Pinoy Jazz

Pinoy Jazz refers to the blend of traditional American jazz with strong Filipino musical style. Starting in the early 20th century with the US colonial rule, Filipinos were introduced to American jazz as a form of "imperial labor", by US forces. While often viewed as a musical genre, Pinoy Jazz has been described as "imperial labor" by Theodore Gonzalves and Frederick Schenker.

Historical Background & Roots

Jazz and Its Roots

Originating in African American communities of the United States, jazz is the blend of African musical concepts and European harmonics.^[1] Jazz is now characterized by scholars as a global phenomenon that has been circulating around different networks, creating an exchange of ideas called an "empire of syncopation" by Schenker in reference to the movement of jazz around the world.^[2] Louise Bethlehem describes how jazz facilitates "black cultural traffic" by his analysis of South African jazz. He claims that jazz functions as a way for marginalized groups to converse about their experiences and struggles.^[3]

Jazz is rooted in the adaptation and inspiration from West African musical traditions, inspiring many aspects of jazz like call-and-response, rhythmic complexity, and improvisation. Ethnomusicologist J.H. Kwabena Nketia described the connection between West African music and American jazz to be "dynamic and unbroken at the conceptual level." Although the instruments have changed, the musical dialogue and principles have still resonated through the Middle Passage to the Americas. These are shown through traditions of the Ewe and Yoruba drum ensembles, West African ethnic groups. The Ewe people have the Adowa funeral dance rhythm, where the bell patterns exchange with low drums, similar to the "ride cymbal" pattern in jazz, an essential swing-based triplet pattern jazz drummers use. The Yoruba Dundun, an hourglass tension drum, leads while other instruments provide a repeating accompaniment. This is much like a jazz soloist improvising over the "walking" bass. ^[1]

Jazz in the 1920s

During the Harlem Renaissance and Civil Rights era in the United States, jazz was a way for people of African descent to share and celebrate their heritage, an aspect of "Pan-Africanism" as described by musicologist Samuel A. Floyd Jr. This is the belief that black people everywhere are innately linked and that they should express themselves through their cultural products. ^[4] In 1920, jazz started to enter the commercial and entertainment market through Tin Pan Alley songs as dance music. The jazz scene was heavily mediated by white bandleaders at the time, even though the genre's roots are African American. The "King of Jazz" was notably Paul Whiteman, a white conductor who bridged jazz and classical music into symphonic jazz and emphasized a style that relied on structure rather than improvisation. He argued that his "commercialized" version was better than the "primitive" rhythms of the authentic African American expression.^[5]

Jazz and U.S. Colonial Rule in the Philippines

Filipinos in America

In the early 20th century, many Filipinos were migrating to the United States, specifically the West Coast, for musical labor. Filipino musicians were widely connected to the colonial project. Some performed as part of the Philippine Constabulary Band for American expositions, led by Walter H. Loving, an African American soldier and conductor.^[6] They played mostly Western military and classical music or tunes, but it proved their musical skills to the Americans. Scholar Mary Talusan argued that American audiences did not appreciate it for the artistry or hard work of Filipinos, but rather because they were gaining success in assimilation and U.S. tutelage through their attempts of colonizing the Philippines. In fact, Filipinos have been well influenced by Westernization for centuries, as they were colonized by the Spanish and had developed their own style for bands. Filipino musicians and laborers also became frequents in taxi-dance halls, where patrons would pay for dances with American jazz and swing music. Though these became sites of intense racial conflict, it gave working-class Filipinos to engage with jazz culture. ^[5][7]

Through the 1940-50s, Filipinos soon gained active recognition in the Fillmore district of San Francisco, or the "Harlem of the West," as stated by Carlos Zialcita, a prominent figure in the San Francisco Filipino American Jazz Festival. Notable Filipino musicians like Flip Nuñez (pianist) and Vince Gomez (bassist) performed alongside African American musicians in the neighborhood.^[8]

U.S. Colonialism in the Philippines

One of the biggest ways that Filipinos got influenced and involved in Jazz in the Philippines was through the Philippine-American War from 1899 to 1902. The U.S. used the formation of the Philippine Constabulary Band and its success as a way to demonstrate the positives and impact of Filipinos joining US civilization. This was also difficult in authentic promotion, as Loving was a Black man, and it would have disproved their notion of white authority over Filipinos. Loving served as a strong bridge between the African American musical leadership and Filipino musicians.^[6] In addition to the Philippine Constabulary Band, an African American regiment called the Ninth Calvary maintained a jazz band and minstrel troupe of soldier-musicians to entertain the white soldiers. Because these African American soldiers and Filipinos shared the connection and understanding of discrimination, an allegiance formed between many of them.^[9] Filipinos also picked up on music played by the American soldiers, such as "A Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight" by Louis Armstrong, and began to appropriate the music and adapted it to funeral parades.

Jazz as Labor and Mobility in Colonial Asia

Filipino Musicians and Transnational Jazz

Filipinos used their proficiency in jazz to migrate to major port cities in Asia, like Shanghai, Surabaya, Singapore, and Tokyo to aid economic displacement. Manila, capital of the Philippines, played a major role in this circuit, as it served as a port to distribute and transport Filipino musicians who were well-versed in Tin Pan Alley Hits and jazz principles to "contact zones" with international audiences of Asia.^[5] These migrant musicians were named "Filipino seekers of fortune," a term coined by journalist Ramon Navas. The wages abroad were higher than domestic earnings, and after the massive depression, thousands of workers were prompted to seek employment abroad. Colonial newspapers started to promote proficiency in jazz as a way to get "easy" money, and instruments for the genre were marketed as investments to allow new musicians to enter the workforce easily. This reinforced jazz as a commercial trade than simply an artistic expression, and quickly spread as a labor force in major cities in Asia. They began to work on cruises and transpacific steamship lines, where journalist Burnet Hershey said "Filipino orchestras are the interpreters of jazz on the Pacific Ocean." Because their wage demand was lower than White or African American performers, the United States Shipping Board replaced American jazz bands with Filipino bands as a cost-effective labor decision. Their reputation became so apparent that American musicians in Asia became infuriated at how Filipino musicians were conquering the market. ^[2]

References

^[3]Bethlehem L. “Miriam's Place”: South African jazz, conviviality and exile. Social Dynamics. 2017;43(2):243-258. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/02533952.2017.1364464

^[4]Floyd, S. A. (1995). The power of black music : Interpreting its history from Africa to the United States. Oxford University Press, Incorporated.

^[8]Gonzalves, T. (2008, 08). An interview with carlos zialcita. Filipinas, 17, 27. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/magazines/interview-with-carlos-zialcita/docview/198227410/se-2

^[9]Harrison, A. K. (2012). Post-colonial consciousness, knowledge production, and identity inscription within Filipino American hip hop music1. Perfect Beat, 13(1), 29-48. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/post-colonial-consciousness-knowledge-production/docview/1321095530/se-2

^[7]Itchon, E. P. (2014). Traditions, soul, and beats: Expressions of Filipino American identity in contemporary hip-hop music (Order No. 1527957). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses A&I; ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global; Publicly Available Content Database. (1552917261). Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/traditions-soul-beats-expressions-filipino/docview/1552917261/se-2

^[6]KENDALL, D. J. (2022). [Review of Instruments of Empire: Filipino Musicians, Black Soldiers, and Military Band Music during US Colonization of the Philippines, by M. Talusan]. The Journal of Arizona History, 63(2), 233–236. http://www.jstor.org/stable/45501898

^[5]Schenker, F. J. (2016). Empire of syncopation: Music, race, and labor in colonial Asia's jazz age. (Order No. 10189849, The University of Wisconsin - Madison). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, , 584. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/empire-syncopation-music-race-labor-colonial/docview/2266466340/se-2

^[2]Schenker F. J. “Filipino Seekers of Fortune”: Jazz as Labor in 1920s Colonial Asia. Popular Music & Society. 2022;45(4):405-424. doi:10.1080/03007766.2022.2123476

^[1]Squinobal JJ. The Use of African Music in Jazz From 1926 to 1964: An Investigation of the Life, Influences, and Music of Randy Weston. Published June 28, 2007. Accessed February 11, 2026. https://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/concern/etds/288b4031-fdad-419c-928b-52fe9b1e4940

References

1. Squinobal, Jason (2007). "The Use of African Music In Jazz From 1926-1964: An Investigation of the Life, Influences, and Music of Randy Weston". University of Pittsburgh D-Scholarship.
2. Schenker, Frederick J. (August 8, 2022). ""Filipino Seekers of Fortune": Jazz as Labor in 1920s Colonial Asia". Popular Music and Society. 45 (4): 405–424. doi:10.1080/03007766.2022.2123476. ISSN 0300-7766.
3. Bethlehem, Louise (May 4, 2017). ""Miriam's Place": South African jazz, conviviality and exile". Social Dynamics. 43 (2): 243–258. doi:10.1080/02533952.2017.1364464. ISSN 0253-3952.
4. Floyd, Samuel (1995). The Power of Black Music: Interpreting its History from Africa to the United States. Oxford University Press, Incorporated.
5. Schenker, Frederick (2016). "Empire of Syncopation: Music, Race, and Labor in Colonial Asia's Jazz Age". ProQuest.
6. Kendall, David. "Review: Instruments of Empire: Filipino Musicians, Black Soldiers, and Military Band Music during US Colonization of the Philippines by Mary Talusan". Journal of Arizona History. 63 – via JSTOR.
7. Itchon, Emmanuel P. (2014). "Traditions, soul, and beats: Expressions of Filipino American identity in contemporary hip-hop music". Traditions, soul, and beats: Expressions of Filipino American identity in contemporary hip-hop music.
8. Gonzalves, Theo (August 2008). "An Interview with Carlos Zialcita". ProQuest.
9. Harrison, Anthony Kwame (2012). "Post-colonial consciousness, knowledge production, and identity inscription within Filipino American hip hop music1". ProQuest.