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Aab

Modern Jazz Quartet Front Cover:

Art Blakey

Percy Heath

John Lewis

Milt Jackson

Connie Kay

www.performances .org

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In 1918, the Original Dixieland Jazz Band released

a recording, now considered to be the first jazz

record. (Although the record player had been

invented around 1890, jazz was still emerging as

a distinct musical form at that time.) By 1918 most

middle class Americans could afford family recordplayers, and the demand for recordings was high.

The radical new sound of the Original Dixieland

Jazz Bands release created such a sensation that

by the mid-1920s,

As Dixieland music spread

throughout the country to New

York, Chicago and Kansas City,

the music and its audience began

to grow and change. Dance halls

sprang up in every city as people

clamored to dance to jazz. Inorder to fill these venues with

sound, jazz bands grew from a

dozen members to the size of

whole orchestras. As the bands

got bigger, the dancing grew

freer and

3

about 100 years agoin the southern partof the United States.It started in NewOrleans, Louisiana,where people from

many different cul-tures traveled,

mixed AfricanAmerican musiciansin New Orleans cre-

ated jazz by combin-ing African rhythmsand harmonies with elementsof blues music, Europeanorchestral and band music,popular songs, and AfricanAmerican spirituals and worksongs. The hybrid culture ofNew Orleans was essentialto the development of jazz.European musical structureswere combined with anAfrican approach to perform-ance, which included moreflexible rhythm and the useof the blues scale.

The first jazz was dance music.

It was not written down but

was passed on by ear because

the musicians often did not

read music. Today, jazz remainsan oral tradition, comparable

to storytelling. Most jazz musi-

cians start with a basic tune or

melody and then change and

recreate it as they go along.

This is called improvisation, and

it makes jazz different from

classical and popular music. In

many ways,

Through improvisation, musi-

cians talk to each other while

playing music.

2

Early jazz bands played at dances, festi-

vals and even funerals. Dixieland jazz, as

it came to be known, flourished in and

around New Orleans during the first part

of the 20th century. These bands included

a bass section, several brass instruments,

banjos, and an occasional piano. Ragtime

music, which was written for the piano

and developed concurrently with jazz,

was very popular throughout the United

States, and the two emerging musical

genres influenced each other.

Jazz music began

and settled. Each

culture brought

its own musical

traditions, and in

New Orleans, they

all came together. jazz is a musical language.

The Jazz Age

the young, hip generation called

their era the jazz age.

the beat picked up

and began to s w i n g .

The Original Dixieland Jazz Band

Dizzy Gillespie

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Bop

B

op

Bo

p

Bop developed a new format involv-

ing smaller ensembles and whole

group improvisation. Songs were

designed to showcase solos, and

everyone in the band took a turn

showing off as many notes, chord

changes and fast rhythms as possi-

ble. These musicians told stories in

their music, but they were so fast

and hard that they were sometimes

difficult to hear.

5

Swing music continued to

grow in popularity during

the 1930s. While the eco-

nomic hardships of the

Great Depression caused a

drop in record sales, radios

became household objects

and families could listen to

new swing music all the time

just by tuning in. The 1930s

and 40s were the age of Big

Band music, and musicians

such as singer Cab Calloway,

pianist and composer DukeEllington, trombonist Tommy

Dorsey, and clarinetist Benny

Goodman were the leading

artists of the Big Band era.

As the

popularity

of swing began to wane

during the mid 1940s,

than anything that had been

heard before. They filled their

solos with as many notes and

as much feeling as they could.Some of these upstarts included

saxophonist Charlie Parker,

trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie and

drummer Max Roach, among

many others.

4

some players fromthe big bands began tostand out and play

solos that werefaster, louder

andH A R D E R

A playing style known as bop evolved

out of swing and big band music.

44

SwiSwing and

Bop

Clockwise from top:Tommy DorseyDuke EllingtonBenny GoodmanCab Calloway

Thelonius Monk

Dizzy Gillespiesbig band

TommyPoter

Charlie Parker

Sonny Rollins

B

Max Roach

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During the 1950s a new groupof musicians decided to slowthings down and mellow the

sound of jazz. These artistspreferred even smaller ensem-

bles of 4 to 6 musicians, and

Known as cool jazz, these com-positions were longer in dura-

tion than those of previous jazzeras. The long playing record

became popular during the 50s,and this coincided nicely withthe development of a longer,

more straightforward jazz style.

Baritone saxophonistGerry Mulligan and trum-peter Chet Baker werethe major proponents ofthis mellow style, alongwith the early work oftrumpeter Miles Davis.

Another style of jazz,known as Third Stream,emerged in the early1960s. Finding inspira-tion from Europeanclassical music for formand structure, ThirdStream composers andmusicians, such as theModern Jazz Quartet,explored elements ofclassical music and jazzand then combinedthem to create anew music.

6

The Cool School

they approached jazz at a slower pace,

with a laid back, cool feeling.

Chet Baker Miles Davis

Gerry Mulligan

Sarah Vaughan

Billie Holliday

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Today, jazz is more diverse thanever.

Artists such as trumpeterWynton Marsalis (who camefrom a jazz and classical musicbackground) are largely respon-sible for the revived popularityof jazz in its many forms.

The first jazz bands usually hadsix members. Today, jazz groupscan be made up of many differ-ent numbers and combinationsof instruments. One person canplay jazz equally as well as a big

band of 18 players. Most ofteneach group or line-up usuallyhas two parts: the rhythm sec-tion, usually a piano, drumsand bass; and the front-line.

The instruments in this groupcollectively keep time and movethe music forward. Front-lineinstruments have traditionallybeen the main soloists in agroup. Standard front-lineinstruments have includedwoodwind and brass instru-ments, such as the clarinet,saxophone, trumpet, andtrombone. However, a varietyof instruments, including violin,cello, guitar, flute and other

percussion instruments havealso found their way into theline-up throughout the evolu-tion of jazz.

Like classical music, jazz hasdeveloped many styles over itsshort history. While new styleshave emerged, they have notreplaced older ones. All are stillplayed today, and all are equal-ly important to the future of

jazz as it continues to evolve.

9

Despitethech

angesinstyle

thathadtaken

placeinjazz

throughthe1

950s,manyba

sic

elementshad

remainedthe

same.Harmon

yandrhythm

remainedcon

stantinany

piece,andalthou

ghbopplay-

ersweremoreconcerne

dwith

energythanm

elody,some

semblanceof

abasictune

couldstillbe

tracedinthei

r

performances.

Allofthisbeg

antochange

inthe

late50s,asan

avantgardeg

roup

ofmusiciansd

ecidedtopush

musicoutside

ofconvention

al

harmonic,rhy

thmicandmel

odic

structures.Th

eywereconce

rned

withdirectco

mmunication

throughsoun

dalone.Pianis

t

andcomp

oserCecilTayl

or

andsaxophonistOrnette

Colemanwere

important

artistsinthis

movement,

knownasFree

Jazz.

Simultaneously

,another

developmentto

okjazzback

toitsroots,u

singAfrican

Americancalla

ndresponse

patternsands

low,dirge-

likebluesand

givingthem

anupdated,ha

rderedge.

Funkplayers,

suchas

bassistCharle

sMingus

anddrummerA

rtBlakey

oftenincluded

apolitical

messageintheirmusic

.

Finally,bythemid

1960s

musicianssuchas

trumpeter

MilesDavisbegan

tomerge

elementsfromall

erasofjazz

andotherformso

fmusicinto

ahybridknowna

sFusion.

Inadditiontojazz

,rockand

blues,elementsfro

mclassical

music,Asianand

African

musicbegantoin

fluence

jazz.Non-tradition

aljazz

instrumentsincludi

ngsitars

(anIndianstringedinstru-

ment),flutes,orga

nsand

synthesizerswere

addedto

thestandardense

mblemix

ofbrass,saxophon

e,piano,

bassanddrums.

Funk

fusion

an

d

Free,

Musicians play varia-

tions of dixieland, swing,

bop, cool, funk, free and

fusion, or they bring

elements from several

of these eras together

in new compositions.

The rhythm section is l ike

the engine of a jazz ensemble.

CharlesMingus

Don Cherry Ornette Coleman Wynton Marsalis

Regina CarterUri Crane

Stefon Harris

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LIST OF RESOURCES

11

Jazz Terms

Avant garde Describes artists whoseworks can be characterized as experi-mental or unorthodox.

Blues scale A five-note scale ofAfrican origin. The relationshipbetween the notes gives jazz andblues melodies a sound that is uniquelydifferent from melodies based on the

seven-note European scale.

Blues Music which was a product ofAfrican American culture during thelate 1800s. It often follows a particularform and scale and uses elements ofAfrican music such as call and responseand instruments imitating the humanvoice. The blues is present in all stylesof jazz.

Blues form A form that usually con-sists of 12 measures with a particularpattern of chords. The measures aremost often divided into three sectionsof four measures each and use threedifferent chords.

Call-and-response One player orsection responds to another playeror section.

Chord A combination of three notesplayed together or one after another.

Harmony The sound created whentwo or more notes are played or sungsimultaneously.

Improvisation To invent music whileplaying, usually by experimenting withthe theme or form of written music.

Melody A series of notes that together

form a complete musical statement

Polyrhythm Two or more rhythmsplayed at the same time.

Spirituals African American religiousmusic characterized by a singing stylein which the singer starts each line highand lets his or her voice fall to a low-pitched whisper.

Swing A feeling of forward momen-tum that's essential to all jazz. It's aquality that's hard to describe andwhich can't be written into the music.It just happens when musicians playwell together, with a lot of energy andstyle. Swing also refers to style of jazz

which first appeared in the 30s. It'sused for dancing and makes use of bigbands playing complex arrangements.

10

RecommendedRecordingsAll listed recordingsare available atthe San FranciscoPublic Library.

Louis ArmstrongLouis Armstrong and

Duke EllingtonRoulette Jazz p. 1990CD 781.65 ARM

Count BasieApril in ParisVerve Records p. 1955CD 781.65 BAS

Sidney BechetThe Best ofSidney BechetBlue Note p. 1994CD 781.65 BEC

John ColtraneLive at theVillage Vanguard

MCA Impulse p. 1962CD 781.65 COL

John ColtraneMy Favorite ThingsAtlantic p. 1961CD 781.65 COL

Miles DavisKind of BlueColumbia p. 1984CD 781.65 DAV

Miles DavisRound AboutMidnightColumbia p. 1987CD 781.65 DAV

Roy EldridgeLittle JazzColumbia p. 1989CD 781.65 ELD

Duke EllingtonThe Blanton-Webster BandBluebird p. 1986

CD 781.65 ELL

Ella FitzgeraldElla Fitzgerald:First Lady of SongVerve p. 1993CD 781.65 FIT

Coleman HawkinsBody and SoulTopaz Jazz p.1995CD 781.65 HAW

Joe HendersonThe Best ofJoe HendersonBlue Note p. 1991CD 781.65 HEN

Billie HolidayLove SongsColumbia/Legacy p.1996CD 781.65 HOL

Marian McPartlandMarian McPartlandPlays Benny CarterConcord Jazz p. 1990CD 781.65 MCP

Modern Jazz QuartetDedicated to ConnieAtlantic Jazz p. 1995CD 781.65 MOD

Jelly Roll MortonThe PearlsBluebird p. 1998CD 781.65 MOR

OriginalMambo KingsAn Afro CubopAnthology

Verve p. 1993CD 781.657 ORI

Oscar Peterson TrioNight TrainVerve p. 1963CD 781.65 PET

Bessie SmithThe CollectionColumbia JazzMasterworks p. 1989CD 781.65 SMI

Art TatumI Got RhythmGRP p 1993CD 781.65 TAT

McCoy TynerThe Real McCoyBlue Note p. 1987CD 781.65 TYN

Fats WallerTurn on the HeatBluebird p 1991CD 781.65 WAL

BooksAll listed booksare available atthe San FranciscoPublic Library.

The World of Swingby Stanley Dance.Call number: 781.51D195w.

The World of DukeEllington by StanleyDance. Call number:781.51 EL56d.

What Jazz is AllAbout by LillianErlich. Call number:j785.4 Er:2.

Bass Line by MiltHinton. Call number:780.2 H597a

The New GroveDictionary of Jazzedited by BarryKernfeld. Call num-ber: 781.51 N42.

The Eye of Jazz byLeonard Herman. Call

number: 779 L552e.

The Story of Jazz byMarshall W. StearnsCall number: 781.51St31.

The Collected Poemsof Langston Hughesedited by ArnoldRampersad. Callnumber: 811.52H874cpp.35, 44, 50, 59, 60,65, 68, 70, 72, 76, 77,90, 91, 94, 126contain blues andjazz-inspired poems.

Sonny RollinsArt Blakey