Le Jazz is a five-minute movement for vocals and symphony orchestra composed in 1928. It consciously reflects blues techniques and traditional jazz in general, touching on the fashionable wave of the late 1920s, commercially conceived "sweet music." The instrumentation includes saxophones, banjos, and even three jazz singers. The composition is reminiscent of the style of Jaroslav Ježek's popular Czech dance band. Though humorous, skilful and entertaining, the piece has no relevance to Martinů's development as a symphonic composer.
Michael Crump, Martinů and the Symphony, London: Toccata Press, 2010, p. 54.
Václav Riedlbauch, Dny Bohuslava Martinů 2015, Prague: Nadace Bohuslava Martinů, 2016, p. 35 [completed and translated by Zuzana Votavová, 2026].