Intermission Riff Analysis

Intermission Riff

The song that I chose to write about is Intermission Riff composed by Ray Wetzel and originally recorded by Stan Kenton and his Orchestra. I have chosen three of my favorites versions and performances of this song. The first one is an original recording by Stan Kenton and his orchestra performing live in London in 1972. Another version is specifically on of my favorites because it incorporates voices and lyrics to the song. The final version I will discuss is one played by a small combo called Brighton Jazz.

Live in London

First I would like to describe in detail my analysis of the first version which was recorded live from London in 1972. This particular version of the song is performed by Stan Kenton's big band orchestra.

The instrumentation included bass player John Worster; John Von Ohlen on drums; Ramon Lopez on Latin percussion; Saxophonists, Chuck Carter , Kim Frizell, Quin Davis, Richard Torres, Willie Maiden; Trombonists, Dick Shearer, Fred Carter, Mike Jamieson, Mike Wallace, Phil Herring; Trumpeters, Dennis Moday, Jay Saunders, Joe Marcinkiewycz, Mike Vax, Ray Brown, and of course the band leader, Stan Kenton, on piano.
One of the things that stood out to me about this recording was the unique piano solo in the intro before the band came in. I can also really appreciate the quality in the recording, which also allows the listener to notice how crispy and tight the band is at this point in their careers. The brass sections are also very impressive with the trombones having a great section sound. My favorite quality in this version of the song by far is the virtuosic playing by the lead trumpet who takes it upon himself to scream out high chord tones during the last minute of the song as well as on the last chord.
Stan Kenton and Voices
The next version I'll be discussing is the version from the rare album Artistry in Voices and Brass. In this album, Kenton and his arranger Pete Rugolo collaborated with lyricist Milt Raskin to reinvent and expand 10 of Kenton's instrumentals for at least 18 voices. The voice parts included 4 sopranos and 4 altos, (Evangeline Carmichael, Betty Jane Baker, Loulie Jean Norman, Gloria Wood, Sue Allen, Peggy Clark, Sally Sweetland, Virginia Mancini); and 4 tenors, 4 baritones, and 2 basses (George Tipton, Thuri Ravenscroft, Ian Smith, Allan Davies, Jimmy Joyce, Bill Lee, Earl Brown, Jay Meyer, William Cole, Bernie Parke); as well as a 5-piece trombone section, (Jiggs Whigham, Buddy Baker, Bob Curnow, Jim Amlotte (b-tb), Dave Wheeler (b-tb, tuba)). The unconventional big band was also supported by a 4 to 5-piece rhythm section.
The album was recorded on April 19th and September 10th of 1963 at Capitol Tower Studios in Hollywood, CA United States. One of the main reasons why this version is my favorite is because of the harmonies and texture of the the 18 voices blended. I also really enjoy the sopranos having random auxiliary parts in the stratosphere of their register. Before finding this recording, I had never heard of such swingin' yet intricate vocal jazz parts. Another important aspect of this recording that is necessary to point out is the actual lyrics themselves and how they are used in this arrangement. It almost reminds me of a fugue of some sort at certain points when the same lyrics are being said at different points in time. There are most definitely good examples of polyphony and heterophony throughout the record.
Brighton Jazz
I chose this version of the song because it was quite unique from the others.

The most obvious difference is that it is performed by a combo (quartet to be specific). It is not much different from other versions in terms of form. There is still and intro, the head, then a solo section, which can be looped, and finishing off with the melody one last time. The group that is performing calls themselves "Rockin in Rhythm". The British quartet is comprised of a Trumpet (played by Joe Hunter), a Tenor Saxophone (Robin Watt), guitar (Jason Henson), and Dan Sheppard on the bass. It is really easy to appreciate the simplicity in the few voices that are playing. I wouldn’t let their candid "street performance" mislead me doubting their

skills.
​The first solo by Hunter on trumpet was very classic and straight to the point. However, it was spiced up in the next chorus due to the addition of the melody in the background by the tenor sax. The next soloist, tenor sax, Robin, showed some real character by bending his pitch and modulating his tone to be very edgy. During the second half of his solo, he was joined by his bandmates singing accents with their voice which added a very humble, impromptu feel to the song. The styles of the two horn players are very soulful, seeming as if they had played together for decades. The next solo came from the guitarists, which is also very unique being that I have yet to come across another version of the song that has a guitar solo. The band did something pretty cool when it was time for the guitar solo. They all dropped out except for the bass, which created a subito effect to set the mood for the mellow guitar solo. This version also possessed yet another unique quality. Even though all of the versions I've heard mention a guitar in the instrumentation, only in the version by this group could I distinguish the guitar as its own sound in ensemble. Perhaps this was due to the lack of an actual drum set, which was prevalent in nearly all the other versions.. Even more intriguing was that he utilized the "strumming on all 4
beats" technique that was coined by Count Basie's late great guitarist, Freddie Green. His strumming pattern pretty much solidified the feel of the song, and probably has a major contribution to the name of the group "Rockin in Rhythm" considering his strumming gave the music a rock feel, and most certainly provided the most rhythm between the members of the quartet.
Overall, I was pleased with the face that no matter who's performing the song, they always maintain the integrity of the original idea.

Each of the 3 versions are very different from one another. In fact, they are quite different from the original recording by Stan Kenton and His Orchestra. The version that I would say remains the closest to the original is the one Recorded live in London by Stan Kenton and His Orchestra. However, even then, you can tell that he had grown and developed even more as a pianist and a band leader. The same can be said for the instrumentalists that he used in London as well. I'm not quite sure what this effect is called, but it's almost like sometimes when a band director hands out music for the first time, and his band sight reads it very well, and plays with a sense of novice, and no preconceived notions. This produces a different sound and way of playing than is produced once that same band practices and gets more familiar with the piece of music. In no way am I saying one way is better or worse. My only point is that the variation in the way it was performed is quite intriguing to the trained musician's ear.

In the recording from the album "Artistry in Voices and Brass," one can clearly get a sense of how adding lyrics and human voices can give the piece an entire new feeling and purpose. A major distinction of this song, and a primary reason I chose it, is the use of very close-clustered and dissonant harmonies in the countermelody and

accompaniment of the
melody. The chromatic passages that decorate the main melody really help to create what I am sure was a very new or "progressive" sound. This was even more apparent in the vocal arrangement of it in that there was enough personnel to have nearly one on a part (or pitch). The only thing I can say that is probably the most consistent throughout the various different renditions of this song is the use of a trombone choir. I find it very interesting that they kept the trombones when arranging a vocal version of the song.
In terms of tempo, the vocal version seems to have the most laid back of all the versions that are mentioned in this paper. This was most likely due to the nature of having 18 vocalists on the track. I'm sure it wouldve sounded a bit hectic to have them all singing at a faster tempo than what was chosen. The Brighton Jazz version, as I mentioned early, was definitely a combo version. It even gave me a bit of Bebop feel, in that the focal point of the music seemed to be centered around the solosits rather than the ensemble sound as a whole.