Nu Jazz
Downtempo · 1996 · 90 to 120 BPM · also known as Nu-Jazz, Future Jazz, Electro Jazz
Jazz reread through machines around 2000: broken beats, house and hip hop placed under extended harmonies, spanning Viennese studios, the clubs of Saint-Germain and the Scandinavian scene. St Germain sold millions, Jazzanova refined the formula, and The Cinematic Orchestra brought real emotion to it. It became the door through which jazz returned to clubs, well before today's London wave of young jazz musicians reclaimed the same ground.
17 reference tracks
- Kruder & Dorfmeister: Bug Powder Dust (1996)
- Cinematic Orchestra: Channel 1 Suite (1999)
- St Germain: Rose Rouge (2000)
- Koop: Waltz for Koop (2001)
- Jaga Jazzist: Animal Chin (2001)
- The Cinematic Orchestra: All Things to All Men (2002)
- GoGo Penguin: Atomised (2020)
- Ursula 1000: Kinda' Kinky 20th Anniversary Remix (2022)
- Hania Rani: Hello (2023)
- Yussef Dayes: Black Classical Music (2023)
- Stephane Deschezeaux: Lollipop (2023)
- Koop: Tonight
- St. Germain: Land of...
- Jazzanova: Another New Day
- Koop: Baby
- Jaga Jazzist: Airborne
- Koop: Summer Sun
At a glance
- Tempo: 90 to 120 BPM
- First appeared: around 1996
- Machines: Contrebasse, Fender Rhodes
- The sound: Samples de jazz et musiciens invités, Beats house et broken, Rhodes et cuivres
- Labels: Blue Note, Ninja Tune, Compost Records, Brownswood Recordings, Sonar Kollektiv, Jazzanova Compost Records (JCR)
- Key artists: St Germain, Jazzanova, The Cinematic Orchestra, Koop, Bugge Wesseltoft
Producing Nu Jazz
Nu jazz lives on two tempos, jazzy house around 120 to 128 BPM as with St Germain, and broken beat around 100 to 110 BPM as with Jazzanova, with accents falling off the grid onto syncopated sixteenths rather than a simple late feel. On the house side keep the four on the floor straight and leave the swing to hats and percussion: a 909 or sampled kick on every beat, open hats on the offbeat, a jazzy rimshot and sampled brushes swinging over the top, plus congas. On the broken beat side syncopate the kick itself, with the snare and hats in shifted accents. In both cases layer a real, sampled or played jazz kit with ride and brushes over the programmed drums, the mix of machine and drummer being the true signature.
The full production course, in French: tempo, drums, bass, sounds, arrangement, mix, plugins and machines, and a step by step start.
Frequently asked
What is Nu Jazz?
Jazz reread through machines around 2000: broken beats, house and hip hop placed under extended harmonies, spanning Viennese studios, the clubs of Saint-Germain and the Scandinavian scene. St Germain sold millions, Jazzanova refined the formula, and The Cinematic Orchestra brought real emotion to…
What tempo is Nu Jazz played at?
Between 90 and 120 BPM.
Who are the key Nu Jazz artists?
St Germain, Jazzanova, The Cinematic Orchestra, Koop, Bugge Wesseltoft.
