Jazz Music, Modern Drama & Dance

1. Jazz Music, Modern Drama & Dance

2. Jazz Music

3. Jazz • Jazz – music rooted in improvisation and characterized by syncopated rhythm, a steady beat, and distinctive tone colors and performance techniques; developed in the U.S. predominantly by African American musicians and gained popularity in the early 20th century

4. Jazz (cont’d) • call and response – in jazz, a pattern in which one voice or instrument is answered by another voice, instrument, or group of instruments • bar – another term for measure, often used in jazz • chorus – in jazz, a statement of the basic harmonic pattern or melody

5. Jazz (cont’d) • rhythm section – instruments in a jazz ensemble which maintain the beat, add rhythmic interest, and provide supporting harmonies; piano, plucked double bass, percussion, and sometimes banjo or guitar

6. Ragtime • Ragtime – style of composed piano music, in which the pianist’s right hand plays a highly syncopated melody while the left hand maintains the beat with an “oom-pah” accompaniment; developed primarily by African American pianists and flourished from the 1890s to about 1915

7. Ragtime (cont’d) • Scott Joplin (1868-1917) • “king of ragtime” • Composer and pianist • Father was a slave • In addition to composing many “rags” he also wrote a ballet and two operas

8. Blues • Blues – term referring both to a style of performance and to a form; an early source of jazz, characterized by flatted, or “blue” notes

9. Blues (cont’d) • Bessie Smith (1894-1937) • “empress of the blues” • Most famous blues singer of the 1920s

10. New Orleans Style • New Orleans Style (Dixieland) – jazz style in which the front line (melodic instruments) improvise several contrasting melodic lines at once, supported by a rhythm section that clearly marks the beat and provides a background of chords

11. New Orleans Style (cont’d) • Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong (1901-1971) • One of the greatest jazz improvisers • Popularized scat singing • Scat singing – vocalization of a melodic line with nonsense syllables, used in jazz

12. Swing • Swing – jazz style that was developed in the 1920s and flourished between 1935 and 1945, played mainly by “big bands” • Swing band – typically, a large band made of fourteen or fifteen musicians grouped in three sections: saxophones, brasses, and rhythm

13. Swing (cont’d) • Duke Ellington (1899-1974) • American jazz musician and composer • Formed a band and became one of the most famous figures in American jazz • His orchestra played his own compositions and achieved a refined unity of style and made many innovations in jazz

14. Duke Ellington

15. Bebop • Bebop (bop) – complex jazz style, usually for small groups, developed in the 1940s and meant for attentive listening rather than dancing

16. Bebop (cont’d) • Charlie “Bird” Parker (1920-1955) • Alto saxophonist • Great jazz improviser

17. Cool Jazz • Cool Jazz – jazz style related to bebop, but more relaxed in character and relying more heavily on arrangements; developed around 1950

18. Free Jazz • Free Jazz – jazz style which departs from traditional jazz in not being based on regular forms and established chord patterns; developed during the 1960s

19. Jazz Rock • Jazz Rock (Fusion) – style which combines the jazz musician’s improvisatory approach with rock rhythms and tone colors; developed in the 1960s

20. Modern Drama

21. Tennessee Williams • A notable American playwright • His plays reflect stories from his own life through very colorful and memorable characters

22. Tennessee Williams (cont’d) • The Glass Menagerie is full of symbolism and he utilized film techniques in this play to enhance the viewing pleasure of the theatre audience • A Streetcar Named Desire won a Pulitzer Prize and was also adapted for film

23. Arthur Miller • A prominent playwright in American culture who wrote plays full of allegory, expressionism and realism • Death of a Salesman and The Crucible were two of his most famous works

24. Modern Dance

25. Balanchine • A Russian choreographer • Bridge between classical and modern ballet • He made ballet less courtly and more athletic

26. Fokine • Russian choreographer and dancer who wanted the dancer to feel the music and believed that ballet was more than just tricks and formulated dance • He etched a place for male dancers on the ballet stage

27. Fokine (cont’d)

28. Baryshnikov • Often called the world’s greatest living male ballet dancer • He danced for the New York City Ballet and the American Ballet theatre • He also created exceptional modern dances and became involved with contemporary choreography after his retirement

29. Baryshnikov (cont’d)

30. Martha Graham • She revolutionized modern dance by making social and political statements through dance • Considered the pioneer of modern dance in America • She made dancing a more athletic art • Women’s issues were at the heart of Graham’s dances

31. Martha Graham (cont’d)

32. Alvin Ailey • His work is the epitome of dance in the modern and contemporary era • His choreography intentionally included movements from African dance • Opened his own dance company and dance school (Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre – AAADT)

33. Alvin Ailey (cont’d)