¿Cómo se dice "jazz"?

Now, I don't claim to be an expert on jazz. But I've taken a few classes, I've been in a jazz band, and I think I've listened to enough of it to at least appreciate good jazz... and distiguish it from the terrible. The other night we walked into what many (multiple guide books) consider to be THE place for jazz in Madrid: Cafe Populart. Despite being absolutely packed, it was nice to get into a relatively inexpensive place with and be surrounded by people in their 20's who appreciate this kind of music. And then the band came on.

Besides being far too old to be playing gigs for the young madrileno crowds, what I heard was non-musical. The tenor had sheet music, the drummer's 16 bar solo was just him tapping his sticks together, and they all played like a middle schoolers learning their scales are. We were appalled. Giving them the benefit of the doubt, we stayed for one more song only to hear it deteriorate further. I couldn't believe that these people were getting paid. But the one thing that made it worse was the audience's reaction: people were jamming out, doing that terrible white-person groovy dance, and I'm pretty sure I was being grinded on from behind by an Australian tourist who excitedly convulsed in my personal bubble to the spectacularly crappy beats. Everyone loved it and everyone thought it was jazz. We left.

It was a disgusting display of music and afterward I just kept thinking how outright offended I was. The one thing I can claim to be genuinely American here is jazz and that's probably why I felt so defensive. I'm sure a Spaniard would be equally disgusted if he came to Flamenco studio in Connecticut and saw some born and raised New Englanders trying to do a dance obviously meant for a different culture with a different history. But I really didn't think that jazz was that hard to understand and considered it, before that night, something of a universal in the music world. And if you're a paid musician, you certainly should know what you're doing and where your music comes from. But then why did everyone LOVE that performance? Is the only reason jazz doesn't function outside the U.S. that it's too far away from its roots? What makes it so typical of our culture that a non-American audience can't distiguish between the good and the bad? Or was everyone there just faking enjoyment because hey, if you don't appreciate this music, you're probably not cultured?

I really thought there there was something universal about music---that everyone could at least agree with what sounds decent (logical chord progressions, for God's sake) as opposed to a hodge podge of attempts at Miles and Coltrane and notes on a piano. I've never felt more snotty in my life and felt terrible for bashing on a group that looked like they enjoyed what they were doing. And I understand that I'm probably reeking of a holier than thou attitude. But I was just suprised and dissappointed and still very confused.

Also the Spanish do not understand nor like baseball one bit. Apparently it's too "Latin American." Maybe some things are best left on the other side of the world anyways.