Rapp on Jazz

All Stations: Mon-Fri, throughout the day

Rapp on Jazz, co-produced by South Carolina Public Radio and the ColaJazz Foundation, highlights the Palmetto State's connection to the history of jazz music and the current jazz scene. Join Mark Rapp, executive director of the foundation and host of SC Public Radio’s ColaJazz Presents, for these 60-second segments covering everything from famous South Carolinians like Dizzy Gillespie and Eartha Kitt to the “Big Apple” dance craze of the 1930s to the best clubs to experience jazz in the state.

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Latest Episodes

Rapp on Jazz: Langston Hughes and jazz

Langston Hughes, one of the leading voices of the Harlem Renaissance, often described his poetry as “jazz written on the page.” He was deeply inspired by the rhythms, improvisation, and spirit of African American music.
Rapp on Jazz: 'The Sound and the Fury'

Though set in the American South and often associated with stream-of-consciousness narrative, William Faulkner’s "The Sound and the Fury" also resonates with jazz's rhythms and improvisational spirit.
Rapp on Jazz: 'The Great Gatsby'

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s "The Great Gatsby" is as much a story of jazz as it is of love and ambition.
Rapp on Jazz: The role of basslines in jazz

In jazz, the bassline is the heartbeat of the music. The bassist provides the harmonic foundation, outlining the chord changes while keeping the rhythm moving.
Rapp on Jazz: Blue notes

One of the defining sounds of jazz is the blue note—a pitch slightly lowered from the standard scale. These notes give jazz its characteristic tension, color, and emotional depth.
Rapp on Jazz: The structure of jazz standards

When we talk about jazz standards, we’re really talking about a shared songbook—a common language that musicians use to connect. Most standards follow a structure borrowed from popular songs of the 1920s through the 1950s.
Rapp on Jazz: Jazz fusion

Jazz fusion emerged in the late 1960s and ’70s as musicians began blending jazz improvisation with the rhythms, textures, and energy of rock, funk, and world music.
Rapp on Jazz: Resilience and innovation

From the Great Depression through World War II and into the postwar era, jazz has been a story of resilience and innovation.In the 1930s, swing lifted spirits and brought people together during hard times.
Rapp on Jazz: The rise of global jazz

By the 1950s and ’60s, jazz had become a global art form. American musicians toured widely, sometimes as part of U.S. State Department “jazz ambassador” programs.
Rapp on Jazz: Modal jazz

In the late 1950s, a new approach to improvisation began to take shape—modal jazz.