Chamber Jazz

Chamber jazz is a genre of jazz based around small, acoustic-based ensembles where group interplay is important. It is influenced aesthetically by musical neoclassicism and is often influenced by classical forms of non-Western music. That stated in many cases the influence is traditional Celtic music, Central European folk music, or Latin American music instead. The genre primarily began in Europe so significant neoclassical composers of Europe, like Igor Stravinsky, are important in it. It is also noted for using instruments not normally associated with jazz. For example chamber jazz will make use of the oboe, mandolin, cymbalum, or the tabla.

The non-Western influences or instrumentation make chamber jazz at times listed as a kind of world music. At other times the fusion of neoclassical with jazz is deemed to be New Age and several albums of chamber jazz were released by Windham Hill Records. Windham Hill itself was co-founded by a musician linked to chamber jazz and was initially known for folk or world music.

The term is also used, on occasion, to simply mean the fusion of chamber music with jazz. In this case it means something similar to third stream, but without the orchestral aspect third stream leans toward.