Sidewalk Blues, Jelly Roll Morton Blues

Question 1

Who is Sidewalk Blues by?

Answer 1

Jelly Roll Morton

Question 2

Which era is Sidewalk Blues from?

Answer 2

Blues

Question 3

What is the structure of the intro to this piece?

Answer 3

Succinct 8 bar intro beginning with 2 bars of piano chords followed by the three melodic instuments all playing a two bar phrase over jabbed chords on the downbeats

Question 4

Is the structure based on the 12 bar blues?

Answer 4

Ya

Question 5

What is the order of the soloing instruments?

Answer 5

Trombone, trumpet, clarinet

Question 6

What special “instruments” are heard?

Answer 6

Foghorns, speech and street noise

Question 7

What kind of texture is there?

Answer 7

Polyphonic/”New Orleans Counterpoint”

Question 8

What is the standard 12 bar blues progression altered to?

Answer 8

I/I/I/I7/IV/V/IV/IV(maj)/II/V/I/I (check this)

Question 9

What does the bass do halfway though bar 7?

Answer 9

Moves by step to lead to the C major chord in the next bar; this acts as a secondary dominant to chord II(F minor)

Question 10

Is there use of substituted chords?

Answer 10

Yes, e.g. chord V in bar 2 and minor 7ths in bar 4. Chord 10 is either chord V or chord IV

Question 11

What key is the piece in?

Answer 11

Eb major

Question 12

Is the piece syncopated? How?

Answer 12

Heavily syncopated melodies in solo sections play over accompanying quaver “stabs”

Question 13

What do the syncopations consist of?

Answer 13

short note tied onto longer note so change of note anticipates the beat

Question 14

What kind of tempo and time signature?

Answer 14

brisk tempo, 4 beats in a bar

Question 15

Blue notes?

Answer 15

ya

Question 16

Which instrument presents the opening 2 bar melody and how is it changed in the repeat?

Answer 16

The trumpet, the repetition of the melody has an altered final note (flattened 7th) and the first four notes are transposed up a 4th for the next phrase as the chord changes to IV