Examining the artistry of jazz

Attempting to “examine jazz as an art form,” the San Luis Obispo City/County Library will host a program called “Looking at Jazz” Tuesday evenings from April 8 to May 13. Each of the program’s six two-hour classes from 6 to 8 p.m. will feature a film during the first hour and a discussion during the second hour.

Focusing more on the aesthetic aspect of the music rather than technical or historic facts, the program will emphasize appreciation of the subject. But you don’t have to be a jazz musician or enthusiast to enjoy the class, said Kristine Tardiff, head librarian of the downtown library.

Fred Friedman, a former Cal Poly mechanical engineering professor and host of KCBX’s (90.1 FM) Jazz Liner Notes show, will teach the class. The classes progress chronologically, starting with New Orleans and the origins of jazz, following up with jazz in Harlem, the swing era, bebop; it will conclude with Latin jazz and international music.

“(Friedman’s) goal is to see (jazz) more as visual art. People who are visual will get a lot out of (the program),” Tardiff said.

The free classes are sponsored by the San Luis Obispo Friends of the Library. A similar program was offered at the Lompoc branch and was so popular that Tardiff wanted to start the program in San Luis Obispo.

Because the month of April has been designated Jazz Appreciation Month by The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History, the classes also have a timely context.

“We’ve had a really good response so far,” Tardiff said. The class has a maximum enrollment of 25 people, and 20 are already enrolled. Tardiff said the class will probably hit its maximum enrollment.

“We’re really interested in increasing our adult programs,” Tardiff said. Since moving to San Luis Obispo from Seattle in October, Tardiff said she wants to bring in the community by offering more adult classes. Although the library offers various programs for children – story times and summer reading programs – they lack options for an older audience, Tardiff said.

“I like the idea of appealing to the general population,” Tardiff said.

Tardiff hopes to start a series of new cultural programs at the library this summer, among them a film series.