M-Base

The term "M-Base" is a term coined in the 1980s by American musician Steve Coleman to describe a new theory about creative expression. "M-Base-concept" is short for "macro-basic array of structured extemporization", and critics have used this term to categorize this scene's music as a style of jazz. But Coleman stressed "M-Base" doesn't denote a musical style but a way of thinking about creating music. However, Coleman has expressed discomfort with the term “jazz” to describe his music and also says M-Base was intended to be more expansive than describing music alone.