discussions on cultural appropriation developed within our community, that I changed my posture,” recalls Alice Bourgasser, an artist trained in contemporary dance in France and arrival in Quebec in 2016.
Indeed, upon her arrival in Montreal, jazz quickly took a big place in her life, both professional and personal: she built her greatest friendships in the jazz community, became a teacher and coach lindy hop dance and jazz solo. In 2023, she was named Canadian Lindy Hop champion; she also gets 3e place in this dance at the World Championship, All Stars level, and the 2e in jazz solo. “Jazz is the big genre, the family that contains several styles, like lindy hop, which is a couple dance, or solo jazz, which is danced alone,” she says. We practice these styles most of the time to swing style music, and that’s why we often talk about swing dances, but there is also bebop which is done to music of the same name, or even the blues. »
“Today, the white majority dominates many styles of jazz dance and maintains a tradition of cultural appropriation of African-American heritage. It therefore becomes important to reconnect with cultural values from Africa, a movement launched by Afro-descendant artists. As a white woman, I try to develop an allied posture, to support the initiatives of black minority people in our community, to connect Afro-descendant heritage to the practice of current swing dances,” she says to explain to the audience. both his doctoral research and the origins behind the project Jazz Happening. It is also to underline the origins of jazz that the word “vernacular” was put on the poster. A very important detail for Alice Bourgasser. “It means “which belongs to”, and here we want to talk about African-American culture. By underlining this term, we reconnect with the great whole of jazz. It also helps raise people’s awareness of the origins of their cultures,” she continues.
Dive into vernacular jazz
Jazz Happening is a music and dance event, but also the doctoral research field of Alice Bourgasser. She called on six artists for the occasion: Rémy Saminadin, Guadeloupean drummer who works with the Montreal streetdance community, Miche Love, Haitian singer specializing in blues, Rémy Kouakou Kouamé, DJ and co-organizer of the world lindy championships hop, Dee Daniels Locke, African-American artist who carries the ancestral heritage of the pioneers of vernacular jazz, Marie N’diaye, Guadeloupean artist and researcher, and Eyal Vilner saxophonist and conductor. “They are all experts in their artistic form, which is part of Afro-descendants. My goal was to create a network of discourses, practices and reflections to illuminate jazz in its multiple facets,” she explains.
For the occasion, two master classes will be offered: one with the dancer Marie N’diaye and the musician Rémy Saminadin and another with the dancer Rémy Kouakou Kouamé and the musician Eyal Vilner. “Jazz dances have no meaning without their anchoring to music,” says Mme Bourgasser. They are open to everyone, experienced dancers, novices or the simply curious. “The classes were placed just before weekly community evenings, so it was possible to stay after class to dance. We really wanted to bring people together, for it to be a moment of sharing, in total immersion with the community,” she adds.
The biggest event of the weekend, however, remains the happening evening on Sunday March 24. The six invited artists come together for the first time on stage and offer “a unique performance”. “The genesis of jazz is social and social practice is anchored in improvisation. For this evening, the artists had time in a research residency to deploy material, work on it and put it on stage, but the idea remains to highlight the improvised nature of their practice. explains the doctoral student. Afterwards, the group Early Jazz Band then Rémy Kouakou Kouamé will keep the room dancing for the rest of the evening.
It is for the jazz community of Montreal that Alice Bourgasser wanted to develop this project. She hopes that streetdance communities will also join in, but not just them. “The curious who love jazz, people who love to dance, those who wish to promote diversity in their lives, in their practice or even those who have an interest in jazz, its origins and its colors, she concludes. It is a dance event, but it is also social since it highlights racialized artists and their cultures. Everyone is welcome. »