Recently, the music world celebrated a significant date: exactly 100 years ago, the first jazz recording was released. Just think: one of the most volatile styles of modern music is already a century old - and that's not counting those years when jazz existed only in the form of live performances!
At the same time, all these more than a hundred years, the definition of jazz and its boundaries has remained a terrible headache (if not a bathert) for music lovers, critics, and the musicians themselves. The question, in fact, is much more subtle than it might seem at first. For comparison, take the first Toyota Corolla in 1966, and then take a look at its modern namesake. Is there anything in common between them? Yes and no.
All these questions confuse beginners even more, who, in general, out of ignorance, may think that Kenny G is the best jazz. In order to at least partially clarify the picture, I suggest you get acquainted with our little educational program. Today - about the main jazz trends of the first half of the last century.
Ragtime ( ragtime)
What is the feature: Strictly speaking, this is not yet jazz, but its very close forerunner. Even its name (from ragged time - ragged tempo) indicates a characteristic syncopated rhythm. Ragtime was performed most often on the piano in a manner that many now associate with pianists voicing silent films. This is energetic music, which is “pumped up” not only due to constant rhythmic shifts, but also due to the roll call of two hands on the keyboard.
The heyday of this style came in the first 15 years of the new century - simple and effective pieces were published in the form of notes and performed everywhere. Since ragtime was not yet so tightly tied to African American culture, over time it was reflected in the work of European academics such as Claude Debussy and Antonin Dvorak.
Must know: Scott Joplin, Jelly Roll Morton, Ernest Hogan
Enlighten: Scott Joplin "Ragtime" (2006)
New Orleans style (New Orleans Jazz)
What is the feature: This is historically the first style of jazz, therefore, in the eyes of conservatives, it is the only possible synonym for this direction. As you might guess, he was born in New Orleans in a purely African-American environment. Unlike ragtime, which focused on solo performance, early jazz was a collective affair.
Since New Orleans was and remains a carnival city, festive parades often took place there, and the first jazz bands got their practice there. In addition, one should not forget about the "entertainment" quarters, where the musicians were called upon to raise the tone of visitors. In general, there was no time to be sad, and therefore early jazz (later called “Dixieland”) was really hot. Hence another of his historical names - hot jazz.
Must know: Louis Armstrong, King Oliver, Sydney Bechet
be enlightened: Louis Armstrong "Hot Fives & Sevens, Vol. 1" (1999)
swing ( swing)
What is the feature: No matter how stupid it may sound, but the main feature of swing is the swing itself, that is, the shifted rhythm. Although veteran Louis Armstrong considered this term just another white commercial trick, preferring to talk about the good old syncopation, times have changed, and with swing a new sound has come to jazz. Firstly, the musicians moved from playing on a whim to prescribed parts and more elaborate arrangements. Secondly, the culture of performance has increased significantly (and for this swing was criticized, speaking about the "sterility" of the sound). Thirdly, thanks to innovations, this music has become truly commercially successful.
The swing era has its historical limits: from about 1935 to 1946, it was one of the most sought-after styles of popular music. Bright and spectacular big bands appeared on the big screen, and their soloists and leaders became national and even global stars. Alas, the decline of this era happened as suddenly as the dawn - and for purely economic reasons.
Must know: Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller
be enlightened: Duke Ellington "Ellington Uptown" (1953)
Bebop ( bebop)
What is the feature: In fact, this is the first jazz experiment in history. Previously, this music was primarily entertainment, designed for dancing, and now a new generation of performers is emerging who want to sweep the old jazz from the stage and start a musical revolution. Traditional swing was dissected and saturated with the strangest influences - from the academic avant-garde to Latin - with a lot of spontaneous harmonic and rhythmic solutions, performed at speeds close to drum and bass.
Bebop appeared at the dawn of the 40s, when it became unprofitable to maintain large bands: World War II began, and the boycott of 1942-1944, when musicians were forbidden to make records for sale on records, pretty much spoiled the situation. As a result, jazz went underground - in the small smoky clubs of New York, where new discoveries were made night after night. Over time, these radical experiments, in fact, was born all of modern jazz, although not all bebop pioneers have received due recognition from the public.
Must know: Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk
be enlightened: Charlie Parker & Dizzy Gillespie "Bird and Diz" (1952)
Apr 16, 2013
"Authentic Jazz vs. Stamped Musical Crafts."
Sergei Slonimsky
Main currents
Jazz is multifaceted and versatile. It has many forms and styles due to its improvisational focus. There are such currents as traditional or New Orleans jazz, swing, bebop, big bands, stride, progressive jazz, cool and many, many other areas.
Jazz is music that enriches, fills and develops us. This is history, people, names, great personalities who created and performed it, who devoted their whole lives to it ...
A jazz musician is not just a performer. He is a true creator, creating in front of the audience his impulsive art - instant, fragile, almost elusive.
Today we will talk about such a truly extraordinary musical genre as jazz, about its styles and trends, and, of course, about the people thanks to whom we can enjoy this amazing music...
“Don't play, what is already there! Play what is not yet!
These words of the great American jazz trumpeter Miles Davis perfectly demonstrate the essence of jazz, its specificity.
Jazz, as a form of musical art, was formed in the late XIX - early XX century in the United States of America. This genre is an original shake of European and African culture.
Jazz cannot be confused with other styles, because its character is unique - a magical polyrhythm, an inexhaustible improvisation based on a hot rhythm.
Throughout the history of its existence, jazz has often changed, transformed, opened up to performers and listeners from previously unknown sides due to the development of new harmonic models and musical techniques by composers and jazz musicians.
"First Lady of Jazz"
As we said earlier, speaking of jazz music, it is impossible to leave its authors and performers in the shadow. One of the most iconic people in the history of jazz - this Ella Jane Fitzgerald - the owner of a magnificent voice with a range of three octaves, a master of scat and unique vocal improvisation. She is a legend and "the first lady of jazz".
“If jazz has a female face, then this is the face of Ella,” one of the most respected critics in the world of academic music once said. And indeed it is!
Ella Fitzgerald had the kindest and most compassionate heart. She helped those in need at City of Hope National Medical Center and the American Heart Association. And in 1993, the great vocalist opened the Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation, which provides assistance to young musicians and supplies them with everything they need.
This greatest female vocalist in the history of jazz music is a 13-time Grammy Award winner, National Medal of Arts winner, Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, MLA and many other awards.
Jazz in Russia
Along with the development of the jazz scene in the United States of America, jazz began to develop in the USSR around the 1920s.
October 1, 1922 can be called the starting point of Russian jazz. It was on this day that the 1st concert of the jazz orchestra conducted by Valentin Parnakh, a great theatrical figure, dancer and poet, took place.
Soviet jazz bands mainly specialized in performing compositions for such fashionable dances at that time as Charleston and Foxtrot. So jazz began to gain popularity.
Composer and musician Eddie Rosner made a great contribution to the development of Russian jazz. Starting his career in European countries such as Poland and Germany, he later moved to the USSR, becoming a pioneer of swing in the country.
Eddie Rozner, Iosif Weinstein, Vadim Ludvikovsky and other outstanding domestic jazzmen brought up a whole galaxy of infinitely talented soloists, improvisers and arrangers, whose work subsequently brought jazz in the USSR closer to world standards and brought it to a qualitatively new level. For example, Alexey Kozlov, being the founder of the legendary Arsenal jazz group and a composer, performer of many virtuoso jazz compositions, became the author of music for many theatrical productions and films.
Birth of Jazz
Jazz came to us from African lands. And, as you know, traditional African music is characterized by a very complex musical rhythm. On the basis of this spontaneous and, at first glance, chaotic sound, an interesting and unusual musical direction was born at the end of the 19th century - ragtime. This style developed, intertwined with elements of classical blues, absorbing them into itself, as a result, it became the "parent" of such a well-known musical direction as jazz.
Among the many wonderful jazz musicians, one can also highlight the work of Igor Butman - People's Artist of Russia, a great saxophonist and jazzman. He graduated from the famous Berklee College of Music in Boston with two majors: composer and concert saxophonist. In the early 90s he moved to New York and became a member of the legendary Lionel Hampton Orchestra.
Since 1996 Igor Butman has been living in Russia. To date, this jazz musician has received many awards. And since 2009, he has been the owner of his own record label, Butman Music. A year ago, he headed the Moscow Jazz Orchestra. His musical works stagger the imagination with their liveliness and versatility of sound. Unusual jazz notes can be heard in almost every of his work. He works real miracles!
An inexhaustible source of inspiration
Jazz is music that gives pleasure. She always inspires, helps to find meaning, teaches something important and meaningful. Many books have been written about this musical genre, many films have been shot and many words have been said ...
“Jazz is ourselves at our best hours… when we have spiritual uplift, frankness and fearlessness…” - these words of Alexander Genis, a well-known literary critic and writer, in our opinion, best demonstrate the essence of jazz music, its specificity and beauty.
True love for jazz cannot be measured, it can only be felt. This is complex and at the same time incredibly beautiful music, deep and emotional. Jazz is an art to which our heart responds.
Tell your friends:
Jazz is a genre of music that emerged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the United States. The characteristic features of jazz are improvisation, polyrhythm based on syncopated rhythms, and a unique set of techniques for performing rhythmic texture - swing.
Jazz is a kind of music that arose on the basis of the blues and spirituals of African Americans, as well as African folk rhythms, enriched with elements of European harmony and melody. The defining features of jazz are:
- sharp and flexible rhythm based on the principle of syncopation;
- wide use of percussion instruments;
- highly developed improvisational beginning;
-expressive manner of performance, characterized by great expression, dynamic and sound tension, reaching ecstatic.
Origin of the name jazz
The origin of the name is not fully understood. Its modern spelling - jazz - was established in the 1920s. Before that, other variants were known: chas, jasm, gism, jas, jass, jaz. There are many versions of the origin of the word "jazz", including the following:
- from the French jaser (to chat, to speak in a tongue twister);
- from English chase (chase, pursue);
- from the African jaiza (the name of a certain type of drum sound);
- from Arabic jazib (seducer); from the names of legendary jazz musicians - chas (from Charles), jas (from Jasper);
- from onomatopoeia jass, which imitates the sound of African copper cymbals, etc.
There is reason to believe that the word "jazz" was used as early as the middle of the 19th century as a name for an ecstatic, encouraging cry among blacks. According to some sources, in the 1880s it was used by New Orleans Creoles, who used it in the sense of "speed up", "speed up" - in relation to fast syncopated music.
According to M. Stearns, in the 1910s this word was common in Chicago and had "not quite a decent meaning." In print, the word jazz occurs for the first time in 1913 (in one of the San Francisco newspapers). In 1915, it entered the name of T. Brown's jazz orchestra - TORN BROWN "S DIXIELAND JASS BAND, which performed in Chicago, and in 1917 appeared on a gramophone record recorded by the famous New Orleans orchestra ORIGINAL DIXIELAND JAZZ (JASS) BAND.
Jazz styles
Archaic jazz (early jazz, early jazz, German archaischer jazz)
Archaic jazz - a collection of the oldest, traditional types of jazz, created by small ensembles in the process of collective improvisation on the themes of blues, ragtime, as well as European songs and dances.
Blues (blues, from English blue devils)
Blues is a type of Negro folk song whose melody is based on a clear 12-bar pattern.
The blues sings about deceived love, about need, the blues is characterized by a compassionate attitude towards oneself. At the same time, the lyrics of the blues are imbued with stoicism, mild mockery and humor.
In jazz music, the blues developed as an instrumental dance piece.
Boogie-woogie (boogie-woogie)
Boogie-woogie is a blues piano style characterized by a repetitive bass figure that defines the rhythmic and melodic possibilities of improvisation.
Gospel (from English Gospel - Gospel)
Gospels - religious tunes of North American blacks with texts based on the New Testament.
Ragtime (ragtime)
Ragtime is piano music based on the "beat" of two mismatched rhythmic lines:
- as if broken (sharply syncopated) melody;
-clear accompaniment, sustained in the style of a swift step.
Soul
Soul is Negro music associated with the blues tradition.
Soul is a style of vocal black music that emerged after the Second World War on the basis of rhythm and blues and gospel music traditions.
Soul jazz (soul-jazz)
Soul jazz is a type of hard bop, which is characterized by an orientation to the traditions of the blues and African American folklore.
Spiritual
Spiritual - an archaic spiritual genre of choral singing of North American blacks; religious chants with texts based on the Old Testament.
Street-edge (street-cry)
Street edge is an archaic folklore genre; a type of urban solo labor song of street peddlers, represented by many varieties.
Dixieland, dixie (dixieland, dixie)
Dixieland is a modernized New Orleans style characterized by collective improvisation.
Dixieland is a jazz group of (white) musicians who adopted the manner of performing Negro jazz.
Zong (from English song - song)
Zong - in the theater of B. Brecht - a ballad performed in the form of an interlude or an author's (parody) commentary of a grotesque nature with a plebeian vagabond theme close to jazz rhythm.
Improvisation
Improvisation - in music - the art of spontaneously creating or interpreting music.
Cadence (Italian cadenza, from Latin Cado - I end)
A cadenza is a free improvisation of a virtuoso nature, performed in an instrumental concerto for a soloist and orchestra. Sometimes cadenzas were composed by composers, but often they were left to the discretion of the performer.
Scat (scat)
Scat - in jazz - a type of vocal improvisation in which the voice is equated with an instrument.
Scat - instrumental singing - a technique of syllabic (textless) singing, based on the articulation of syllables or sound combinations that are not related in meaning.
Hot (hot)
Hot - in jazz - a characteristic of a musician who performs improvisation with maximum energy.
New Orleans jazz style
New Orleans style of jazz - music characterized by a clear two-beat rhythm; the presence of three independent melodic lines, which are carried out simultaneously on the cornet (trumpet), trombone and clarinet, accompanied by a rhythmic group: piano, banjo or guitar, double bass or tuba.
In the works of New Orleans jazz, the main musical theme is repeated many times in various variations.
Sound (sound)
Sound is a jazz style category that characterizes the individual sound quality of an instrument or voice.
The sound is determined by the method of sound production, the type of attack of the sound, the manner of intonation and the interpretation of the timbre; sound is an individualized form of manifestation of the sound ideal in jazz.
Swing, classic swing (swing; classic swing)
Swing - jazz, arranged for extended variety and dance orchestras (big bands).
Swing is characterized by the roll call of three groups of wind instruments: saxophones, trumpets and trombones, creating the effect of rhythmic buildup. Swing performers refuse collective improvisation, the musicians accompany the soloist's improvisation with a pre-written accompaniment.
Swing reached its peak in 1938-1942.
Sweet
Sweet is a characteristic of entertaining and dance commercial music of a sentimental, melodic-lyrical nature, as well as related forms of commercialized jazz and "ojazzed" popular music.
symphonic jazz
Symphonic jazz is a jazz style that combines the features of symphonic music with elements of jazz.
Modern jazz (modern jazz)
Modern jazz is a collection of jazz styles and trends that have emerged since the late 1930s after the end of the classical style period and the "swing era".
Afro-Cuban jazz (German afrokubanischer jazz)
Afro-Cuban jazz is a style of jazz that developed towards the end of the 1940s from combining elements of bebop with Cuban rhythms.
Bebop, bop (bebop; bop)
Bebop is the first style of modern jazz that developed by the early 1930s.
Bebop is a direction of Negro jazz of small ensembles, which is characterized by:
-free solo improvisation, based on a complex sequence of chords;
-use of instrumental singing;
-modernization of the old hot jazz;
- a spasmodic, unstable melody with broken syllables and a feverish-nervous rhythm.
Combo (combo)
Kombo is a small modern jazz orchestra in which all instruments are soloists.
Cool jazz (cool jazz; cool jazz)
Cool jazz - a style of modern jazz that emerged in the early 50s, updating and complicating the harmonies of bop;
In cool jazz, polyphony is widely used.
Progressive (progressive)
Progressive is a stylistic direction in jazz that arose in the early 1940s on the basis of the traditions of classical swing and bop, associated with the practice of big bands and large orchestras of the symphonic type. Widely using Latin American melodies and rhythms.
Free jazz (free jazz)
Free Jazz is a style of contemporary jazz associated with radical experiments in harmony, form, rhythm and improvisation techniques.
Free jazz is characterized by:
- free individual and group improvisation;
- the use of polymetry and polyrhythm, polytonality and atonality, serial and dodecaphone technique, free forms, modal technique, etc.
Hard bop (hard bob)
Hard bop is a style of jazz that originated in the early 1950s from bebop. Hard bop is different:
- gloomy rough coloring;
- expressive, hard rhythmic;
-increasing blues elements in harmony.
Chicago style of jazz (chicago-still)
Chicago style of jazz is a variant of the New Orleans jazz style, which is characterized by:
- more rigorous compositional organization;
- strengthening solo improvisation (virtuoso episodes performed by various instruments).
Variety Orchestra
Variety band - a type of jazz band;
instrumental ensemble performing entertainment and dance music and pieces of jazz repertoire,
accompanying performers of popular songs and other pop genre masters.
Usually a variety orchestra includes a group of reed and brass instruments, piano, guitar, double bass and a set of drums.
Historical note on jazz
Jazz is believed to have originated in New Orleans between 1900 and 1917. A well-known legend says that from New Orleans, jazz spread across the Mississippi to Memphis, St. Louis, and finally to Chicago. The validity of this legend has recently been questioned by a number of jazz historians, and today there is an opinion that jazz originated in the Negro subculture simultaneously in different places in America, primarily in New York, Kansas City, Chicago and St. Louis. And yet the old legend, apparently, is not far from the truth.
First, it is supported by the testimonies of old musicians who lived during the period of jazz's emergence outside the Negro ghettos. All of them confirm that the New Orleans musicians played very special music, which other performers readily copied. The fact that New Orleans is the cradle of jazz is also confirmed by records. Jazz records recorded before 1924 are made by musicians from New Orleans.
The classical jazz period lasted from 1890 to 1929 and ended with the beginning of the "swing era". It is customary to refer to classical jazz: the New Orleans style (represented by the Negro and Creole directions), the New Orleans-Chicago style (which arose in Chicago after 1917 in connection with the move here of most of the leading Negro jazzmen of New Orleans), Dixieland (in its New Orleans and Chicago varieties ), a number of varieties of piano jazz (barrel house, boogie-woogie, etc.), as well as jazz trends related to the same period that arose in some other cities of the South and Midwest of the United States. Classical jazz, together with certain archaic style forms, is sometimes referred to as traditional jazz.
Jazz in Russia
The first jazz orchestra in Soviet Russia was created in Moscow in 1922 by the poet, translator, dancer, theater figure Valentin Parnakh and was called "Valentin Parnakh's First Eccentric Jazz Band Orchestra in the RSFSR". The birthday of Russian jazz is traditionally considered October 1, 1922, when the first concert of this group took place.
The attitude of the Soviet authorities to jazz was ambiguous. At first, domestic jazz performers were not banned, but harsh criticism of jazz and Western culture was widespread. In the late 1940s, during the struggle against cosmopolitanism, jazz groups performing "Western" music were persecuted. With the onset of the "thaw", the repressions against the musicians were stopped, but the criticism continued.
The first book about jazz in the USSR was published by the Leningrad publishing house Academia in 1926. It was compiled by musicologist Semyon Ginzburg from translations of articles by Western composers and music critics, as well as his own materials, and was called Jazz Band and Modern Music. The next book about jazz was published in the USSR only in the early 1960s. It was written by Valery Mysovsky and Vladimir Feyertag, called "Jazz" and was essentially a compilation of information that could be obtained from various sources at that time. In 2001, the St. Petersburg publishing house "Skifia" published an encyclopedia "Jazz. XX century. Encyclopedic reference book. The book was prepared by the authoritative jazz critic Vladimir Feiertag.
The term "jazz" first appeared in the mid-1910s. Then this word served to refer to small orchestras and the music they performed.
The main features of jazz are non-traditional methods of sound production and intonation, the improvisational nature of the transmission of the melody, as well as its development, constant rhythmic pulsation, intense emotionality.
Jazz has several styles, the first of which was formed between 1900 and 1920. This style, called the New Orleans style, is characterized by the collective improvisation of the melodic group of the orchestra (cornet, clarinet, trombone) against the background of a four-beat accompaniment of the rhythm group (drums, wind or strings, bass, banjo, in some cases piano).
New Orleans style is called classical, or traditional. This is also Dixieland - a style variety that arose on the basis of imitation of black New Orleans music, hotter and more energetic. Gradually, this distinction between Dixieland and New Orleans style was almost lost.
The New Orleans style is characterized by collective improvisation with a clear emphasis on the leading voice. For improvisational choruses, a melodic-harmonic blues structure was used.
Of the many orchestras that have turned to this style, J. King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band can be singled out. In addition to Oliver (cornetist), it included the talented clarinetist Johnny Dodds and the incomparable Louis Armstrong, who later became the founder of his own orchestras - Hot Five and Hot Seven, where he took the trumpet instead of the clarinet.
The New Orleans style brought to the world a number of real stars who had a great influence on the musicians of the following generations. Pianist J. Roll Morton, clarinetist Jimmy Noon should be mentioned. But it was mainly thanks to Louis Armstrong and clarinetist Sidney Bechet that jazz went beyond the borders of New Orleans. It was they who were able to prove to the world that jazz is primarily the art of soloists.
Louis Armstrong Orchestra
In the 1920s, the Chicago style developed with its characteristic features of the performance of dance pieces. The main thing here was solo improvisation, following the collective presentation of the main theme. A significant contribution to the development of this style was made by white musicians, many of whom had professional musical education. Thanks to them, jazz music was enriched with elements of European harmony and performing technique. In contrast to the hot New Orleans style that developed in the American South, the more northerly Chicago style has become much cooler.
Among the outstanding white performers, it is necessary to note the musicians who in the late 1920s were not inferior in skill to their black colleagues. These are clarinetists Pee Wee Russell, Frank Teschemacher and Benny Goodman, trombonist Jack Teagarden and, of course, the brightest star of American jazz - cornetist Bix Beiderbeck.
Jazz has its origins in the mixture of European and African musical cultures that began with Columbus, who discovered America for Europeans. African culture, represented by black slaves transported from the western coast of Africa to America, gave jazz improvisation, plasticity and rhythm, European culture - melody and harmony of sounds, minor and major standards.
There is still debate about where jazz music was first performed. Some historians believe that this musical direction originated in the north of the United States, where Protestant missionaries converted blacks to the Christian faith, and they, in turn, created a special kind of spiritual chants "spirituals", which were distinguished by emotionality and improvisation. Others believe that jazz appeared in the southern United States, where African-American musical folklore managed to maintain its originality, only because the Catholic views of the Europeans who inhabited this part of the mainland did not allow them to contribute to a foreign culture, which they treated with contempt.
Despite the difference in the views of historians, there is no doubt that jazz originated in the United States, and New Orleans, which was inhabited by free-thinking adventurers, became the center of jazz music. On February 26, 1917, it was here in the Victor studio that the first phonograph record of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band with jazz music was recorded.
After jazz firmly settled in the minds of people, its various directions began to appear. Today there are more than 30 of them.
Some of them:
Spirituals
One of the founders of jazz is Spirituals (English Spirituals, Spiritual music) - spiritual songs of African Americans. As a genre, spirituals took shape in the last third of the 19th century in the United States as modified slave songs among the blacks of the American South (in those years the term "jubilize" was used).
The source of Negro spirituals are spiritual hymns brought to America by white settlers. The theme of spirituals was made up of biblical stories that adapted to the specific conditions of everyday life and life of blacks and were subjected to folklore processing. They combine the characteristic elements of African performing traditions (collective improvisation, characteristic rhythm with a pronounced polyrhythm, glissand sounds, untempered chords, special emotionality) with the stylistic features of American Puritan hymns that arose on the Anglo-Celtic basis. Spirituals have a question-answer structure, expressed in the dialogue of the preacher with the parishioners. Spirituals significantly influenced the origin, formation and development of jazz. Many of them are used by jazz musicians as themes for improvisations.
Blues
One of the most common is the blues, which is a descendant of the secular music-making of American blacks. The word "blue", in addition to the most well-known meaning "blue", has many translation options that fully characterize the features of the musical style: "sad", "melancholy". "Blues" has a connection with the English expression "blue devils", meaning "when cats scratch their souls." Blues music is unhurried and unhurried, and the lyrics always carry some understatement and ambiguity. Today, blues is most often used exclusively in instrumental form, as jazz improvisations. It was the blues that became the basis of many outstanding performances by Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington.
Ragtime
Ragtime is another specific direction of jazz music that appeared at the end of the 19th century. The name of the style itself is translated as "torn time", and the term "rag" means the sounds that appear between beats of the bar. Ragtime, like all jazz, is another European musical craze that was taken by African Americans and performed in their own way. We are talking about the romantic piano school that was fashionable at that time in Europe, whose repertoire included Schubert, Chopin, Liszt. This repertoire sounded in the USA, but in the interpretation of African-American blacks, it acquired a more complex rhythm, dynamism and intensity. Later, improvisational ragtime began to be turned into notes, and its popularity was added by the fact that every self-respecting family had to have a piano, including a mechanical one, which is very convenient for playing a complex ragtime melody. Cities where ragtime was the most popular music destination were St. Louis and Kansas City and the town of Sedalia, Missouri, in Texas. It was in this state that the most famous performer and composer of the ragtime genre Scott Joplin was born. He often performed at the Maple Leaf Club, from which the name of the famous ragtime "Maple Leaf Rag", written in 1897, comes from. Other famous authors and performers of ragtime were James Scott, Joseph Lamb.
Swing
In the early 1930s, the economic crisis in the United States led to the disintegration of a large number of jazz ensembles, leaving mainly orchestras playing pseudo-jazz commercial dance music. An important step in stylistic development was the evolution of jazz into a new, cleaned and smoothed direction, called swing (from the English "swing" - "swing"). Thus, an attempt was made to get rid of the slang word "jazz" at that time, replacing it with the new "swing". The main feature of the swing was the bright improvisation of the soloist against the backdrop of complex accompaniment.
Great jazzmen about swing:
"Swing is what real rhythm is to me." Louis Armstrong.
"Swing is the feeling of speeding up the tempo even though you're still playing at the same tempo." Benny Goodman.
"An orchestra swings when its collective interpretation is rhythmically integrated." John Hammond.
"Swing is meant to be felt, it's a feeling that can be passed on to others." Glenn Miller.
Swing required musicians to have good technique, knowledge of harmony and principles of musical organization. The main form of such music-making is large orchestras or big bands, which gained incredible popularity among the general public in the second half of the 1930s. The composition of the orchestra gradually acquired a standard form and included from 10 to 20 people.
Boogie Woogie
In the era of swing, a specific form of blues performance on the piano, which is called "boogie-woogie", gained particular popularity and development. This style originated in Kansas City and St. Louis, then spread to Chicago. Boogie-woogie was adopted by Southern pianists from banjo and guitar players. For pianists performing boogie-woogie, a combination of "walking" bass, performed by the left hand and improvisation on blues harmony with the right hand, is typical. The style dates back to the second decade of this century, when pianist Jimmy Yancey played it. But it gained real popularity with the appearance on the general public of three virtuosos "Mid Lux" Lewis, Pete Johnson and Albert Ammons, who turned boogie-woogie from dance to concert music. Further use of boogie-woogie took place in the genre of swing and then rhythm and blues orchestras and largely influenced the emergence of rock and roll.
Bop
In the early 40s, many creative musicians began to acutely feel the stagnation in the development of jazz, which arose due to the emergence of a huge number of fashionable dance-jazz orchestras. They did not strive to express the true spirit of jazz, but used replicated preparations and techniques of the best bands. An attempt to break out of the impasse was made by young, primarily New York musicians, which include alto saxophonist Charlie Parker, trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, drummer Kenny Clarke, pianist Thelonious Monk. Gradually, in their experiments, a new style began to emerge, which received the name "bebop" or simply "bop" with Gillespie's light hand. According to his legend, this name was formed as a combination of syllables with which he hummed the musical interval characteristic of bop - the blues fifth, which appeared in bop in addition to the blues thirds and sevenths. The main difference of the new style was the complicated and built on other principles of harmony. The super-fast pace of performance was introduced by Parker and Gillespie in order to keep out non-professionals from their new improvisations. The complexity of building phrases compared to swing primarily lies in the initial beat. An improvisational phrase in bebop might start on a syncopated beat, maybe on a second beat; often the phrase played on an already known theme or harmonic grid (Anthropology). Among other things, a shocking demeanor has become a hallmark of all bebopites. Gillespie's curved "Dizzy" trumpet, the behavior of Parker and Gillespie, Monk's ridiculous hats, etc. The revolution that bebop made turned out to be rich in consequences. At an early stage of their work, boper were considered: Erroll Garner, Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, George Shearing and many others. Of the founders of bebop, only the fate of Dizzy Gillespie was successful. He continued his experiments, founded the Cubano style, popularized Latin jazz, opened the world to the stars of Latin American jazz - Arturo Sandoval, Paquito DeRivero, Chucho Valdes and many others.
Recognizing bebop as music that required instrumental virtuosity and knowledge of complex harmonies, jazz instrumentalists quickly gained popularity. They composed melodies that zigzagged and rotated according to chord changes of increased complexity. The soloists in their improvisations used notes that were dissonant in tonality, creating more exotic music with a sharper sound. The appeal of syncopation led to unprecedented accents. Bebop was best suited to play in a small group format such as quartet and quintet, which proved to be ideal for both economic and artistic reasons. Music flourished in urban jazz clubs, where audiences came to listen to inventive soloists rather than dance to their favorite hits. In short, bebop musicians were transforming jazz into an art form that appealed perhaps a little more to the intellect than to the senses.
With the bebop era came new jazz stars, including trumpeters Clifford Brown, Freddie Hubbard and Miles Davis, saxophonists Dexter Gordon, Art Pepper, Johnny Griffin, Pepper Adams, Sonny Stitt and John Coltrane, and trombonist JJ Johnson.
In the 1950s and 1960s, bebop went through several mutations, including hard bop, cool jazz, and soul jazz. The format of a small musical group (combo), usually consisting of one or more (usually no more than three) wind instruments, piano, double bass and drums, remains the standard jazz line-up today.
progressive jazz
In parallel with the emergence of bebop, a new genre is developing in the jazz environment - progressive jazz, or simply progressive. The main difference of this genre is the desire to move away from the frozen cliche of big bands and outdated, worn out techniques of the so-called. symphonic jazz introduced in the 1920s by Paul Whiteman. Unlike the boppers, the creators of progressive did not seek to radically abandon the jazz traditions that had developed at that time. Rather, they sought to update and improve swing phrase-models, introducing into the practice of composition the latest achievements of European symphonism in the field of tonality and harmony.
The greatest contribution to the development of the concepts of "progressive" was made by the pianist and conductor Stan Kenton. Progressive jazz of the early 1940s actually originates from his first works. The sound of the music performed by his first orchestra was close to Rachmaninoff, and the compositions bore the features of late romanticism. However, in terms of genre, it was closest to symphojazz. Later, during the years of the creation of the famous series of his albums "Artistry", elements of jazz no longer played the role of creating color, but were already organically woven into the musical material. Along with Kenton, credit for this belongs to his best arranger, Pete Rugolo, a student of Darius Milhaud. Modern (for those years) symphonic sound, specific staccato technique in playing saxophones, bold harmonies, frequent seconds and blocks, along with polytonality and jazz rhythmic pulsation - these are the distinguishing features of this music, with which Stan Kenton entered the history of jazz for many years, as one of his innovators, who found a common platform for European symphonic culture and bebop elements, especially noticeable in pieces where solo instrumentalists seemed to oppose the sounds of the rest of the orchestra. It should also be noted that Kenton paid great attention to the improvisational parts of soloists in his compositions, including the world-famous drummer Shelley Maine, double bassist Ed Safransky, trombonist Kay Winding, June Christie, one of the best jazz vocalists of those years. Stan Kenton has maintained his fidelity to the chosen genre throughout his career.
In addition to Stan Kenton, interesting arrangers and instrumentalists Boyd Ryburn and Bill Evans also contributed to the development of the genre. A kind of apotheosis of the development of progressive music, along with the already mentioned "Artistry" series, one can also consider a series of albums recorded by Bill Evans' big band together with the Miles Davis ensemble in the 1950s-1960s, for example, "Miles ahead", "Porgy and Bess" and "Spanish Drawings". Shortly before his death, Miles Davis turned to the genre again, recording old Bill Evans arrangements with the Quincy Jones Big Band.
hard bop
Around the same time that cool jazz was taking root on the West Coast, jazz musicians from Detroit, Philadelphia, and New York began to develop harder, heavier variations on the old bebop formula, dubbed Hard bop or hard bebop. Closely resembling traditional bebop in its aggressiveness and technical demands, the hardbop of the 1950s and 1960s was based less on standard song forms and began to place more emphasis on blues elements and rhythmic drive. Incendiary soloing or improvisational prowess, together with a strong sense of harmony, were attributes of paramount importance to brass players, the drums and piano became more prominent in the rhythm section, and the bass took on a more fluid, funky feel.
In 1955, drummer Art Blakey and pianist Horace Silver formed The Jazz Messengers, the most influential hardbop group. This constantly improving and developing septet, which worked successfully until the 1980s, brought to jazz many of the main performers of the genre, such as saxophonists Hank Mobley, Wayne Shorter, Johnny Griffin and Branford Marsalis, as well as trumpeters Donald Bird, Woody Shaw, Wynton Marsalis and Lee Morgan. One of the biggest jazz hits of all time, Lee Morgan's 1963 tune, "The Sidewinder" was performed, albeit somewhat simplistic, but definitely in a solid bebop dance style.
soul jazz
A close relative of hardbop, soul jazz is represented by small, organ-based mini-compositions that emerged in the mid-1950s and continued to perform into the 1970s. Blues- and gospel-based soul jazz music pulsates with African-American spirituality. Most of the great jazz organists arrived on the scene during the soul jazz era: Jimmy McGriff, Charles Erland, Richard "Groove" Holmes, Les McCain, Donald Patterson, Jack McDuff, and Jimmy "Hammond" Smith. They all led their own bands in the 1960s, often playing in small venues as trios. The tenorsaxophone was also a prominent figure in these ensembles, adding its own voice to the mix, much like a gospel preacher's voice. Luminaries such as Gene Emmons, Eddie Harris, Stanley Turrentine, Eddie "Tetanus" Davis, Huston Person, Hank Crawford, and David "Junk" Newman, as well as members of the Ray Charles ensembles of the late 1950s and 1960s, are often regarded as representatives soul jazz style. The same applies to Charles Mingus. Like hardbop, soul jazz was different from West Coast jazz: The music evoked passion and a strong sense of togetherness rather than the loneliness and emotional coolness of West Coast jazz. The fast-paced melodies of soul jazz, thanks to the frequent use of ostinato bass figures and repetitive rhythmic samples, made this music very accessible to the general public. Soul jazz-born hits include, for example, pianist Ramsey Lewis's The In Crowd (1965) and Harris-McCain's Compared To What (1969). Soul jazz should not be confused with what is now known as "soul music". Despite partial gospel influences, soul jazz grew out of bebop, and soul music's roots go straight back to rhythm and blues, which had been popular since the early 1960s.
Cool Jazz (Cool Jazz)
The term cool itself appeared after the release of the album "Birth of the Cool" (recorded in 1949-50) by the famous jazz musician Miles Davis.
In terms of sound production, harmonies, cool jazz has much in common with modal jazz. It is characterized by emotional restraint, a tendency towards rapprochement with composer music (strengthening the role of composition, form and harmony, polyphonization of texture), the introduction of symphony orchestra instruments.
Outstanding representatives of cool jazz are trumpeters Miles Davis and Chet Baker, saxophonists Paul Desmond, Jerry Mulligan and Stan Getz, pianists Bill Evans and Dave Brubeck.
Cool jazz masterpieces include such compositions as "Take Five" by Paul Desmond, "My Funny Valentine" by Gerry Mulligan, "Round Midnight" by Thelonious Monk by Miles Davis.
modal jazz
Modal jazz (English modal jazz), a direction that arose in the 1960s. It is based on the modal principle of organizing music. Unlike traditional jazz, in modal jazz the harmonic basis is replaced by modes - Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, pentatonic and other scales of both European and non-European origin. In accordance with this, a special type of improvisation has developed in modal jazz: musicians look for development stimuli not in changing chords, but in emphasizing the features of the mode, in polymodal overlays, etc. This direction is represented by such outstanding musicians as Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, George Russell, Don Cherry.
free jazz
Perhaps the most controversial movement in the history of jazz emerged with the advent of free jazz, or the "New Thing" as it was later called. Although elements of free jazz existed within the musical structure of jazz long before the term itself, most original in the "experiments" of such innovators as Coleman Hawkins, Pee Wee Russell and Lenny Tristano, but only towards the end of the 1950s through the efforts of such pioneers as saxophonist Ornette Coleman and pianist Cecil Taylor, this direction took shape as an independent style.
What these two musicians, along with others including John Coltrane, Albert Ayler, and communities like the Sun Ra Arkestra and a group called The Revolutionary Ensemble, did was a variety of structural changes. and feel for the music. Among the innovations introduced with imagination and great musicality was the abandonment of the chord progression, which allowed the music to move in any direction. Another fundamental change was found in the area of rhythm, where "swing" was either redefined or ignored altogether. In other words, pulsation, meter and groove were no longer an essential element in this reading of jazz. Another key component was associated with atonality. Now the musical saying was no longer built on the usual tonal system. Shrill, barking, convulsive notes completely filled this new sound world. Free jazz continues to exist today as a viable form of expression, and in fact is no longer as controversial a style as it was at the dawn of its inception.
Funk
Funk is another popular style of jazz in the 70s and 80s. The founders of the style are James Brown and George Clinton. In funk, a diverse set of jazz idioms is replaced by simple musical phrases consisting of blues shouts and moans taken from saxophone solos by such performers as King Curtis, Junior Walker, David Sanborn, Paul Butterfield. The word funk was considered slang, it means to dance so as to get very wet. Jazzmen often used it, referring to the audience as a request to dance and move actively to the accompaniment of their music. Thus, the word "funk" was assigned to the style of music. The dance direction of funk determines its musical features, such as a downbeat rhythm and pronounced vocals.
The formation of the genre took place in the mid-80s and is associated with the fashion for the use of samples from jazz-funk of the 70s among DJs playing in nightclubs in the UK. One of the trendsetters of the genre is considered to be DJ Jills Peterson, who is often credited with the authorship of the name "acid jazz". In the US, the term "acid jazz" is almost never used, the terms "groove jazz" and "club jazz" are more common.
acid jazz (acid jazz)
Acid jazz peaked in popularity in the first half of the 1990s. At that time, in addition to the synthesis of dance music and jazz, this direction included jazz funk of the 90s (Jamiroquai, The Brand New Heavies, James Taylor Quartet, Solsonics), hip-hop with elements of jazz (recorded with live musicians or jazz samples) ( US3, Guru, Digable Planets), jazz musicians experimenting with hip-hop music (Miles Davis' Doo Bop, Herbie Hancock's Rock It), etc. After the 1990s, the popularity of acid jazz waned, and the traditions of the genre were later continued in new jazz.
Its direct psychedelic ancestor is Acid Rock.
It is believed that the term "acid jazz" was coined by Gilles Petterson, a London-based DJ and founder of the eponymous record label. In the late 80s, the term was popular among British DJs playing similar music, who used it as a joke, implying that their music was an alternative to the then popular acid house. Thus, the term has no direct relation to "acid" (that is, LSD). According to another version, the author of the term "acid jazz" is the Englishman Chris Bangs (Chris Bangs), known as one of the members of the duet "Soundscape UK".
Jazz is a style of improvisation. The most important type of improvised music is folklore, but unlike jazz, it is closed and aimed at preserving traditions. Jazz is dominated by creativity, which, combined with improvisation, has given rise to many styles and trends. So the songs of dark-skinned African-American slaves came to Europe and turned into complex orchestral works in the style of blues, ragtime, boogie-woogie, etc. Jazz became a source of ideas and methods that actively affect almost all other types of music from popular and commercial to academic music our century.
The article includes an excerpt from the article "About Jazz" - The Union of Composers Club and extracts from Wikipedia.
