Constructing the Local Identity of the Belgrade Jazz Festival during the 1970s era of the 20th Century

Abstract

The aim of this paper was to examine the process of constructing the local identity of the Belgrade Jazz Festival during the 1970s era of the twentieth century. Based on the example of the Newport Jazz Festival, organized in Belgrade as a partial revival of the original event from 1971 to 1973, and drawing on a variety of printed sources, the paper traces the subsequent development of the Belgrade Jazz Festival from 1974 onwards. The theoretical framework used derives from the anthropology of music, that is, understanding music in relation to the concept of place through which local identities are constructed—in this case, the local character of the jazz festival in Belgrade.

Although it was first established as the Newport Jazz Festival and later continued under the name Belgrade Jazz Festival, this event may be considered as a local cultural product, as over the years it acquired its own distinctive features such as program selection tailored to the local audience, organized panels and discussions, audience education initiatives, as well as specific venues hosting the festival, namely the Youth Center (Dom omladine), the Trade Union Hall (Dom sindikata), and the Pionir Sports Hall (Hala Pionir). Selection of such spaces contributed, in a certain way, to shaping a specific perception of jazz among the domestic public. Establishing and fostering the Belgrade Jazz Festival, as an event of local significance, was crucial both for the development of the jazz scene and for the perception of Yugoslavia’s capital as one of the jazz “strongholds” in Europe.

Media support was of particular importance in this context: journalists who initially announced and later reported on the festival played a key role in creating the narrative of Belgrade as a city with a well-developed jazz scene and, during the festival period, as a “Mecca” of jazz. Through their role in this regard, the editorial offices of various newspapers - which at least once a year disseminated the image of Belgrade as a jazz capital - can be viewed as sites of Belgrade’s jazz identity.

The main research findings indicate that the Belgrade Jazz Festival was one of the key factors in the survival of jazz as a musical genre, while simultaneously contributing to the formation of diverse jazz-related activities. The results of this research will be presented in a series of papers, the first of which will examine the process of “translating” jazz from an element of popular culture into an “elite” one, using the Belgrade Jazz Festival as a case study.