A recent article from the acclaimed trumpeter Nicolas Payton circulated heavily in music circles on social media entitled, “On Why Jazz Isn't Cool Anymore.” His first sentence said, “Jazz died in 1959.” This article created quite a stir, and for sure it created much dialogue since I work in a music college, and amongst many of my students and alumni. I decided to write this as a response and a positional statement so my friends and students can hear my thoughts on this. I agr