Bebop is one of the most artistic styles of jazz music. Bebop gradually developed during the 1940’s. Bebop focused more on the freedom of creativity rather than rhythmic aspects. According to The Bop Era, it also gave soloists more room for “innovative improvisation” (Glass). Through the works of Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and other players we will discover how Bebop became such a prominent style during this era.
Bebop is a “genre of American music originated in New Orleans around the 1900’s (The Definition of Jazz).” Bebop is a very unique style of music that comes from inspired passions of the mind. It’s free style brought out some of the greatest talents during this era. Bebop had some very unique qualities to say the least. For one, the preferred size consisted of four to six players (Kamien 482). The tempos were usually very fast. It was common for bigger bands, like swing bands, to create music you could dance to. On the contrary, Bebop was strictly for listening. I would like to think of it as a more sophisticated style of music that you could hear at a lounge or an upscale restaurant. Bebop was known for its complex melodies. It was full of notes that seemed to leap wildly. It would have been very difficult to sing to this style of music. Its harmonies were more intense and varied. The rhythm sections became more receptive to the soloists giving them a broader and daring variety of forms, ranges, and techniques. You can really see how improvising took on a new importance that led to the emotional power of the solo piece. During this time some musicians were drafted into WWII. There were war restrictions on the use of gasoline and plastics, according to PBS; which meant less traveling and record pr...
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8. Kennedy Center. "Understanding Jazz: Swing and Bebop." The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. 1990. Web. 10 Apr. 2011. .
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10. Oxford University Press. "PBS - JAZZ A Film By Ken Burns: Selected Artist Biography - Dizzy Gillespie." PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. Web. 8 Apr. 2011. .
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Due to the fast chord progressions and sporadic nature of the songs in general, the sound range would be all over the place. Bebop is also very upbeat, which fits the mood of higher notes as it brings more energy to the song. The use of hitting a higher range of notes is used to express the adventurous nature of bebop. According to Eddie S. Meadows, author of Bebop to Cool, “bebop was without a doubt disjunct compared to cool jazz.” This meant there were a lot more jumps in range in consecutive notes, which is very different from cool jazz. Combined with less straight tone quality and more vibrato, bebop’s sound characteristics are very different from cool
The difference with Bebop and the Swing Era are with the melodies and how the bands are setup. Starting with bebop it his more of a complex tempo with a four to five piece band then what a swing era band would normally have about five Saxes players, three trombones players, four trumpets players and with a rhythm section playing a big dance hall unlike bebop the sound would be only heard in small jazz clubs. The music can be heard and seen played faster with the drummer keep the time for the whole band. You’re able to hear this in the tune “Tempus Fugue-It”, the piano can be heard playing solo sporadically as if it sounds out of control but the player is with in control as the drummer keeps the tempo going with a sound of a moving
Developed in the early 1940's, Bop had established itself as vogue by 1945. It's main innovators were alto saxophonist Charlie Parker and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie. In this stage in jazz, improvisation differed immensely. Bebop soloists engaged in harmonic improvisation, often avoiding the melody altogether after the first chorus. Usually under seven pieces, the soloist was free to explore improvised possibilities as long as they fit into the chord structure. Popular and influential jazz artists include: Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, & Cannonball Adderley. Armstrong is most known for his involvement in hot jazz as a trumpeter, but is especially renowned for his improvisation capabilities. Louis Armstrong, born August 4, 1901 right in the beginning stages of the jazz movement, was originally from New Orleans. Armstrong was a bandleader, soloist, comedian/actor, and vocalist. Another famous, Miles Davis, is what some consider to be the best trumpeter of the era. Davis was born on May 26, 1926 in Alton, Illinois. One unique thing about Davis was that he was taught to play without vibrato, which was incredibly contrary to the popular way of
So, bop can be seen as a reaction to the eventual sterilization and ubiquity of swing music. The first bop records were made by in 1944 by Coleman Hawkins experimenting with his swing band. Several individuals were instrumental in the propagation of this new form, such as Charlie "Bird" Parker (alto sax), Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet), Thelonious Monk (piano), Bud Powell (piano), Miles Davis (trumpet), and Charles Mingus (bass). The standard ensemble became a quintet, consisting of piano, bass, drums, reed instrument...
Jazz music of the 1940’s and 1950’s was defined by a history of change since its beginning at the dawn of the 20th century. Almost every decade brought a new flavor to the movement, and by the 1940’s jazz had developed into a mature, complex form of music, with many nuances and avenues for continued change. It is important to trace the early movements in jazz to better understand the innovations of the Bebop and Cool jazz eras of the 40’s and 50’s.
The music of jazz became an important aspect of American culture in the early 20th century. The crisp syncopation of ragtime and the smooth tunes of the blues seeped into American mainstream music through dance halls and saloons and later through ballrooms. Instruments like the piano, trumpet, trombone and clarinet became important and symbolized the “swing-feel” of jazz because of their capability to syncopate and improvise precisely. With the help of the booming recording industry, musical geniuses were discovered and their talent and contributions to the emergence of jazz spread throughout the entire country. Such musicians include composer, arranger and pianist Jelly Roll Morton who heavily influenced the development of early jazz by his unique piano style, his “invention” of musical notation for jazz, and his compositions that have become the core in the jazz repertory. Because the style was new and different and so successful in drawing in large audiences, musicians around the world tried to mimic it. Furthermore, Morton’s masterpieces were the first to show notation for complicated jazz music and thus, formed the basis for standard notation in jazz compositions today.
By this time a major change in jazz was afoot, and a young trumpet player named Dizzy Gillespie formed his own small prototype group at the Onyx Club in New York. This group met regularly and played original music based on popular swing tunes, with improvised melodies, and modified chordal structure. This new music was called bebop,
A single artist can have a very strong impact on a whole genre of music. We have seen this time and time again through artists such as Charlie Parker, David Brubeck, John Coltrane, Art Blakey, Miles Davis, and many others. All of these artists had tremendous influences on the different eras that evolved throughout the history of Jazz. Bill Evans, an American jazz pianist, was no different. Just as Charlie Parker had started the evolution of Bebop and influenced the subsequent generations of Jazz Artists, Bill Evans has influenced Modern Jazz and the generations of artists that followed him.
Koenig, Karl. "Something About Ragtime." Jazz in Print (1859-1929): An Anthology of Early Source Readings in Jazz History. New York: Pendragon, 2002. 97-98. Print.
Sources cited http://www.acns.nwu.edu/jazz/styles/bebop.html: Net Zero. 6-2-02 http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/4722/jazz.html: Net Zero. 6-2-02 http://www.kennyg.com/biography.html: Net Zero 6-2-02. http://library.thinkquest.org/26656/english/music.html: Net Zero.
Gridley, Mark C. Concise Guide to Jazz. 6th ed. New Jersey: Pearson Education, 2010. 157-165.
Jazz comprises of a wide range of music from the ragtime to the present music listened to by many people. The music evolution has taken roughly 100 years and jazz has been put in this particular evolution as one of the music styles today. In the definition of jazz, there is no actual definition of jazz because it a composition of very many music styles hence making it hard to get the required definition that would describe it fully. Attempts being made to define jazz have a basis of traditional music that have similar characteristics as jazz but not real jazz. Using the American or African music examples, the researchers argue that the definition is very broad and wide. Ernest Berendt one of the researchers says that jazz originated from America in the process of confronting Negros with Europeans in terms of music. This can then be termed as a tool of identity between the two groups of people due to the racist and discrimination aspects that faced America. This was now a tool that could identify the two groups to bring about national integration and understanding among the members of America. In America jazz has incorporated time as a special factor and is now referred to as swing. Swing means spontaneity and vitality of the production of music which has an improvisation role to play to the listeners. This particular jazz music contains a particular manner of phrasing which acts as a mirror to an individual and the personality of the musician performing that particular jazz music on stage. The early jazz musicians include Double Bassist Reggie Workman, saxophone player Pharaoh Sanders, and drummer Idris Muhammad who were performing in 1978 hence dating back to early jazz performance and presentation.
Jazz music prospered in the 1940’s and 1950’s. Jazz was created by African Americans to represent pain and suffering and also represented the adversity that racial tension brought. (Scholastic) African American performers like Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie “Bird” Parker came to be recognized for their ability to overcome “race relati...
Andrews, John. (1998). What bebop meant to jazz history. A review of Scott Deveux’ book “The Birth of the Bebop: A Social and musical history.”