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50 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What is this piece called, who is it by, what album is it from, when was it released and what style of music is it? |
- All Blues - Miles Davis - All Kind of Blue - 1959 - Modal Jazz |
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Where and when was Miles Davis born and where and when did he die? |
- Born 26th May 1926 in Alton, Illinois, USA - Died 28th September 1991 in Santa Monica, California, USA |
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Name the instruments played in this piece and who they are played by: |
Trumpet - Miled Davis Alto Sax - Julian 'Cannonball' Adderley Tenor Sax - John Coltrane Piano - Bill Evans Double Bass - Paul Chambers Drumkit - Jimmy Cobb |
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How does Davis play the trumpet during his solo? |
- uses improvisation on the original idea - the trumpet is unmuted - 4 choruses long - uses short, syncopated motifs - more grace notes - increase in pitch and dynamic range - followed by 4 choruses for Alto sax |
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How does Adderley play the alto sax during his solo? |
- there is a faster tempo, quicker notes - more virtuosic than Davis - the full range of the instrument is used - wider range used - plays for 4 choruses - style changes - rapid scales and arpeggios, focusing on the higher register - followed by 4 choruses for Tenor sax |
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How does Coltrane play the tenor sax during his solo? |
- uses fast scalic runs and arpeggios - is virtuosic - plays for 4 choruses - played across the range of the instrument |
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How does Evans play the piano during his solo? |
- the solo is slow - uses the mid-range of the piano - there are simple melodic lines followed by parallel chords - calmer and more simple - he solos for 2 choruses - longer melody notes |
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How does Chambers play the double bass? |
- continues bass riff and occasional walking bass outlining chords |
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How does Cobb play the dumkit? |
- switches to sticks - keeps time on the ride cymbal - uses syncopated drum fills on the snare |
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What do the soloists take it in turn to do? |
improvise over the chord sequence using the G blues scale |
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Describe Jazz and its main key feature: |
- type of music that originated in the southern states of America in the 20th century - improvisation |
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What is Davis famous for pioneering? |
- famous trumpeter - pioneered modal jazz |
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How was this piece recorded and what information did Davis give the other performers? |
- recorded with no rehearsal gave performers following info: - overall structure - basic chord sequence - main melodic idea - which scale/mode to improvise on |
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What is the exact structure of All Blues? |
- intro - 4 bars followed by riff - Head 1 - head melody played twice - Solos - for trumpet, alto sax, tenor sax and piano, each followed by riffs - Head 2 - head melody played twice - coda - solo for muted trumpet
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What is All Blues based on and what is its chord sequence? |
- 12 bar blues G7 G7 G7 G7 Gm7 Gm7 G7 G7
D7#9 Eb7#9/D7#9 G7 G7 |
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What key is the piece in? |
the G mixolydian mode scale, with the solos also using notes from the G blues scale (all the white notes from G to G) |
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Describe the Rhythm and Metre of the piece: |
- The metre is 6/4, - 6/4 has two beats per bar with each beat dividing into three smaller beats. - The three beat division gives the music a waltz-like feel. - Davis uses syncopated motifs in his solo - Cobb does syncopated fills on the snare and keeps time on the ride cymbal - The first bar is marked 'swing quavers'. This means that the pairs of quavers should be played with the first one slightly longer than the second. - Swung rhythms are often used in jazz |
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How are the snare drum, bass and trumpet played in the piece? |
- drum - wire brushes at the start - bass - plays pizzicato throughout - trumpet - has a harmon mute on its head |
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How does the piano play in the piece? |
- plays the 12 bar chord sequence - accompanies with chords and short melodic ideas (comping) - it plays a tremolo at the start of the piece |
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Describe the harmony in All Blues: |
- minor sevenths are added to most of the chords. - Some chords are changed more radically: 2 Gm7 chords are used at the beginning of the second phrase (using the blue note flattened third). - The third phrase uses chromatic chords and more chord changes. - Chromatic harmony uses notes from outside the key to colour the chords. - The final chord is an added sixth chord (formed of the triad with an added sixth: G B D E) - a chord which is often found in jazz music of this period |
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What is a head arrangement and how is it used in All Blues? |
- A head arrangement is a chord progression which is memorised by the players - .The head arrangement in 'All Blues' is the 12-bar chord progression. Jazz players refer to chord progressions as 'changes'. |
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What is a 'chorus' known as to the performers in this piece, what happens in the choruses and what does this piece start and end with? |
- each repetition of the 12 bar progression is known as a chorus - each of the soloists improvises in the choruses - like a set of variations. - The piece opens with an intro and ends with a coda. |
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What is each of the main sections introduced by and what is that? |
- a 4 bar riff - riff is a short repeated pattern (like an ostinato) |
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Define Frontline:
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the solo instruments in a jazz ensemble e.g. saxophone, trumpet
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Define Rhythm Section:
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the accompanying instruments in a jazz ensemble e.g. piano, bass, drums
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Define 12 bar blues and Head:
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- chord pattern common in jazz music - consists of chords I, IV and V
- the main melody of a jazz song |
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Define riff and Comping:
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- a short musical idea, like an obstinate
- an abbreviation of accompanying i.e playing the backing rhythms and chords |
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Define Blue notes and Syncopation:
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- flattened 3rd, 5th and 7th notes in a blues scale e.g. G A Bb C Db E Fb G
- rhythmic device in which notes which are off the beat are accented |
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Define Dominant 7th chord and altered chord:
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- a chord with an added 7th e.g. G B D F
- a chord in which one of the notes has been sharpened or flattened e.g. D7#9 = D F# C E# |
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Define Improvisation and Modal Jazz:
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- technique in which music is made up on the spot and is often based around a chord, scale, mode or motif
- style in which soloists base their improvisations on a mode rather than on chordal arpeggios, so the solos are less restricted and often longer |
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Define Extended chord:
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- a chord in which diatonic notes other than the 7th have been added to the original triad, e.g. 9ths, 11ths, 12ths
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How may Davis alter the timbre of his trumpet?
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by adding or removing the harmon mute
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Towards the end of the trumpet solo which part of the drum kit is introduced?
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the ride cymbal
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List two reasons why All Blues is a good title for the piece:
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- lots of blue notes used in the melody
- based on the 12 bar blues |
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What is the interval between the saxophones in the head melody?
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3rds
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How is the standard 12 bar blues chord sequence altered in All Blues?
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- use of extended chords- use of 7ths and 9ths- dominant 7th chords and altered chords
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For a model Section B answer, describe the Instrumentation of this piece: |
- frontline instruments are the trumpet (played by Miles Davis), alto saxophone, (played by Julian 'Cannonball Adderley') and tenor saxophone (played by John Coltrane) - rhythm section includes Bill Evans playing the piano, Paul Chambers playing the double bass and Jimmy Cobb playing the drums |
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For a model Section B answer, describe the Structure of this piece: |
- structure is as follows: Intro, Head, Solo section, Head and Outro - the solos are played by the trumpet, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone and piano in that order |
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For a model Section B answer, describe the Harmony of this piece: |
- minor 7th are added to most of the chords, which are based on the 12 bar blues - the third phrase of the chord sequence uses chromatic chords and more chord changes e.g. D7#9 - final chord of the chord sequence is an added 6th chord, a chord often found in jazz music of this period |
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For a model Section B answer, describe the Melody of this piece: |
- song is based on modal jazz, where the soloists base their improvisations on a mode - it is therefore based on the G mixolydian mode scale with the solos using some notes from the G blues scale - blue notes included are the flattened 3rd, 5th and 7th notes of the scale |
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For a model Section B answer, describe the Metre and Rhythm of this piece: |
- time signature is 6/4, which gives the music a waltz-like feel - Miles Davis uses syncopated motifs in his solo and Jimmy Cobb does syncopated fills on the snare drum; therefore syncopation is used - swung rhythms are also used |
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What type of band plays and which two sections can they be divided into? |
- sextet - frontline and rhythm |
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Was there a score for this piece, was it rehearsed and what were the performers told? |
- no - recorded with hardly any rehearsal - structure, basic word sequence, main melodic idea and which mode/scale to improvise on |
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Which notes are blue notes and how does Davis play the final coda? |
- 3rds, 5ths and 7ths - based on the tonic (G), playing grace notes on the dominant (D) - The last four bars of 'All blues' use the same legato long notes heard at the end of the original head. |
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Describe what happens in Head 1: |
- Head 1 follows the riff with the muted trumpet playing the melody. - Miles Davis uses a Harmon mute. - The trumpet plays legato, mainly in its middle register. |
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What is the main melody known as and what is it played by and when? |
- head - trumpet, at the start and the end |
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What is the precise structure of this piece? |
Intro, Head, Head 2, Trumpet solo, Alto sax solo, Tenor sax solo, piano solo, Head 3, Head 4, Outro - they are all joined by links |
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What is added to most parts and what does chromatic harmony use? |
- 7ths - uses notes from outside the key to colour the chords e.g. D7#9 |
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What is the melody characterised by, what is the tempo described as and what sort of rhythmic devices are used? |
- rising 6th (expressive leap) D to B - "Jazz Waltz" - 6/4 divided into 2 sets of 3/4 - swinging quavers and syncopation |
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Describe the piece's tonality: |
- G major (flattened 7th - blue note) - G mixolydian mode = modal jazz |
