There are many modern terms that label 'relaxation Jazz' - music that evokes a feeling of calm – to relax, to chill-out. Jazz Fusion evolved in the late 1960's when musicians combined jazz harmony and improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues.
Smooth Jazz (which can also cross-over into Lounge music) was inspired by artists like St. Germain, and Kruder & Dorfmeister, who gave birth to the new underground Lounge/Jazz sound of the early 1990s by combining sampled Jazz elements with electronic beats.
Lounge/Jazz music is a big influence within highly specialised music circles and avant-garde Jazz connoisseurs, as well as in TV commercials and background video music. This genre remains a mainstay among the most selective and refined audiences and clubs world-wide. It's also very popular in Nordic cinema and at Jazz festivals across the world. [source: John van der Lugt, Gregor Theelen]
The various names for the relaxation-style of Jazz music I like, include: Chill Out, Chill Hop, Lounge Jazz, Ambient Jazz, Funk, Chillax, Fusion, Jazz Hop, Smooth Jazz, and Late-Night Piano Bar Jazz. I take inspiration from all the various sub-genres of Jazz and am influenced by all - I just call my style Smooth Jazz, or Ambient Smooth / Lounge Jazz. My aim is to create a resource for some experimental relaxing soundscapes that have a little of these elements 'fused' into each track. Some are a blend of relaxed, laid-back funk-style rhythm with a splash of melody, harmony and a little kick, or beat. Others allow us to immerse deeper into moodier, jazz-inspired excursions, sans beat.
