Americans have contributed to many art forms, but jazz, a type of music, is the only art form that was created in the United States. Jazz was created by black Americans. Many blacks were brought from Africa to America as slaves. The black slaves sang and played the music of their homeland.
Jazz is a mixture of many different kinds of music. It is a combination of the music of West Africa, the work songs the slaves sang, and religious music. Jazz bands formed in the late 1800s. They played in bars and clubs in many towns and cities of the South, especially New Orleans.
New Orleans is an international seaport, and people from all over the world come to New Orleans to hear jazz. Improvisation is an important part of jazz. This means that the musicians make the music up as they go along, or create the music on the spot. This is why a jazz song might sound a little different each time it is played.
Jazz became more and more popular. By the 1920s, jazz was popular all over the United States. By the 1940s, you could not only hear jazz in clubs and bars, but in concert halls as well. Today, people from all over the world play jazz. Jazz musicians from the United States, Asia, Africa, South America, and Europe meet and share their music at festivals on every continent. In this way jazz continues to grow and change.
a. In Africa
b. In Asia
c. In the USA
2. Why were the black Africans in the USA?
a. They liked to travel around the world.
b. They were brought as slaves.
c. They were lost in the USA.
3. When was jazz created?
a. In 1800s
b. In 1900s
c. In 1700s
4. Why did many people visit New Orleans?
a. There were a lot of places of interest.
b. It was a very rich city.
c. Musicians played jazz here.
5. Why did jazz songs sound different each time?
a. Because people couldn’t write and they did not write them.
b. Because of improvisation.
c. Because musicians like changes.
6. Where can we hear jazz music now?
a. All over the world
b. In the USA, Asia and Africa
c. In the USA and Africa
7. What is the synonym for the word ‘contributed’ (paragraph 1)?
a. Provided
b. Declared
c. Grown
d. Divided
