Old age

Old age consists of ages nearing or surpassing the life expectancy of human beings, and thus the end of the human life cycle. Euphemisms and terms for old people include, old people (worldwide usage), seniors (American usage), senior citizens (British and American usage), older adults (in the social sciences), the elderly, and elders (in many cultures —including the cultures of aboriginal people).

Old people often have limited regenerative abilities and are more susceptible to disease, syndromes, and sickness than younger adults. The organic process of ageing is called senescence, the medical study of the aging process is gerontology, and the study of diseases that afflict the elderly is geriatrics. The elderly also face other social issues such as retirement, loneliness, and ageism.

The chronological age denoted as "old age" varies culturally and historically. Thus, old age is "a social construct" rather than a definite "biological stage".

Definitions

Definitions of old age include official definitions, popular definitions, sub-group definitions, and four dimensions as follows.

People

A people is a plurality of persons considered as a whole, as is the case with an ethnic group or nation. Collectively, for example, the contemporary Frisians and Danes are two related Germanic peoples, while various Middle Eastern ethnic groups are often linguistically categorized as the Semitic people. See the list of contemporary ethnic groups for more examples.

In politics

Various republics govern, or claim to govern, in the name of the people. Both the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire used the Latin term Senatus Populusque Romanus, (the Senate and People of Rome). This term was fixed to Roman legionary standards, and even after the Roman Emperors achieved a state of total personal autarchy, they continued to wield their power in the name of the Senate and People of Rome.

A People's Republic is typically a Marxist or socialist one-party state that claims to govern on behalf of the people. Populism is another umbrella term for various political tendencies that claim to represent the people, usually with an implication that they serve the common people instead of the elite.

Song For

Song For is the debut album by American jazz saxophonist Joseph Jarman, recorded in 1966 and released on the Delmark label.

Background

Jarman's regular quintet with saxophonist Fred Anderson, trumpeter Billy Brimfield, bassist Charles Clark and drummer Thurman Barker was augmented for the record by another drummer, Steve McCall, and a new figure, pianist Christopher Gaddy, who had just returned from army service. Gaddy died on March 12, 1968, less than a month before his twenty-fifth birthday. Song For was his only recorded performance. Before joining Jarman, Anderson and Brimfield co-led a quartet which was one of the seminal AACM group.

Music

"Adam's Rib" is a Brimfield tune, while "Little Fox Run"" is an Anderson composition (the CD edition adds an unissued take of this piece). “Non-Cognitive Aspects of the City” is a work combining music with an extended poem by Jarman himself.

Reception

Scott Yanow, in his review for AllMusic claims "this music was the next step in jazz after the high-energy passions of the earlier wave of the avant-garde started to run out of fresh ideas".The Penguin Guide to Jazz states about the album "Of great documentary and historical significance, though unlikely to effect any dramatic conversions."