Jazz Concert in Gusman - Article Example

?Jiayan Zhou Charles Bergeron MCY 124 2 June Jazz Concert in Gusman For approximately the first half of the 20th century, from about 1900 to 1950, jazz music was the overriding form of popular dance music in the entire U.S (Ferreira, 2012). Dance bands and dance music existed prior to jazz music, and, after the rise of this genre, there were still numerous dance bands, which did not play jazz or utilized jazz elements scarcely. Also, for a specific period of its survival, jazz was considered as dance music. However, jazz artists were perhaps not attracted to this kind of music mainly because of its dance elements. From its original days, the genre seemed to have been music, which, in essence, musicians sung for themselves, as a way to liberate themselves from the firmness of standard dance or standard bands, as well as other forms of popular or commercial music that they found monotonous and easy to play. Interestingly, even though most true jazz musicians seek to distance themselves from the understanding the jazz is ultimately a form of dance music, society’s perception of jazz continues to be concentric upon the belief that jazz is ultimately an early form of modern dance music. Some various jazz songs could be could be said to incorporate this element where the musicians thought it would be healthier to do something different instead of the ordinary music production (Ferreira, 2012). These songs are Triple Threat, The Crawl, Household of Saud, Prism, Uranus, It could Be, If it was - But it wasn't and Rahssan's Run. This paper will discuss both the intellectual and mental aspect of these songs as performed in a jazz concert. As a function of this level of understanding, it is the hope of this author that the reader will be able to integrate a more firm and complete understanding of jazz within the context of the way in which jazz can ultimately integrate within the musical experience and life of the listener. Triple Threat The intellectual aspect of jazz means that people can make connections between a jazz song and liberal arts or sciences (Ferreira, 2012). This song was magnificent in bringing out these elements. The song, accompanied with various instruments, could easily be understood by the audience. The song twisted my brain like an algebraic equation, which almost left me limp and lifeless. The trumpet was the lead instrument in this performance, which appeared to guide the artists. It carried the melody of every tune (Ferreira, 2012). This was an interesting dynamic to note due to the fact that regardless of the musical genre that one seeks to discuss, ultimately a single instrument or a group of instruments will seek to differentiate themselves from the others as a means of providing a firm and solid lead. Oftentimes within classical music this is realized within the lead violin or other instrument. Similarly, within rock ‘n roll this is oftentimes realized with regards to the lead guitar. Invariably, jazz exhibits the same constraints and allows different instruments to perform the lead even within the same song; thereby helping to set jazz apart from the other forms of music that a previously been listed by way of the fact that it is able to integrate and incorporate a number of instruments within any given piece that all can serve as the lead instrument. The saxophone section consisted of 5 players - one baritone sax, two tenors and two altos. Playing uniformly granted them the power to cut through harmony and punches played by the brass sector (Ferreira, 2012). The piano, on the other hand, acted as the rhythm outside the solos. The bass player in this performance did his work well by providing the rhythmic and harmonic foundations. It is of course at this juncture that the listener and/or reader should integrate with an understanding of the supreme importance of the bass player plays within understanding of jazz music. Whereas the driving rhythm of jazz necessitates the drums and bass both work together in order to define complex beat and rhythm mechanics, the work of the bassist in both setting the rhythm and elaborating on the harmony cannot and should not be understated. In short, the bassist has two roles; first, to integrate with the melody and provide harmony and second to integrate with the drums and seek to provide an even further level of nuance beat the provide to the very heart of the piece. Finally, the drums were used to set the tempo of the song (Ferreira, 2012). I could notice the crowd move with the rhythms of the drums. Jazz is argued to be a style of music, which relaxes the mind. Even though, this song made me think too much, it also made me feel relaxed. The Crawl The second song was not about the sharp nines, flat fives, substitutes’ chord or metric subdivisions. The feeling, message and honesty the artists gave the crowd was just phenomenal. What gave the performance an intellectual aspect was the emotional ends (Ferreira, 2012). A person could feel connected to the artist and his message. The mental aspect of the song was that, in the middle, it gave someone a funky feeling through the solos, which included drums beats, as well as the saxophones, being played alone. It was within this very performance at the impacts of jazz upon modern music could be seen. Although the saxophone is not necessarily seen as a contemporary instrument within popular music, the means by which the saxophone solo was utilized to invoke strong melodic realizations and a differentiation from the remainder of the piece was munch it can to the way that modern singers perform a capello segments within their own songs. Though jazz oftentimes incorporates a vocalist, the utilization of the saxophone is almost indistinguishable from the way that a vocalist might operate within a jazz band. The trumpet, in this performance, was the loudest, cutting instrument, above all others (Ferreira, 2012). The instruments guided other soloists in carrying out their performances. It was like the "alpha" instrument. This song’s style was a well-built influence on Triple Threat, but developed extremely differently: The Crawl was not restricted to traditional rhythm and harmony to explore a more musical, but entirely "extreme" loom to jazz. The drum set, unlike in traditional jazz, did not set the tempo of the song but was the expressive instrument (Ferreira, 2012). From both the use of the saxophone and the trumpet within this particular piece, it became apparent to the listener that not only current pop music was heavily influenced by jazz pieces such as the one performed, it also had a profound noticeable impact upon what came to be known as swing music. Although it is not the purpose of this analysis to incorporate a discussion of how swing and jazz music or ultimately related, The Crawl you vote this feeling in an unmistakable an undeniable way. Household of Saud This performance was all about emotions being translated to sound (Ferreira, 2012). The stage was set in a way which portrayed a love story that circulated in the Household of Saud. The Household of Saud is the ruling family of Saudi Arabia, which wanted to bring in a new member to the family (Ferreira, 2012). The intellectual aspect of the song was the essence that the conflict was whether the parents of the son would allow him to bring in a new girl to the family. This made a listener eager to want to know whether the parents decided at the end of the song. Also, this would be a way of showing the traditions of the Islam people – whether it is parents or children who will decide who will come into the family (Ferreira, 2012). The instruments used were the normal jazz instruments – trumpet, saxophone, bass, piano and the drum set, which acted the same purpose as the roles stated earlier. The metal aspect of the song was the love feeling that it gave to the audience who wanted to share the joy of the son getting married. Again, with relation to the means by which other genres of music have influenced jazz as well as the means by which jazz is influenced other genres of music, the listener came to be understanding the jazz is fully capable of telling a story right alongside the most long and involved folk melodies. Whereas it is oftentimes understood that folk music has the greatest ability to tell a story, the means by which this particular love story was integrated within this piece of jazz music in question helped the listener to understand the jazz is fully capable of representing a range of emotions, thoughts, and imagery even without the express use of words. This not only helps the reader to appreciate the means by which jazz is a nuanced and developed form of music, it also helps with an understanding of the level to which a high level of musicianship is capable of integrating complex thoughts and emotions with the audience. If a high level of musicianship had not been displayed by the individual musicians, such an understanding would necessarily not of been possible. Prism Prism, the band which consisted of a pianist, bassist, drummer, saxophonist and the person playing the trumpets stood out as the best performance. The song could be argued to be entirely modern, having all elements of jazz in it, but also giving the audience a funky mood. The song could be argued to be the contemporary styles of jazz (Ferreira, 2012). The intellectual aspect of the performance was that it twisted the listener’s brain while trying to figure out the message in the song. The artists did well to hide this, and such a song would be significant in a literature class discussion (Ferreira, 2012). The mental aspects of the song were the funky mood, which is gave the listener, who felt like standing up and dancing to the tune. The trumpet, in this performance, acted as the lead to the solos, but it also set the melody. Although it cannot be said that Prism ultimately failed in seeking to exhibit an understanding of the meaning that it sought to convey, this listener was merely unable to catch such a meaning. This of course can be due to the fact that the listener in question is ultimately unskilled with regards to understanding the nuances the jazz music is able to convey to the listener. Uranus This song was the perfect blend of rock and jazz music. The performance, at times, could be confused to be a jazz performance and, at times, a rock performance, where the artists seem to lose their minds at some point of the performance. This song had less intellectual aspects in it than its mental aspects (Ferreira, 2012). It was as if the goal of the band was to get the audience off their feet and start dancing. Whereas previous sections of this analysis of no to the fact that jazz musicians do not oftentimes appreciate the label of dance musicians, the fact of the matter is that jazz is a nuanced form of music that cannot only tell a story, as has previously been evidenced, but can also provide exceptional background music, easy listening music, and ultimately dance music. Ultimately, this exhibits the fact that jazz is a form of music that can readily incorporate a range of thoughts, feelings, emotions, and actions. The trumpet provided the greater, swingier movements in the song. The saxophone, on the other hand, provided the melody of the song being performed. In this piece, the saxophone also had a solo part. It could Be, If it was - But it wasn't This song, It could Be, If it was - But it wasn't, narrates a love story, which ended in an unexpected way that people had not expected (Ferreira, 2012). It was due to disagreements between the two lovers that the relationship ended. The intellectual aspect of this song is that it advises people to be in relationships, which the parties involved understand one another or the association could end as the couple in the song. The mental aspect of the song was that the band wanted to tell the audience that not everything ends the way they expect as they could also have sad endings (Ferreira, 2012). The instruments in this song played the same purpose as the ones stated in this paper, but the guitar was used in setting the mood of the song. Again, with respect to the means by which blues and bluegrass music have ultimately derives a sense of meaning and purpose from earlier representations of jazz, the subject matter that this particular piece deals with helps to engage the reader with an understanding that the growth between jazz and bluegrass was not necessarily one that required a great distance to be gapped. Rahssan's Run Finally, Rahssan's Run, is also a jazz song that is sung by a band of five members (Ferreira, 2012). The song has both intellectual and mental aspects of jazz in it. The song, having a love story, challenges the audience to make connections of what is taking place in the song, whether the love tale would have a happy or sad ending. However, that could one be seen in the end of the song. The mental aspect of the song, just like any other love song, made the listener want to be in the same position as the subject in the song (Ferreira, 2012). The song created a love feeling in the audience. The trumpet was the lead instrument in this song providing the melody for the other solos. Since the saxophone covered a broad part, it supplemented itself well by supplying harmonic and harmony to the song. The piano, on the other, provided the tune of the song (Ferreira, 2012). The work of the bass was to flesh out the sounds played by the other instruments, which worked well. Finally, the drum provided the tempo of the performance. Due to the fact that such a large variety of instruments were utilized with respect to the music that was performed, the listener came to the appreciation of the fact that jazz music can ultimately be performed in a variety of different settings with a variety of different instruments expressing a variety of different emotions. Reference Ferreira, K. (2012). Intellectual jazz. Bloomington, Indiana: iUniverse publishing. Read More