Jazz explores the evolution and the genius of America’s greatest original art form. Not simply a chronicle of musical fact or lore, Jazz shows this remarkable music in the context of the complicated country that gave birth to it and shows how this remarkable art form became a part of world culture. Jazz raises questions about race and class, art and commerce, virtuosity and collaboration, the individual and the community, the confluence of cultures and the universality of experience. Jazz is structured chronologically and introduces a general audience to jazz legends like Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, employing engaging and detailed portraits of the great men and women of jazz to demonstrate how and why they make their music. Like The Civil War and Baseball, Jazz relies on a compelling, emotional, and dramatic combination of a stunning variety of archival materials intercut with evocative live cinematography, and on-camera observations.