Jazz en Chile: Su historia y función social

Abstract

The article presents an overview of the history of jazz in Chile on the basis of the social function of jazz and the changes it has underwent over the years in terms of the values it has represented for Chilean society. Initially jazz was considered as mass popular music. Afterwards it was valued in aesthetic terms by a group belonging to the elite of Chilean society. Many of them belonged to non-music professions and in some cases were amateur musicians. Most recently professional musicians took up jazz as the basis for combining the jazz style with elements belonging to traditional music of Chile. This process in Chile is also influenced by social, economic and aesthetic aspects which are explored in this article.