Terms Flashcards
A Love Supreme
an album released by John Coltrane’s quartet with the style of a combination between hard bop and free jazz
alto saxophone
a very common type of saxophone that is bigger than the soprano but smaller than the tenor
arco
the technique of playing a stringed instrument with a bow
avant-garde
improvisation not tied to any progression of chords that was agreed upon before the performance; also called free jazz
bar
a segment of time given by a designated number of beats
bebop
the style associated with Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, Dexter Gordon and Sonny Stitt
big band era
a period of time generally associated with swing with an excess of big bands (jazz bands with ten or more people)
Birdland
a fusion hit by Joe Zawinul from Weather Report
Birth of the Cool
Miles Davis’ famous album that some consider to mark the beginning of the cool jazz era
Bitches Brew
Miles Davis fusion album, which was his first that went gold
blue notes
a pitch somewhere between a major third and minor third or between a major seventh and minor seventh step of the scale
blues
a simple, funky style of black music separate but coexistent with jazz
bongos
a set of two drums of different sizes
brass bands
a form of band characterized by its African and New Orleans influence that has a high concentration of brass instruments
bridge
a contrasting section of music that prepares for the return of the original section of music: the B in A-A-B-A form
call-and-response
one member or section of a band offers a musical phrase that another member or section answers by playing a corresponding musical phrase
Chameleon
a funky composition performed by Herbie Hancock
chord progression
when one chord changes or “progresses” to another
chorus
a single playing of the structure being used to organize the music in an improvisation
Coltrane’s Classic Quartet
Coltrane’s most famous group consisting of himself, Mccoy Tyner (piano), Elvin Jone (drums), and Jimmy Garrison (bass)
comping
syncopated chording which provides improvised accompaniment for simulraneously improvised solos, flexibly complementing the rhythms and implied harmonies of the solo line
conga drum
a tall, narrow, and single-headed drum
contemporary jazz
music associated with the modern, smooth form of jazz
cool jazz
a modern, post-WWII style of jazz that is often characterized by its relaxed melodies and Miles Davis
cornet
a trumpet-like instrument that has a mellower sound and is more compact than a trumpet; originally popularized by Bix Beiderbecke
Creoles of Color
blacks with little to no white ancestry
cup mute
a mute for horns that attach to the end of the horn
double time
the feeling that a piece of music of a player is going twice as fast as the original tempo, although the chord progression continues at a normal rate
form
the overall structure or plan of a piece of music (AABA, AABB, etc.)
free jazz- term
an approach associated with Ornette Coleman and Cecil Taylor, in which the music contains improvised solos which are free of preset chord progressions, and sometimes also free of preset meter
Free Jazz- album
an avant-garde style album released by Ornette Coleman
French Quarter
a very old neighborhood in New Orleans often associated with its high-caliber jazz clubs
funk
a rhythmic, danceable variation of jazz that was derived from jazz in the mid-to-late 1960s
fusion
a synonym for jazz-rock style
Giant Steps
a hard bop style album released by John Coltrane (tenor saxophone), Paul Chambers (double bass), Tommy Flanagan (piano), and Art Taylor (drums)
half step
one of the intervals in the major or minor scale
hard bop
the jazz style associated with Horace Silver, Art Blakey, and Cannonball Adderley