fall of Jazz, beginning of SWING 24/09/2007

11:11:00
When venues got larger, because it was more popular, performances venues
got larger and put musicians at disadvantage because it might not be loud
enough for all to hear. So musicians enlarged the ENSEMBLE t make noise
longer
• jazz – combo (had melody group and rhythm group)
• swing – big band; ensemble
o also had melody and rhythm groups
 but instead had a section of reed instruments, clarinet
section trombone section, trumpet section
 rhythm section – has drum set (all sorts of fun stuff
there), Piano (gives chords, maybe guitar but no longer
banjo), Tuba (baseline before, but now replaced by
string fiddle/bass)
• this expansion causes problem because there is more room for
error. Out of tune, out of rhythm. Size demands European notation
o two things – movement to common middle.

another problem
• early no jazz flourished in oral tradition, now because of size – you
have to have someone to push order (COMPOSER/ ARRANGER!!!!) .
written down notation
o arranger forgotten in jazz.
o control when and who play solo

local, territory and national bands! Not one is greater than the other
always use pattern

music exists in time – pieces of music are made of virbative structures,

soloists have to take into consideration what rhythm section is doing. Play
according to musical rules.

at first these structures came very few and slow ex hurdle - slow harmonic
rhythm
can actually hear jazz evolve, next generation determines music

in swing more frequent hurdles and more complicated ( hurdles are closer
together and higher)

thinking in music – meeting chord changes ******

reach a point where hurdles are too fast and too complicated that you cant
beat it anymore, 1960’s revolution

emergence of urban blues had nothing to do with decrease of jazz

• women were introduced
• piano blues – boogie woogie – music is happy and up beat
• in between jazz and new swing style
• melodic rhythm pattern repeated over and over - RIFFS!!!!!
• institutionalized 2 types of music
o improvised solo that has been designated by arranger
o improvisatory – arranger tries to make music sound like it
was spontaneous RIFFS
 still have call and response
 many layers
 heterogeneous
 did not sound like early combos

In general, all had society bands or a sweet band – written down notation
• duke Ellington had a society band until someone (Sydney bichet)
came from new Orleans to make it hott
• fletcher Henderson – pianist – smake – from GA – parents were
teachers – degree in chemistry – middle class – black – incredibly
accomplished – but society dismissed him, couldn’t get a job as
chemist in NYC so created a society band, so popular that he hired
louis Armstrong from Chicago and louis made his band from
HARLEM hott, and became a pioneering model
 o fletcher was first rate judge of talent and great musician but
losey business man. Band failed because he sucked at
managing the business aspect of it.
o musical contribution is great! “STAMPEED” “WRAPPIN IT UP”

swing = cartoons music back in those days

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