Jazz repertoire for Weddings
Main Jazz Styles up to 1960
Jazz spans a wide and sometimes confusing range of music and styles. Perhaps this summary will help you determine the kind of jazz that you are most interested in.
Ragtime
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Strictly speaking this is not a jazz style, but it is often thought of as one of the precursors of jazz.
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It dates from the latter half of the 19th Century.
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The majority of rags were originally written as piano pieces, but many well-known pieces have been arranged for other instrument combinations.
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Ragtime is primarily a composed form. Unlike jazz it doesn’t contain improvisation, although many rag themes have subsequently been used for jazz improvisation.
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They are exuberant in mood and are usually played at a steady speed.
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Distinctive features include a bouncy, off-beat melody against a strong bass line.
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The most famous composer of rags is Scott Joplin. He wrote more than 600 of these. His best- known pieces include The Entertainer and Maple Leaf Rag.
New Orleans Style
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This occurred from 1910- 1930.
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The most common instrumental line-up for this style is: cornet/trumpet, trombone, clarinet, double bass/tuba, banjo/guitar, sometimes piano and drums.
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The most distinctive feature is the inter-play between the front- line instruments (cornet/trumpet, trombone and clarinet). They all improvise at the same time (collective improvisation), creating a texture that is unique.
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As a result of this, the music can sound strident, but it is always lively and up- beat.
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A New Orleans piece will usually include some solos.
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The most famous band- leader in this style is Louis Armstrong.
Dixieland Jazz
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This dates from the same period as New Orleans jazz, and is similar in style.
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The principle difference is the lack of solos. Most pieces are based on collective improvisation throughout.
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Lively speeds are common.
Chicago Style
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Again, this is similar to New Orleans jazz.
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The whole ensemble will usually play at the beginning and end of a piece, with collective improvisation from the front- line. A succession of solos will occur in the middle.
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Chicago jazz is usually more boisterous than New Orleans jazz.
Swing
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A completely new style that occurred during the 1930s.
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Big bands became popular, with the 13-piece band being common.
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The standard instrumental line-up for a swing band is: 3 trumpets, 2 trombones, 4 reeds(usually saxophones), piano, guitar, double bass and drums.
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The sound is distinctively rich and full, with characteristic inter-play between the brass and reed sections, who often share out the melodic work.
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Improvised solos are common.
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At the time much of this music was used for dancing.
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Famous band –leaders of the period include Duke Ellington and Count Basie.
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Famous soloists include Lester Young and Benny Goodman.
Bebop
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This gradually appeared during the 1940s as a reaction against the increasing commercialism of Swing.
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Smaller ensembles were the norm, with a typical ensemble comprising: trumpet, saxophone, piano, double bass and drums.
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Bebop harmony tends to consist of quite complex chords, and players improvise freely over these.
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Improvisations are usually technically demanding, showing off the players command of their instrument, and they generally move a long way from the original theme of the piece(which will be played by the ensemble at the beginning and end of the piece).
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Unlike Swing, this music is to be listened to and is not for dancing.
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Famous band- leaders of the period include Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker and Thelonious Monk.
Cool Jazz
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This dates from the 1950s.
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Band sizes at the time were flexible, but smaller ensembles were often more commercially viable.
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The standard instrumentation of trumpet, trombone, saxophone, piano, double bass and drums remains the heart of a large ensemble, but there were also experiments with instruments such as the French horn, alto flute and bass clarinet to create special effects.
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The dominant feature of the style is its calm, relaxed playing and warm sound.
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Solos are common.
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Some of the best- known musicians of this period include Gerry Mulligan and Miles Davis.
Hard Bop
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This is another style from the 1950s, and contrasts hugely with cool jazz.
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The music is earthy and extrovert with prominent drumming.
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It is usually lively, with a sense of driving forward.
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Like Bebop, ensembles tend to be small, with a typical comprising trumpet, saxophone, piano, double bass and drums.
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Famous musicians from this style include Dizzy Gillespie, Quincy Jones and John Coltrane.
More information about the jazz idiom can be found here:
- History of jazz from the viewpoint of a fiddle player
- Origins of Jazz
- Jazz and folk music
- Formal notation of jazz
- The origins of spirituals in jazz
- Printed music versus tradition in jazz
- Rhythmic Elements of Jazz
- Emphasis in Jazz Rhythms
- Emotions and Jazz Rhythms
- Sections of a Jazz Band
- Jazz Pollyrhythm
- The Big Jazz Band - the Jazz Orchestra
- The Standardised Jazz Orchestra
- Commercial Jazz Band Orchestration
- The Psychology of Jazz Band Syncopation
- Tap Dancing & the Jazz Band
- The Jazz Band & Indo Jazz Fusion
- Blues and Transforming Jazz into an Art Form
- The Jazz Band in the American Psych