Transcript 2013-04-16

M100: Music Appreciation
Discussion Group
Ben Tibbetts, T.A.
[email protected]
Tuesday April 16, 2013
Welcome! Please sign the attendance at the front of the room.
Today’s Agenda
•
•
Pages 399-415
Jazz Lab
Moodle’s updated
Pass back stuff
Going over Classical Test
A. Listening
Example 1:
1. Haydn
2. Symphony No. 94 (2nd movement)
3. Theme and variations
4. (music elements)
A. Listening
Example 2:
1. Mozart
2. Symphony No. 40 (first movement)
3. Sonata-allegro form
4. First movement (or, possibly, last
movement)
A. Listening
Example 3
1. Mozart
2. “Cosa sento” from “The Marriage of Figaro”
3. Lorenzo Da Ponte
4. Opera buffa
B. Short Answer
1.
2.
3.
“A form in which an opening theme (A) returns
repeatedly over the course of the movement,
interspersed with contrasting ideas (B, C, etc.). An
example of the resulting pattern would be ABACA.” –page
518
“A musical structure in which antecedent and consequent
phrase units make up a larger whole.” –page 517
“A musical structure consisting of an exposition,
development, and recapitulation, allowing for the
presentation, development, and resolution of multiple
themes within a single movement. Sonata form was
widely used throughout the Classical Era and the
nineteenth century.” –page 518
B. Short Answer
4. “Italian for ‘comic opera’; a genre that uses many of the
same conventions as serious opera—arias, recitatives,
ensembles, choruses—but with plots revolving around
believable, everyday characters rather than mythical or
historical figures.” –page 517
5. “The text or words of an opera or similar extended musical
composition [OR] a book or booklet containing such a text.”
–Dictionary.Com
(http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/libretto?s=t)
B. Short Answer
6. Haydn
7. “A form in which a theme is presented and
then altered in some way—through
harmony, melody, texture, dynamics, or
some combination of these—in a succession
of individual variations.” –page 518
The Classical Symphony
(and other large works)
Three or four movements, usually like this:
Form:
Tempo:
1. Sonata-allegro form moderate
2. (Theme & Variations) slow
3. Minuet & Trio
moderato / triple meter
4. (Rondo)
fast
Extra Credit
1. similarities: wrote largely similar music at
the same time in history (same genres,
similar style), well-respected composers,
keyboardists
differences: financial success and stability,
lifespan, relationship with aristocracy
Extra Credit
2. Nikolaus I, Prince Esterházy (“the
Magnificent”) was Joseph Haydn’s principal
employer / patron.
3. (whatever)
Questions?
Pages 399-415
Duke Ellington
1899-1974
American composer/pianist/big band leader
Cotton Tail by Duke Ellington
(will be listened to again)
Some jazz vocabulary
• chord - "Three or more notes played or
sung at the same moment." -page 515
• Changes – underlying harmonies/chords
Example: excerpt from Imagine by John
Lennon
• sequence - "A short musical motive that
repeats at successively higher or lower
pitches." -page 518
Example: excerpt from It’s a Small World
• section - "In a musical ensemble, a group of
instruments or voices with similar timbres or
roles." -page 518
i.e.
The “Brass section”
The “Woodwind section”
The “String section”
etc.
• call-and-response - "A technique in which
one musician or group sings or plays an
opening motive, and another musician or
group sings or plays an answer." -page 515
Example: excerpt from So What by Miles Davis
• groove - "In popular and jazz styles, the
underlying rhythmic pattern of a song." page 516
(Usually/often related to something the
percussion is doing)
Example: excerpt from Crazy Motorcycle by
Nobuo Uematsu (Final Fantasy VII)
• swing - "A rhythmic pattern of long and
short notes approximating a two-to-one
ratio, but varying from piece to piece and
performer to performer." -page 518
Example: Straight v. swung eighth notes
• Swing music - "The name given generally to
the popular jazz of the 1930s and 1940s
that prominently featured a swing rhythm."
-page 518
• head - "In jazz, the main melody“ [or tune] page 516
• 32-bar standard song form - "often called AABA from the
musical form or order in which its melodies occur, also
ballad form, is common in Tin Pan Alley songs and later
popular music including rock, pop and jazz. Though it
resembles the ternary form of the operatic da capo aria its
popularity declined and there were few instances of it in
any type of popular music until the late teens of the 20th
century. It became the principal form of American popular
song around 1925–1926. Examples include 'Deck the Halls'
with AABA form consisting of the chorus or the entirety of
many songs in the early twentieth century.“ –Wikipedia
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirty-two-bar_form)
Example: excerpt from Deck the Halls
Cotton Tail by Duke Ellington
Charlie Parker
1920-1955
American jazz saxophonist / composer
Ornithology by Charlie Parker
(will be heard again)
• bebop - "New jazz style of the late
1940s/early 1950s that developed in
response to the popularity of big band
music. Bebop is characterized by fast
tempos, short bursts of melodic phrases,
heavy and unexpected rhythmic accents,
and virtuosic soloing." -page 515
• musical improvisation - "immediate (‘in
the moment’) musical composition, which
combines performance with communication
of emotions and instrumental technique as
well as spontaneous response to other
musicians.“
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_impro
visation)
Types of saxophones, in order from highest to
lowest:
• Soprano
(example)
• Alto
(example)
• Tenor
(example)
• Baritone
(example)
Ornithology by Charlie Parker
Louis Armstrong
1901-1971
American jazz trumpeter / singer
pass out Jazz Lab
Jazz Listening Lab
How to hear more (and have more to write
about) when you listen to jazz
Part 1: “Cool” Jazz and the 32-bar song form
Example: The Gerry Mulligan Quartet (with
Chet Baker) playing “Bernie’s Tune”
(Play MP3)
The 32-bar song form divides a melody into four small
sections. Each of these small sections contains eight
measures. Like this:
AABA
In this music, specifically, each “bar” (or “measure”) contains
two beats.
Jazz musicians often begin their performance of a piece of
music by playing through the “head” (the main body of the
music; the melody and its accompanying harmonies). As
you listen to the head, try to (1) learn the tune, so you can
recognize it; (2) describe how the “B” section is different
from the “A” section.
Also, try to identify the most prominent instrument(s) and
whether this instrument(s) changes from section to section
or remains the same throughout the head.
(Play MP3 of the head to “Bernie’s Tune”)
After playing the head, musicians begin to
“improvise.” This improvisation is carefully
structured: (1) Each “chorus” (large section of
improvised music) contains exactly the same
number of measures as the head. (2) The
“changes” (underlying harmonies/chords) follow
roughly the same pattern as the changes in the
head.
These improvisations often bear some resemblance
to the tune in the head. Players may improvise for
more than one chorus.
First chorus:
What is the most prominent instrument? Is it the
same prominent instrument as in the head?
What change takes place in the B section here?
Describe how the musicians “changed” the melody in
each section.
(Play MP3 of first chorus of “Bernie’s Tune”)
Second chorus:
What has changed between the first chorus and the second
chorus?
What change takes place in the B section here?
Sometimes musicians prepare the listener for the B section
with a short figure referred to as a “break”. Usually, it’s
done by the drummer. Does it happen here?
(Play MP3 of second chorus of “Bernie’s Tune”)
Third chorus
By the third chorus the musicians may make greater
changes. But the same rules still apply—each
chorus contains the same number of measures,
similar chord progression, and the improvisations
still tend to reference the original melody. This is
the last chorus in this recording. Try to describe
what you hear. Note the drastic change which
occurs this time in the B section.
(Play MP3 of third chorus of “Bernie’s Tune”)
Return
At this point, the group will usually “return”
(re-play) the head. It may be the same as
before, or it may be a little different. What’s
similar in this return? And what’s different?
(Play MP3 of return of “Bernie’s Tune”)
Part 2: Hard Bop
Example: The Charlie Parker Septet playing “Anthropology”
Parker on alto sax, Lucky Thompson on tenor sax, Al Haig on
piano, Milt Jackson on vibes, Tommy Potter on bass, and
Max Roach on drums
By the way—Max Roach was a UMass faculty member until
his death in 2007
(Play MP3)
Now we are turning from the “form” of the piece to the “style”.
The same strategies apply—as you listen to the musician
play the first time through the piece, try to learn and
remember the melody. It will become the primary basis for
the improvisation that follows.
Describe how the “hard bop” style of Anthropology differs
from that used in “Bernie’s Tune”.
Consider the following: which instruments are playing, the
tempo, dynamic levels, and how far the musicians’
improvisations moved away from the original melody.
(Play MP3 again)
Part 3: New Orleans Jazz (“Dixieland”)
Like other styles of jazz, Dixieland has its roots in
the blues (which were originally sung) and
ragtime (which were usually played on the
piano). Dixieland was generally played by a
small group of melody instruments (cornet or
trumpet, clarinet and trombone) and rhythm
instruments (often a drum or drums, banjo or
guitar, something homemade such as a
washtub with a rope attached).
The melody instruments were called the “front
line”. Behind them (marching or standing)
were the rhythm instrument(s). This music
was often functional; it was played for parades,
gatherings, celebrations, picnics, in a bordello
(brothel), etc.
Example: Louis Armstrong’s Hot Fives playing
“Struttin’ With Some Barbeque”
Louis Armstrong on cornet, Kid Ory on
trombone, Johnny Dodds on clarinet, Lil
Hardin Armstrong on piano, Johnny St. Cyr on
banjo.
(Play MP3)
In this style the cornet or trumpet often plays
the melody, the clarinet improvises above
the melody, and the trombone plays
something rhythmic below the melody.
When all three are playing something
different at the same time, it is called a
“collective improvisation”. Although it is a
trademark of this style, collective
improvisation appears in all styles of jazz.
Listen and try to remember the melody.
Each time they play the tune again (or enter into a new
musical section through improvisation), describe what
changes: which instrument is playing, how is that player
changing the tune, etc.
How often, in this performance, did you hear “collective
improvisation?” At what point in the recording did it
occur?
(Play MP3 again)
Part 4: Swing
Example: Count Basie Band playing “One O’Clock Jump”
Eventually, Dixieland became more polished and more
commercial. It found its way into hotels and similar “upper
income” locations in many cities. Often, a piano was added
to the band. This music became known as “Chicago jazz”.
As more and more Americans learned to listen and dance to
these evolved groups, called “society bands,” more
instruments were added—perhaps another cornet or
trumpet, another saxophone, another trombone, etc.
Eventually bands became bigger, using whole “sections” of
each instrument—trumpets, trombones, saxophones, and
rhythm instruments (piano, bass, drums and sometimes
others). This music became known as “swing”. It was
intended primarily for dancing.
(Play MP3)
Much of the music in this era relied upon arrangers.
Players were much more limited in how often they
could improvise. Listen for the difference between
music which sounds as if it was written by the
arranger and music which sounds as if it was
improvised by the player.
Play excerpts from “One O’Clock Jump”: Pre-arranged
vs. improvised
Describe this style of jazz. How does it differ from Dixieland?
The limited amount of time allotted for improvisation
eventually became a major issue for the players. This
frustration helped develop the emerging styles of bop and
cool jazz.
How can you tell which music is probably improvised and
which music is written out ahead of time?
Which instruments are improvising? (And when?)
Compared with the music which is pre-arranged (or written
out), how often do improvisational sections occur?
(Play MP3 again)
Part 5: Big Band Now (some modern jazz)
Example: excerpt from a recording of Sherrie
Maricle and the Diva Jazz Orchestra playing
????
Big Band + Orchestra
(Play MP3)
Using the skills you’ve gained so far, describe
the beginning of this piece.
At what point can you decisively hear the
melody?
Can you name that tune?
(Play MP3 again)
Final Reminders / Homework
• 20th century lecture next class by yours truly
• Read pages 335-359
• Questions? Email: [email protected]