Ru
EnE. Lubyanaya
Piano as a generator and transmitter in the history of jazz art
This article examines the role of the piano in the evolution of Jazz styles. While the piano is traditionally viewed alongside other members of Jazz ensembles, the study highlights its additional, crucial functions in the development of Jazz performance – specifically, the generation and transmission of stylistic elements. Concepts such as M. Tullberg’s affordances, B. Latour’s actor-network theory, and the semiotic connections described by U. Eco help explain how the piano generates elements of the Jazz language, transfers them to new contexts, and ensures their recognizability by listeners. From a semiotic perspective, the transfer of a stylistic element is possible only where a community exists that is capable of decoding it as meaningful; this determines the selectivity of such transfers across different cultural environments.
The study demonstrates how the functions of generation and transmission – which were often separated among different performers in the early 20th century – converged to become essential components of the modern Jazz pianist’s role by the century’s end. The model is validated through an analysis of material spanning from the origins of Jazz piano to the work of contemporary performers.
The article outlines four mechanisms of integration – appropriation of form, appropriation of principle, stylistic allusion, and generativity through isolation – which provide a framework for classifying not only Jazz pianists but also other instrumentalists in Jazz ensembles.
The work of Oscar Peterson serves as a specific case study, demonstrating the consistent role of an “intermediary” over five decades; he emerges as an agent who transmits the Jazz language without transformation, regardless of changes in instrumentation or performance context.
Key words
Jazz piano, generation, transmission, affordance, semiotics, encyclopedic nature, Jazz pianism, evolution of Jazz styles.
For citation
Lubyanaya E. The piano as a generator and transmitter in the history of Jazz art. In: South-Russian Musical Anthology. 2026. No. 3. Pp. 140–150.
