Sergey Khrushchev
Nikita Khrushchev's son

Why did Khrushchev have an aversion to jazz?

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Nikita Sergeyevich genuinely didn’t like jazz. It was purely a matter of personal taste. He loved opera and symphonic music, but jazz was not his cup of tea. Personally, for example, I don’t listen to rap – I don’t even know what it really is, and I don’t consider it music. Similarly, Khrushchev found jazz alien. I remember Shostakovich once invited him to some anniversary concert. They were sitting in the box, and jazz musicians started performing. Khrushchev turned to Shostakovich and said, “Why did you invite me? You know how I feel about this.” It was simply a matter of personal preference.

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That said, unlike Stalin, Khrushchev didn’t ban jazz. During his time, Eddie Rosner and other jazz musicians performed in the USSR. It was a different period compared to the post-World War II era when you could be imprisoned for owning a Utyosov record. I recall once Khrushchev saw a jazz record of mine and said, “You’d better put that away somewhere…”

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Yet he attended Benny Goodman’s concert?​​

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You see, Khrushchev was, first and foremost, a politician. He understood the significance of such events. Just as he attended an opera featuring an American singer at the Bolshoi Theatre on the eve of the Cuban Missile Crisis, he attended Goodman’s concert. It was part of his diplomatic strategy. Moreover, Khrushchev enjoyed attending theaters and concerts – it was a habit of his, despite many considering him uneducated. He went to cultural events two or three times a week.

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Goodman’s concert interested him from a diplomatic perspective. It was a gesture from President Kennedy, and Khrushchev couldn’t ignore it. He understood that Benny Goodman’s visit to the USSR wasn’t just a musical event but part of a larger political game. So, he attended the concert, listened, and later met with Goodman at the American embassy. When journalists asked Goodman what they talked about, he said, “Mozart,” which surprised many.

Few people know that Benny Goodman had been performing Mozart’s works in his orchestra since 1938. Perhaps he mentioned this during their conversation, and Khrushchev, who was a fan of Mozart, appreciated it. “Good job!” he might have said.

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So, Khrushchev’s visit to Goodman’s concert wasn’t about a love for jazz – it was about diplomacy. He was a politician through and through. He understood the need to sit down, listen, thank Goodman for his visit, and acknowledge President Kennedy’s gesture. And that’s exactly what he did. As a bonus, he unexpectedly discovered that the great jazz musician was also a fan of Mozart.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

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