A lot of work is going on behind the scenes. While we wait, here is the material that I've prepared for the back cover (with a shout-out to Corey who helped me with it):
What does jazz have to do with
human spirituality? At first glance, perhaps not much. The holy writings of
Judaism and Christianity place special emphasis on instrumental music as a
blessed and inspired form of worship, but a genre of music that calls for
improvisation — unplanned, spontaneous composition on the fly — seems the very
antithesis of the by-the-book doctrines of traditional liturgy and cautious
quarter-notes of pew hymnals. Historically condemned as an inherently “sinful” form
of music, jazz is a relative newcomer to the domain of formal worship services.
In many spheres, the music is still accepted with reticence. But in reality, a
study on the subject of jazz and the spiritual life proves that these two
pursuits are inexorably linked.
In Thriving on a Riff: Jazz and
the Spiritual Life, Presbyterian minister and jazz pianist Bill Carter
confirms that jazz, in its quest for transcendence, bridges the gap between the
secular and the sacred, and further, that these two worlds are not
mutually exclusive. Thriving on a Riff traces jazz from its origins in
the twilight of American slavery, to its evolution from dance music to serious
art form during the American Civil Rights Movement, and its eventual
introduction into the church as a legitimate channel of praise and lament. To
support this thesis, Carter explores the spiritual dimensions of jazz,
featuring biographical details gleaned from his one-on-one interactions with
some of the musicians he writes about.
From King David to Dave Brubeck,
from the Psalms of Israel to John Coltrane’s A Love Supreme, the
experience of music as communion with the Divine is explored with gravitas and delight.
And true to jazz sensibilities, chapters are offset by brief “Improvisation”
sections in which the author expounds on the preceding chapter’s subject matter
in the form of a poetic extension of the theme, without breaking rhythm. Citing
examples from the history of American music, as well as his personal
experiences as a working musician, Carter invites the reader to meet a God who
not only embraces syncopation but blesses the swing.
