Towards an Inclusive Jazz Pedagogy: Lessons from Post-Apartheid South Africa

Abstract

Women have come to represent around half of the enrolees in South African tertiary jazz programmes, yet remain under-represented in the academy, professional performance, and composition spaces. This mirrors international patterns of exclusion and marginalization in what is now widely known as a hostile environment for women and others who do not conform to patriarchal discourses. Mostly modelled after American programmes, South African tertiary jazz programs have historically foregrounded the technical mastery of bebop, propagating the master narrative of jazz as a masculine domain and side-lining other forms of jazz and jazz-adjacent genres. Closely tied to this tradition is a well-documented culture of systemic racism, sexism and misogyny. In recent years, this culture has started to wane because of the presence of empowered and empowering women at the highest levels of its tertiary education and professional performance scenes. Amanda Tiffin and Chantal Willie-Petersen both occupy positions of power traditionally reserved for men and use their respective platforms to advocate for gender equality and de-colonialism in jazz education and practice. They represent a growing contingent of jazz educators committed to eradicating outdated pedagogical traditions rooted in oppressive hierarchies of power.   Focusing on narratives of resilience and agency, this article draws on elements of feminist post-structuralism and theories of dis-identification to amplify the work of progressive educators like Tiffin and Willie-Petersen. Their own experiences of “othering” have informed multiple aspects of their pedagogical practices, from curricular design to the creation of nurturing learning spaces both within and beyond the classroom. This article explores the impact of feminist pedagogical practices and social awareness on the transformation of what had, until recently, been a highly exclusionary space. Moreover, it aims to encourage scholarship that pays close attention to the complex intersection of gender, race and colonialism in jazz education.