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Jazz Listening: Cool 1

1. General listening
2. Focused listening
   1. MJQ: Softly as in a morning sunrise
      1. Listening questions
      2. Research questions
   2. MJQ: Django
   3. John Coltrane live at the Village Vanguard

General listening

1. Dave Brubeck Quartet: Three to get ready
2. Sarah Vaughan & Clifford Brown: Lullaby of Birdland
3. Ahmad Jamal: Poinciana

Focused listening

MJQ: Softly as in a morning sunrise

Listening questions

1. Describe the texture of the introduction.

   Polyphonic/contrapuntal

2. Give the timings when the head starts and ends (i.e. where does the next section start?)

   0:13, 1:07

3. Name the instrument that plays the head.

   Vibraphone

4. Compare the rhythm of the introduction and head sections

   The introduction uses straight quavers and the head uses swung quavers.

5. Identify the structure of the head.

   AABA. 32-bar song form.

6. Describe how the harmonic rhythm changes through the head.

   • A sections: Faster harmonic rhythm. Either one or two changes per bar.
   • B section: Slower harmonic rhythm. Generally one chord change every two bars.

7. Describe the (other aspects of) harmony and tonality of the head section.

   • The A sections mainly focus on the tonic chord. The chord progression in the A sections is very repetitive, arriving at Chord V and then descending back down to i each time.
   • The head is in a minor key.
   • The B section starts in the relative major key. However this quickly modulates back to the tonic minor.

Research questions

1. As you work through this page, add every name to your jazz roster!

2. Who are the MJQ?

   Modern Jazz Quartet

3. Find the name of their drummer 1944–1955 (actually not present for this album).

   Kenny Clarke

4. What bebop drumming technique is associated with this first drummer?

   "(Dropping) bombs"

5. Find the name of the percussionist who plays vibraphone.

   Milt Jackson

6. Name his most famous standard (hint: it features his nickname).

   Bags' Groove

MJQ: Django

1. The table below shows the chord progression for the head. Fill in the missing chords 1–7.

   Fm	Bbm	C7b9	[1] Fm
   F7b9	[2] Bbm	[3] Eb7b9	[4] Ab
   DbMaj7	[5] Gm7b5	[6] /F	[7] C /E
   Fm	Bbm	C7	Fm
   Fm	Bbm	C7	Fm

   N.B.: There are a few extra extensions: don’t worry so much about getting those right. My transcription is also very different to any lead sheets you might spot, and ignores some of the passing notes/chords.

2. The head has an unusual 20-bar structure. There are a few possible interpretations, based on whether you prioritise melody or chord progression (I can see multiple instances of the same 4-bar progression). What do you think is the best analysis? Come back to the lesson with an argument!

   If that’s not enough: have a listen to the solo choruses. What harmonic variations do you hear here?

   If that’s not enough, did you hear the transition between the vibes and piano solo?

John Coltrane live at the Village Vanguard

1. Describe the music played by the piano in the head section.

   • A sections: Played in unison
   • Starts of phrases are sometimes displaced and syncopated.
   • Block chords in the 7th and 8th bars, then 15th and 16th bars.
   • A1 section: Played 2 octaves apart.
   • A2/A3 sections: Played 1 octave apart (RH one octave lower than A1).
   • B section: Melody in RH, block chords/comping in LH.
   • Starts with written/composed melody, but has lots of ornamentation and improvisation
   • A3 section: Every phrase starts on beat 1; less syncopation. </ul> </details>

2. How many solo choruses does the pianist play? Give the time each chorus starts. (I have to count the bars and beats on my fingers to keep track.)

   4 choruses in total. Each is about 38 seconds long.

   1. 0:39
   2. 1:17
   3. 1:55
   4. 2:32. This starts with four bars of dominant pedals at the start of the first two A sections.
   5. Coltrane starts at 3:10

3. What instruemnt is John Coltrane playing? Is this normal for him?

   Soprano sax here. He usually plays tenor.