How to Listen to Jazz

[fundorin]

Because we live in a society that places a huge emphasis on the "quick fix", more intricate forms of art, like jazz music, tend to get overlooked by the general public. By taking a small amount of time to learn about the concepts of jazz, you'll find your appreciation for it will grow immeasurably.
To become comfortable listening to jazz music, it is important to understand the structure, or general format, of a jazz performance. The following structure, while certainly not the exclusive format for a jazz song, is one that is used constantly in jazz music.

Typical Jazz Song Structure

The music begins. Often, in jazz a song will get underway with some sort of musical introduction. This introduction generally gets played only at the beginning of the song (although sometimes musicians will re-use the introduction as an outro to end the song). This introduction isn't required, though... sometimes the musicians will dive right into the melody of the song.

After the introduction (if there is one), the melody of the song is usually played. If you're a little fuzzy on the concept of the term "melody", think of it as the notes the vocalist sings in a pop or rock song. Since, in many cases, there is no singer present in a jazz setting, this melody will often be played by the horns. If there are also no horns in the band, the piano or guitar will usually play the melody.

While the melody is being played, the other musicians in the band have certain roles to play. Usually, a band will have an instrument present with the ability to play chords, such as a guitar, or piano, or both. One of these instruments will play the chords to the song underneath the melody. Note that in jazz, guitarists rarely strum chords the way you hear in pop and rock music. Since there is a lot going on in jazz music, playing this way would trample on what everyone else is doing. Rather guitarists tend to play chords in a more minimal, rhythmic manner.

After the melody of the song has been played (if it's a short melody, it sometimes gets played twice), the musicians will often begin their improvised solos. This is the "meat and potatoes" of jazz... improvisation. How musicians improvise is a very complex process, but let's talk about the basics:
Although the band has stopped playing the melody of the song at this point, they ARE still playing the same song. The chords of the song are still going by, but instead of playing the melody again, the musicians are creating their own melodies on the chords of the song. It is important to understand the roles that all the instruments play during this improvisation. During a horn solo, the horn player will improvise new melodies on the chords of the song, while a chord player (a piano or guitar) accompanies him (often called "comping") by playing the chords underneath him. The bass player in the group generally provides the steady beat, as opposed to in pop and rock music, where the beat is generally accented the most by the drummer. The bass player picks out notes that fit the chords, and plays them on his bass, one at a time. This steady beat is often referred to as a "walking bassline" (listen to audio example). The bass provides the "bottom-end" in a jazz band, and if he weren't there, you'd find the music would sound very empty. Often, the drummer will try to "lock in" the beat with the bass player on one of his cymbals, called the "ride cymbal" (listen to audio example). Generally, the drummer will play rhythms on his other drums that compliment what the soloist and chord player are creating. After the soloist has improvised a few times through the length of the song, he/she will stop playing, and the next soloist will start. This process continues throughout the band, until all of the people who are going to solo have soloed. Then, the band usually will re-state the melody of the song that they played at the beginning, and end the tune.

At any one time, there are a lot of different things happening during the performance of a jazz tune. When you start listening to jazz music, you may find this to be overwhelming. If this happens to you (or even if it doesn't), it might be enlightening to listen to only one particular aspect of the performance. This will also help to give you a better overall picture about how jazz "works". Here are a few of the many things to listen for in a jazz performance:

How the soloist and the chord playing musician interact. Often, the comping musician (guitar or piano) will choose to play chords when the soloist is pausing, to fill in the space. Sometimes, the comping musician will mimic what the soloist just played, or will play a variation of it. Occasionally, the comping musician will predict the notes a soloist is going to play, and play them along with them.

How the bass player and the drummer interact. Listen to how the drummer strengthens the bass player's walking bassline by often playing the same rhythm on his ride cymbal. Notice that when the bass player is not playing a walking bassline, that the drummer changes what he plays dramatically.

How the drummer interacts with the soloist. Often, the drummer will react to something the soloist plays, and play something that will compliment it. Alternately, the soloist will sometimes lock on to an idea the drummer is playing, and incorporate that into their improvisation.

How the drums interact with the comping musician. As well as paying attention to the soloist, the drummer will often also listen for what rhythms the comping musician is playing, and react to those as well.

Where the musicians are in the song. This can be difficult at first. While listening to the solos, try and keep the song's melody in your mind, so you can hear where the musicians are in the song. Often, after the musicians have finished playing through the "form" of the song, the drummer will play some sort of rhythmic figure to indicate they are back at the beginning again.

Phew! That sounds like a lot to worry about! And, chances are it doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun to listen to. Jazz really can provide a great listening experience, though, to those willing to show a bit of patience.

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[fundorin]

* Though with its improvisations jazz may sound random, the form has rhythmic, harmonic and melodic patterns - music to devotees' ears.



Things You'll Need:
Biographies
Jazz History Books
Jazz CDs
Jazz Music Videos

* 1) Listen for a melody, usually defined by a woodwind solo, and then variations on that melody followed by harmonic variation by two or more instruments.
* 2) Determine which instrument is dominant and follow the thread of that instrument. The other instruments will harmonize on the same theme.
* 3) Try to discern a style to the artist: quick changes, long notes, soaring crescendos. Styles are loosely defined by era with Louis Armstrong as an example of pre-swing style, Count Basie of swing style, Charlie Parker of bop and John Coltrane of modern jazz.
* 4) Listen for mood, tempo and rhythm.

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