Ch 1

Question 1

backbeat

Answer 1

a simple polyrhythm emphasizing beats 2 and 4 of a 4/4 measure (rather than 1 and 3).

Question 2

bass

Answer 2

in the rhythm section of a jazz band, an instrument—string bass, electric bass, or tuba—that supports the harmony and plays a basic rhythmic foundation.

Question 3

block chords

Answer 3

a homophonic texture in which the chordal accompaniment moves in the same rhythm as the main melody.

Question 4

blue notes

Answer 4

notes in which the pitch is bent expressively, using variable intonation; also known as blue notes.

Question 5

break

Answer 5

a short two- or four-bar episode in which the band abruptly stops playing to let a single musician solo with a monophonic passage.

Question 6

cadence

Answer 6

stopping places that divide a harmonic progression into comprehensible phrases.

Question 7

consonant

Answer 7

the quality of a harmony that’s stable and doesn’t need to resolve to another chord.

Question 8

countermelody

Answer 8

in homophonic texture, an accompanying melodic part with distinct, though subordinate, melodic interest; also known (especially in classical music) as obbligato.

Question 9

dissonant

Answer 9

the quality of an unstable harmony that resolves to another chord.

Question 10

drum set/traps

Answer 10

a one-man percussion section within the rhythm section of a jazz band, usually consisting of a bass drum, snare drum, tom-toms, and cymbals.

Question 11

foundation layers

Answer 11

continuous, unchanging patterns whose very repetition provides a framework for a musical piece.

Question 12

glissando

Answer 12

sliding seamlessly from one note to another, as exemplified on the trombone; also known as smear.

Question 13

half-valving

Answer 13

depressing one or more of the valves of a brass instrument only halfway, producing an uncertain pitch with a nasal sound.

Question 14

homophony

Answer 14

a texture featuring one melody supported by harmonic accompaniment.

Question 15

multiphonics

Answer 15

complicated sounds created on a wind instrument (through intense blowing) that contain more than one pitch at the same time; used often in avant-garde jazz.

Question 16

percussion

Answer 16

in the rhythm section of a jazz band, the drums, cymbals, congas, and other instruments that are struck to provide the music’s rhythmic foundation.

Question 17

phrase

Answer 17

a musical utterance that’s analogous to a sentence in speech.

Question 18

polyphony

Answer 18

texture in which two or more melodies of equal interest are played at the same time.

Question 19

polyrhythm

Answer 19

the simultaneous use of contrasting rhythms; also known as rhythmic contrast.

Question 20

saxophone

Answer 20

invented by Adophe Sax in the 1840s, a family of single-reed wind instruments with the carrying power of a brass instrument. See alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, and baritone saxophone.

Question 21

shake

Answer 21

for brass instruments, a quick trill between notes that mimics a wide vibrato, often performed at the end of a musical passage.

Question 22

stop-time

Answer 22

a technique in which a band plays a series of short chords a fixed distance apart (e.g., a measure), creating spaces for an instrument to fill with monophonic improvisation; often used in early jazz.

Question 23

swing

Answer 23

(1) jazz from the period 1935–1945, usually known as the Swing Era; (2) a jazz-specific feeling created by rhythmic contrast within a particular rhythmic framework (usually involving a walking bass and a steady rhythm on the drummer’s ride cymbal).

Question 24

variable layers

Answer 24

contrasting parts played above the foundation layers in a piece.

Question 25

straight mute

Answer 25

inserted directly into the bell of a trumpet, quiets the sound without too much distortion

Question 26

cup mute

Answer 26

adds an extension to the trumpet that more or less covers the bell, further attenuating the sound while rounding it out

Question 27

Harmon mute

Answer 27

a hollow mute with a hole in the center for the trumpet; originally this hole had a sliding tube; creates a highly concentrated sound

Question 28

plunger mute

Answer 28

the rubber end of a sink plunger; by moving the plunger in various positions it can resemble human speech

Question 29

bass clarinet

Answer 29

found more of a acceptance in the 1960s thanks to Eric Dolphy, and is still often heard

Question 30

bongos

Answer 30

two drumheads, one larger than the other

Question 31

timbales

Answer 31

two drums mounted on a stand along with a cowbell that are played with sticks by a standing musician

Question 32

blues scale

Answer 32

a collection of pitches that is also an avenue into an African American cultural world. All American music–jazz, blues, gospel, pop, rhythm and blues, country, wester, rock and roll, hip-hop–is influenced by the blues scale

Question 33

licks

Answer 33

specific simple/basic melodic phrases

Question 34

riff

Answer 34

repeated fragment of a melody