Jazz writer and novelist Michael Pronko shares his insider’s guide to jazz music in Japan. The book explores live jazz clubs—from backstreet dive bars to the glitz and neon of corporate venues—as well as local cafés and specialist vinyl boutiques. He focuses on musicians, dividing them instrument by instrument, from the expected saxophone and trumpet to the more particular (such as the Hammond B3 organ and even the theremin). The author rounds things off with a series of short cultural essays on how jazz found Japan and what happened next.
Pronko points out early on that this is not a comprehensive guide to the subject; it can only ever be one person’s point of view. He writes: “The information here is handcrafted, individually shaped, and personally obtained. I think that fits the nature of jazz itself. It’s about individual tone and self-expression.” Rather than hoover up information from other sources—or worse, leave it in the hands of AI—Pronko draws on the kind of in-depth local knowledge he recently demonstrated in his exquisite book of essays “Tokyo Tempos.” The author has visited every venue mentioned, and often many times.
With numerous hyperlinks embedded in the text, there is plenty of information for those who want to use the book as a literal travel guide. For the armchair reader, Pronko is a suave and stylish companion as he visits each club and introduces each musician. However, the book really comes into its own in his longer-form essays. He investigates how and why jazz adapted so well to the Japanese temperament, asking: “Is jazz open to innovation in new hands from new places? […] Is it a culturally dependent set of patterns, or can it adapt to a different cultural soil?” His theorizing is deeply thought-out and enlightening. Particularly fascinating are his comparisons between jazz music’s and Japanese culture’s shared emphasis on virtuosity and authenticity.
At one point, Pronko quotes Nietzsche: “Without music, life would be a mistake.” A GUIDE TO JAZZ IN JAPAN certainly elucidates the importance of music in the author’s life—and does so with contagious enthusiasm.
Michael Pronko’s A GUIDE TO JAZZ IN JAPAN is a fascinating exploration of how one country embraced a particular genre. Along with carefully considered cultural essays, it contains enough hands-on expertise to guide any reader on their journey into jazz in Japan.
~Kent Lane for IndieReader