The Jazz Interest Group will host a moderated discussion of Brian Kane’s (Yale University) recent book Hearing Double: Jazz, Ontology, Auditory Culture (OUP 2024), which examines the metaphysics, aesthetics, and cultural import of jazz standards.

In preparation for a fruitful discussion, please come prepared with a question or comment for the group to consider. We especially encourage you to ponder how Kane’s ideas apply to your own research (in jazz and beyond), or how they might speak to larger disciplinary discourses. While we welcome consideration of the whole book, our discussion will focus on chapters 5 and 6, which probe the aesthetics and social significance of jazz standards. If Kane’s ontological work is new to you, we recommend as a primer his short 2018 article “Jazz, Mediation, Ontology” (Contemporary Music Review), which presents a condensed version of chapters 1–4.

After the book discussion, the last ~15 minutes of our gathering will be a short business meeting. We’ll announce the winner of the 2024 Award for Excellence in Jazz Scholarship, select a new member of the Award Committee, and discuss a potential transition to a co-chair leadership model.