Thelonious Monk's Hill Above the Chaos

Thelonious Monk was a bizarre fellow. Known for often wearing dark sunglasses, loud hats, and boasting an entirely unorthodox style, Monk helped to redefine jazz throughout the course of his career and reconcile the music with his  distinct culture.

But where did the roots of this culture lay? We find clues in his upbringing and in the culture that fostered him: San Juan Hill. Born in North Carolina, Monk moved with his family to San Juan Hill, NY at a young age and spent most of his childhood there. In his biography of Monk, Kelley puts the most emphasis on SJH's diversity. In this community there was more than just "Black" and "White." Further variety existed, with both negative and positive results. In one sense, there was a wealth of culture to be explored in SJH. However, these distinctions led to divisions, and divisions to rivalry and turmoil. In the end, the same diversity that pulled so many cultures close together also kept them far apart. The immediate area around Monk's house became his community, his classroom, his playground, and most importantly his safe haven–a block perched on a hill above the interracial turmoil.

Kelley goes on to tell us that "It took a village to raise Monk"(Kelley). More than showing us how Monk was raised, this demonstrates the closeness of the community itself. Monk never took part in extracurricular activities. Instead, he went back home as soon as he was dismissed from class to do something in his community. It's easy to see now that as he progressed as an artist, the community influenced him. He played because the community gave him the means to do so with its youth center and numerous music teachers and jazz musicians. He played not to get away from his neighborhood's economic poverty, but to encapsulate its cultural richness. When people proudly proclaim that "Jazz is New York, man!", they exemplify this idea that music is a product of one's environment. New York jazz is not something imported, but a distinctly New York sound.

Thelonious Monk's story in San Juan Hill closely parallels the stories of many who grew up in Leimert Park, a small area of Los Angeles which in recent years experienced an artistic renewal. Leimert, like SJH, had a history of racial tension. The residents decided to combat this with art, namely jazz. In this sense, Leimert closely copies the atmosphere that SJH probably had in the 1920's and 1930's–it was a little haven in the midst of chaos with diverse roots from all over the world and a strong love for music that gave the place a sense of unity. However, Leimert differs in on key aspect here–while jazz grew out of places like SJH, it's more appropriate to say that jazz grew into Leimert. The simple truth is that Leimert at its peak seemed to me to be more like a museum than an easel. Sadly, the golden age of jazz has passed, making Leimert's devotion to jazz and art more reminiscent than progressive. In comparison, Monk's contributions to jazz in SJH were the early brushstrokes of what would become one of the finest work of art this nation has ever seen.

In the end, I communities need to act as something to react to for a jazz musician. Whether the reaction is negative or positive can be everything here. But in the end, roots can never be ignored.

*Comments on Pritika Nandakumar's blog*