Short listening and - Assignment Example

Short Listening Assignment: One O’clock Jump The of the song for this short listening assignment is One O’clock Jump from Count Basie Orchestra. The instruments used for this performance are piano, bass and drums to keep rhythm, four trumpets, five saxophones including two alto, two tenor and one baritone saxophone and three trombones. The performance is in the style of Kansas City Jazz and also reminiscent of swing music of succeeding years. The group techniques that are apparent in this video are elaborate riff arrangement between the different Sections as also solo performances by different musicians.

The riff style is that which has been rehearsed and memorized by the musicians, and hence, called head riff.The role of piano is to provide the chords and tone with rhythmic strides. This introduces the music for the entire performance to the audience. It comps occasionally but the solo pieces on the piano are light and give the music the swinging quality. The role of the double bass is to keep time using slapping technique and provide comp for soloists in the ensemble. The drums provide the beat for the audience and members of the orchestra.

The bass and drums follow the 12 bar blues (Rickert) rhythm in this performance.The specific solo I found especially fascinating was the trombone playing between the baritone and tenor saxophone soloists although all the performances were breathtaking. What I found in that little piece on the trombone is that it gave a brief break from the saxophone melodies and let the drums provide fillers. It reinforced the tone and rhythm of the song. The pace changes after this when the trumpeter introduces a slightly faster pace piece.

The overall performance was great with a fun, light melody and the swing type rhythm giving it an overall energetic and bouncy feel. The music was very pleasant and specifically the arrangement of the sections was done beautifully and complimented each instrument very well. The video was most important, although, when this music was created in 1937, radio used to be the common means of transmission, even then the video helps even a novice to jazz understand the arrangements and riffing techniques employed by big bands.

The head movement of the trumpet players along with the music near the ending sequence was very impressive. The One O’clock Jump very rightly deserves its place among one of the songs of the century. Work Cited:Rickert, David. "Count Basie: One O." Swing Set. 2005.