In the late 1940s, influenced by BARTOK, STRAVINSKY, and other concert-music composers, Kenton began to explore new sounds. However, in 1949, at the peak of his popularity, he shocked the jazz world by disbanding the “Artistry in Rhythm
” band with this explanation: “We're nervous, sick, unhappy, and our music is going to become all of those things too.
” For a while, Kenton appeared to have abandoned music and planned to become a psychiatrist, but in 1950...