Writing Jazz

Writing Jazz PDF Author: Nicholas M. Evans
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 113671295X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 338

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Book Description
This study examines how early writers of jazz criticism (such as Gilbert Seldes and Carl Van Vechten) and literature (F. Scott Fitzgerald and Langston Hughes)--as well as jazz performers and composers (such as Al Jolson, Sophie Tucker, and George Gershwin)--associated the music directly with questions about identity (racial, ethnic, national, gendered, and sexual) and with historical developments like industrialization. Going beyond the study of melody, harmony, and rhythm, this book's interdisciplinary approach takes seriously the cultural beliefs about jazz that inspired interracial contact, moralistic panic, bohemian slumming, visions of American democracy, and much more. Detailed textual analysis of fiction, nonfiction, film, and musical performance illustrates the complexity of these cultural beliefs in the 1920s and also shows their survival to the present day. In part, jazz absorbed the U.S. cultural imagination due to the nineteenth-century artistic search for music that would define the national character. To the chagrin of Anglo-Saxon nativists, jazz ascended as an exemplar of cultural hybridity and pluralism. The writers and entertainers studied in this volume--most of whom were minorities of Jewish Irish or African heritage--hailed the new social possibilities that they heard and felt in jazz. Yet most of them also qualified their enthusiasm by remaining wary of both the seductions of jazz's commercialization and the loss of ethnic identity in the melting pot.

The Jazz Piano Book

The Jazz Piano Book PDF Author: Mark Levine
Publisher: "O'Reilly Media, Inc."
ISBN: 1457101440
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 431

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Book Description
The most highly acclaimed jazz piano method ever published! Over 300 pages with complete chapters on Intervals and triads, The major modes and II-V-I, 3-note voicings, Sus. and phrygian Chords, Adding notes to 3-note voicings, Tritone substitution, Left-hand voicings, Altering notes in left-hand Stride and Bud Powell voicings, Block chords, Comping ...and much more! Endorsed by Kenny Barron, Down Beat, Jamey Aebersold, etc.

Writing Jazz

Writing Jazz PDF Author: Nicholas M. Evans
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 113671295X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 338

Get Book Here

Book Description
This study examines how early writers of jazz criticism (such as Gilbert Seldes and Carl Van Vechten) and literature (F. Scott Fitzgerald and Langston Hughes)--as well as jazz performers and composers (such as Al Jolson, Sophie Tucker, and George Gershwin)--associated the music directly with questions about identity (racial, ethnic, national, gendered, and sexual) and with historical developments like industrialization. Going beyond the study of melody, harmony, and rhythm, this book's interdisciplinary approach takes seriously the cultural beliefs about jazz that inspired interracial contact, moralistic panic, bohemian slumming, visions of American democracy, and much more. Detailed textual analysis of fiction, nonfiction, film, and musical performance illustrates the complexity of these cultural beliefs in the 1920s and also shows their survival to the present day. In part, jazz absorbed the U.S. cultural imagination due to the nineteenth-century artistic search for music that would define the national character. To the chagrin of Anglo-Saxon nativists, jazz ascended as an exemplar of cultural hybridity and pluralism. The writers and entertainers studied in this volume--most of whom were minorities of Jewish Irish or African heritage--hailed the new social possibilities that they heard and felt in jazz. Yet most of them also qualified their enthusiasm by remaining wary of both the seductions of jazz's commercialization and the loss of ethnic identity in the melting pot.

Fascinating Rhythm

Fascinating Rhythm PDF Author: David Yaffe
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400826802
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
How have American writers written about jazz, and how has jazz influenced American literature? In Fascinating Rhythm, David Yaffe explores the relationship and interplay between jazz and literature, looking at jazz musicians and the themes literature has garnered from them by appropriating the style, tones, and innovations of jazz, and demonstrating that the poetics of jazz has both been assimilated into, and deeply affected, the development of twentieth-century American literature. Yaffe explores how Jewish novelists such as Norman Mailer, J. D. Salinger, and Philip Roth engaged issues of racial, ethnic, and American authenticity by way of jazz; how Ralph Ellison's descriptions of Louis Armstrong led to a "neoconservative" movement in contemporary jazz; how poets such as Wallace Stevens, Hart Crane, Langston Hughes, and Frank O'Hara were variously inspired by the music; and how memoirs by Billie Holiday, Charles Mingus, and Miles Davis both reinforced and redeemed the red light origins of jazz. The book confronts the current jazz discourse and shows how poets and novelists can be placed in it--often with problematic results. Fascinating Rhythm stops to listen for the music, demonstrating how jazz continues to speak for the American writer.

Creative Jazz Composing and Arranging

Creative Jazz Composing and Arranging PDF Author: David Berger
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780692557129
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 128

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Book Description
This book is for anyone who writes, plays or listens to jazz. It explains the writing process and the construction of jazz pieces. I've attempted to answer many of the questions that arrangers and composers ask themselves when they are writing. Players who read this book will better understand the arrangements that they play and will get more from their listening which will make them better at interpreting the music they perform. Listeners will get into the creators' heads and appreciate the jazz experience to a greater degree. What The Experts Are Saying: "I love David Berger's new book, Creative Jazz Composing and Arranging. His vivid description of his own musical development from childhood on imparts many valuable insights. The discussion of the musical content is clear and concise, while a respect and passion for the music and the creative process is evident throughout. The big band scores are brilliant pieces of music that are steeped in the rich tradition of jazz, but also convey the unique musical character that is David Berger. It is a joy to be able to get inside the head of one of my favorite jazz writers and bandleaders. Beside the wealth of information, understanding and encouragement contained in these pages, the anecdotes related to Duke Ellington and the musicians who performed in his orchestra are just one more reason to get this book in your hands." - Bill Dobbins - Professor of Jazz Composition and Arranging, Eastman School of Music "Among the musicians I know who pay attention to the broad concepts and fine details of composing and arranging jazz music, no one pays more attention than Dave Berger. He thinks about everything: formal ideas, textural contrasts, emotional expression, instrumental color and variety, motivic development, expectation and surprise, - more things than I can think of to enumerate. And he produces music that achieves an artistically satisfying balance in its elements - all the while maintaining continuity with the spirit that brought him to jazz in the first place. That alone is a remarkable achievement. That he has had the patience and focus to dissect his creative thought processes meticulously, down to the level of the finest details, and lay those thoughts bare so that others might learn from them is even more remarkable. If someone has thought about it, David has described it. I don't know anywhere anyone interested in this could learn more or learn it any more directly." - Chuck Israels - Bassist, Composer, Arranger, Author "When I first started playing with the National Jazz Ensemble in the late 70's, Dave Berger's work as chief composer and arranger made quite an impression on me. I marveled at what seemed to me a magical, mysterious ability to create and arrange music for big band. In his Creative Jazz Composing and Arranging, Berger demystifies this ability for the reader by clearly demonstrating - in a voice that is personal, humorous, as well as instructive - the techniques needed to become a master arranger. Creative Jazz Composing and Arranging is an important addition to the teaching canon and wonderful tool for any artist, whether they are just learning how the magic of this music is made or refining their existing style." - Ted Nash - Saxophonist/Arranger JALCO, BMI Jazz Composers Workshop "A student today has several choices of arranging books. But a book is like a tool; there is a certain one for a particular task. David Berger's book is designed for the intermediate to advanced student who has decided to become a professional jazz arranger along with the realization that a solid understanding of the tradition is essential. Mr. Berger provides an in-depth analysis of his music and thought process. More importantly, his 50-years of professional experience (and candid recounting of his own journey as a young student) provides invaluable and practical wisdom that is not readily found in written form." - Rich DeRosa - University of North Texas

Composing for the Jazz Orchestra

Composing for the Jazz Orchestra PDF Author: William Russo
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 9780226732091
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 100

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Book Description
A practical guide to jazz composition, illustrating technical and instrumental variations on themes.

Jazz As Critique

Jazz As Critique PDF Author: Fumi Okiji
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 1503605868
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 208

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Book Description
This “lucidly argued, historically grounded . . . and timely book” reexamines the relationship between black cultures, jazz music, and critical theory (Alexander G. Weheliye, Northwestern University). A sustained engagement with the work of Theodor Adorno, Jazz As Critique looks to jazz for ways of understanding the inadequacies of contemporary life. While Adorno's writings on jazz are notoriously dismissive, he has faith in the critical potential of some musical traditions. Music, he suggests, can provide insight into the controlling, destructive nature of modern society while offering a glimpse of more empathetic and less violent ways of being together in the world. Taking Adorno down a new path, Okiji calls attention to an alternative sociality made manifest in jazz. In response to writing that tends to portray it as a mirror of American individualism and democracy, she makes the case for jazz as a model of “gathering in difference.” Noting that this mode of subjectivity emerged in response to the distinctive history of black America, she reveals that the music cannot but call the integrity of the world into question.

Intro to Jazz Piano

Intro to Jazz Piano PDF Author: Mark Harrison
Publisher: Hal Leonard Corporation
ISBN: 1480387894
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 165

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Book Description
(Keyboard Instruction). This comprehensive book with audio is the perfect Intro to Jazz Piano . From comping to soloing, you'll learn the theory, the tools, and the techniques used by the pros. The audio demonstrates most of the music examples in the book. The full band tracks feature the rhythm section on the left channel and the piano on the right channel, so that you can play along with the band. Covers: jazz chords and progressions; jazz swing and bossa nova comping; voicings and patterns; melodic treatment; soloing techniques; how to play from a fake book; and more. Get started today!

Instrumental Jazz Arranging

Instrumental Jazz Arranging PDF Author: Mike Tomaro
Publisher: Hal Leonard Publishing Corporation
ISBN: 9781423452744
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 532

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Book Description
(Instructional). Instrumental Jazz Arranging consists of a systematic presentation of the essential techniques and materials of jazz arranging. Authors Mike Tomaro and John Wilson draw upon 50+ years of combined teaching experience to bring you a book that addresses all of the basic needs for beginning arrangers. Topics include counterpoint/linear writing, jazz harmony, compositional techniques, and orchestration. All topics serve to address issues concerned with true arranging in great detail. The book may be used in both individual and classroom instructional situations. The accompanying CDs 170 tracks in all! include many of the examples in the book, plus templates for assignments formatted for Finale .

Litpop: Writing and Popular Music

Litpop: Writing and Popular Music PDF Author: Rachel Carroll
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317104196
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 279

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Book Description
Bringing together exciting new interdisciplinary work from emerging and established scholars in the UK and beyond, Litpop addresses the question: how has writing past and present been influenced by popular music, and vice versa? Contributions explore how various forms of writing have had a crucial role to play in making popular music what it is, and how popular music informs ’literary’ writing in diverse ways. The collection features musicologists, literary critics, experts in cultural studies, and creative writers, organised in three themed sections. ’Making Litpop’ explores how hybrids of writing and popular music have been created by musicians and authors. ’Thinking Litpop’ considers what critical or intellectual frameworks help us to understand these hybrid cultural forms. Finally, ’Consuming Litpop’ examines how writers deal with music’s influence, how musicians engage with literary texts, and how audiences of music and writing understand their own role in making ’Litpop’ happen. Discussing a range of genres and periods of writing and popular music, this unique collection identifies, theorizes, and problematises connections between different forms of expression, making a vital contribution to popular musicology, and literary and cultural studies.

2012 Guide to Writing Competitions

2012 Guide to Writing Competitions PDF Author: Robert Lee Brewer
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1599636050
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 297

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Book Description
Are you competitive? Do you believe that your writing stands above that of your peers? If so, then look inside and you'll find all the information you need to enter every major writing competition in the Unitied States. Hundreds of opportunities are listed, with each entry providing information on when and how to submit your work, what it costs (if anything) to participate, what the judges are looking for, when winners are selected, and what prizes are offered. If you believe in your work and think you have what it takes to outshine your peers, this is the refernece for you!