Jazz History Overview.

(book and three CDs), by Gordon Vernick and Geoffrey Haydon. Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company (4050 Westmark Dr., Dubuque, IA 52004-1840), 2002. 217 pp., $83.95.

Authors Gordon Vernick and Geoffrey Haydon provide an interesting and highly organized overview of jazz history. Jazz is many things at once and different things for different people. In Jazz History Overview, the complex issues encountered in the development of this unique art form are strategically simplified to guide students, musicians and jazz aficionados through a fascinating chronological and aural journey.

Vernick and Haydon carefully avoid the idiomatic definition of jazz and instead guide the reader through an aesthetic appreciation of the African and European elements contributing to this fusion of music traditions. The authors integrate chapters on chronological development ("The Swing Era," "BeBop," "Cool Style" and so forth) with provocative discussions about individuals who provided substantial contributions to the art form (Duke Ellington, John Coltrane, Bill Evans and others). In addition, references to significant artists in each performance genre are liberally distributed throughout the text. The addition of a three-disc CD collection provides an aural reference to accompany this informative text. Kudos to the authors for their imaginative selection of performance artists and repertoire to enhance the narrative.

Jazz History Overview is a good read. The authors have taken the mystery out of the origins and development of jazz, and the book is exactly what its title implies. This is the product of two individuals who directed their collective pedagogical and performance skills toward the realization of a comprehensive and accessible text.

Scott Prebys, Bismarck, North Dakota.