In 1956, when the cold war was at its peak, America deployed a "secret sonic weapon", as a newspaper headline put it at the time. That weapon was Dizzy Gillespie, a famed jazz musician, who was given the task of changing the world's view of American culture through rhythm and syncopation. Crowds poured into the street to dance. Cultural diplomacy died down after the cold war ended. But the attacks of September 11th 2001 convinced the State Department to send out America's musicians once again to woo hearts and minds with melody.rnRhythm Road, a programme run by the State Department and a non-profit organisation, Jazz at Lincoln Centre, has made informal diplomats out of both musicians and audiences. Since it began in 2005, musicians have travelled to 96 countries. One band went to Mauritania after last year's coup; many depart for countries that have strained relationships with America. The musicians travel to places where some people have never seen an American.
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