Pathways to the Practice of Free Improvisation
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THE SHARED INFLUENCES and CHARACTERISTICS of JAZZ FUSION and PROGRESSIVE ROCK by JOSEPH BLUNK B.M.E., Illinois State University, 2014
COMMON GROUND: THE SHARED INFLUENCES AND CHARACTERISTICS OF JAZZ FUSION AND PROGRESSIVE ROCK by JOSEPH BLUNK B.M.E., Illinois State University, 2014 A thesis submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Colorado in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master in Jazz Performance and Pedagogy Department of Music 2020 Abstract Blunk, Joseph Michael (M.M., Jazz Performance and Pedagogy) Common Ground: The Shared Influences and Characteristics of Jazz Fusion and Progressive Rock Thesis directed by Dr. John Gunther In the late 1960s through the 1970s, two new genres of music emerged: jazz fusion and progressive rock. Though typically thought of as two distinct styles, both share common influences and stylistic characteristics. This thesis examines the emergence of both genres, identifies stylistic traits and influences, and analyzes the artistic output of eight different groups: Return to Forever, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Miles Davis’s electric ensembles, Tony Williams Lifetime, Yes, King Crimson, Gentle Giant, and Soft Machine. Through qualitative listenings of each group’s musical output, comparisons between genres or groups focus on instances of one genre crossing over into the other. Though many examples of crossing over are identified, the examples used do not necessitate the creation of a new genre label, nor do they demonstrate the need for both genres to be combined into one. iii Contents Introduction………………………………………………………………………………… 1 Part One: The Emergence of Jazz………………………………………………………….. 3 Part Two: The Emergence of Progressive………………………………………………….. 10 Part Three: Musical Crossings Between Jazz Fusion and Progressive Rock…………….... 16 Part Four: Conclusion, Genre Boundaries and Commonalities……………………………. 40 Bibliography………………………………………………………………………………. -
Subjective (Re)Positioning in Musical Improvisation: Analyzing the Work of Five Female Improvisers *
Subjective (Re)positioning in Musical Improvisation: Analyzing the Work of Five Female Improvisers * Marc Hannaford NOTE: The examples for the (text-only) PDF version of this item are available online at: h+p:,,www.mtosmt.org,issues,mto.10.12.1,mto.17.12.1.hanna ord.php 4E5WORDS: Feminist music theory, gender, improvisation, jazz, Shannon 7arne+, Caroline Davis, Ingrid 9aubrock, 9inda Oh, Anna Webber A7STRACT: This article analyzes the music o :ve emale improvisers. I employ these women’s lived experiences o discrimination as a basis or my analysis o improvisation in terms o what I call subjective (re)positioning. Given these women’s experiences o discrimination, trust means something ar richer than musically working together during per ormance. Trusting improvising partners create a conceptual space in which musicians are able to position and reposition themselves, thus expressing agency. Received March 2016 Volume 23, Number 2, June 2010 Copyright © 2017 Society for Music Theory A/B At a recent per ormance o improvised music at a venue in New 5ork, some musicians and I noticed that the cover o the March 2015 DWomen’s Eistory Month” issue o The New York Jazz Record eatured male pianist Vijay Iyer on the cover. Our jokes about dishpan hands soon gave way to melancholy: it seems that, despite some jazz progressivists, neo-classicists, and academics arguing that jazz is a site or the realization o egalitarian or democratic ideals ( 7urns 2004 , Fischlin 2012 , Nicholls 1012 ), there is still work to be done. (1) A1B This article analyzes music by composer,improvisers Shannon 7arne+, Caroline Davis, Ingrid 9aubrock, 9inda Oh, and Anna Webber in conjunction with interviews I conducted with each o them ( 7arne+ 1015 , Davis 2015 , 9aubrock 2015 , Oh 2015 , Webber 2015 ). -
Musical Improvisation in the Baroque Era
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE MUSicAL IMPROVISATION IN THE BAROQUE ERA Lucca, Complesso Monumentale di San Micheletto 19-21 May 2017 CENTRO STUDI OPERA OMNIA LUIGI BOccHERINI www.luigiboccherini.org INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE MUSicAL IMPROVISATION IN THE BAROQUE ERA Organized by CENTRO STUDI OPERA OMNIA LUIGI BOCCHERINI, LUCCA in collaboration with Ad Parnassum. A Journal of Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century Instrumental Music Lucca, Complesso Monumentale di San Micheletto 19-21 May 2017 ef PROGRAmmE COmmiTTEE SIMONE CIOLFI (Saint Mary’s College, Rome-Notre-Dame, IN) ROBERTO ILLIANO (Centro Studi Opera Omnia Luigi Boccherini) FULVIA MORABITO (Centro Studi Opera Omnia Luigi Boccherini) MASSIMILIANO SALA (Centro Studi Opera Omnia Luigi Boccherini) ROHAN H. STEWART-MACDONALD (Warwickshire, UK) ef KEYNOTE SPEAKERS GUIDO OLIVIERI (University of Texas at Austin, TX) GIOrgIO SANGUINETTI (Università Tor Vergata, Rome) NEAL ZASLAW (Cornell University, Ithaca, NY) FRIDAY 19 MAY 10.00-10.40: Registration and Welcome Opening 10.40-10.50 • FULVIA MORABITO (President Centro Studi Opera Omnia Luigi Boccherini) Improvisation in Vocal Music 11.00-12.30 (Chair: Simone Ciolfi, Saint Mary’s College, Rome-Notre-Dame, IN) • Valentina anzani (Università di Bologna), Il mito della competizione tra virtuosi: quando Farinelli sfidò Bernacchi (Bologna 1727) • Hama Jino Biglari (Uppsala University), Reapproaching Italian Baroque Singing • antHony Pryer (Goldsmiths College, University of London), Writing the Un-writable: Caccini, Monteverdi and the Freedoms of the Performer ef 13.00 Lunch 15.30-16.30 – Keynote Speaker 1 • giorgio Sanguinetti (Università Tor Vergata, Rome), On the Origin of Partimento: A Recently Discovered Manuscript of Toccate (1695) by Francesco Mancini The Art of Partimento 17.00-18.00 (Chair: Giorgio Sanguinetti, Università Tor Vergata, Roma) Peter m. -
Temporal Disunity and Structural Unity in the Music of John Coltrane 1965-67
Listening in Double Time: Temporal Disunity and Structural Unity in the Music of John Coltrane 1965-67 Marc Howard Medwin A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Music. Chapel Hill 2008 Approved by: David Garcia Allen Anderson Mark Katz Philip Vandermeer Stefan Litwin ©2008 Marc Howard Medwin ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT MARC MEDWIN: Listening in Double Time: Temporal Disunity and Structural Unity in the Music of John Coltrane 1965-67 (Under the direction of David F. Garcia). The music of John Coltrane’s last group—his 1965-67 quintet—has been misrepresented, ignored and reviled by critics, scholars and fans, primarily because it is a music built on a fundamental and very audible disunity that renders a new kind of structural unity. Many of those who study Coltrane’s music have thus far attempted to approach all elements in his last works comparatively, using harmonic and melodic models as is customary regarding more conventional jazz structures. This approach is incomplete and misleading, given the music’s conceptual underpinnings. The present study is meant to provide an analytical model with which listeners and scholars might come to terms with this music’s more radical elements. I use Coltrane’s own observations concerning his final music, Jonathan Kramer’s temporal perception theory, and Evan Parker’s perspectives on atomism and laminarity in mid 1960s British improvised music to analyze and contextualize the symbiotically related temporal disunity and resultant structural unity that typify Coltrane’s 1965-67 works. -
The Solo Style of Jazz Clarinetist Johnny Dodds: 1923 – 1938
Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 2003 The solo ts yle of jazz clarinetist Johnny Dodds: 1923 - 1938 Patricia A. Martin Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations Part of the Music Commons Recommended Citation Martin, Patricia A., "The os lo style of jazz clarinetist Johnny Dodds: 1923 - 1938" (2003). LSU Doctoral Dissertations. 1948. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations/1948 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please [email protected]. THE SOLO STYLE OF JAZZ CLARINETIST JOHNNY DODDS: 1923 – 1938 A Monograph Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College In partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts in The School of Music By Patricia A.Martin B.M., Eastman School of Music, 1984 M.M., Michigan State University, 1990 May 2003 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This is dedicated to my father and mother for their unfailing love and support. This would not have been possible without my father, a retired dentist and jazz enthusiast, who infected me with his love of the art form and led me to discover some of the great jazz clarinetists. In addition I would like to thank Dr. William Grimes, Dr. Wallace McKenzie, Dr. Willis Delony, Associate Professor Steve Cohen and Dr. -
Peter Johnston 2011
The London School Of Improvised Economics - Peter Johnston 2011 This excerpt from my dissertation was included in the reader for the course MUS 211: Music Cultures of the City at Ryerson University. Introduction The following reading is a reduction of a chapter from my dissertation, which is titled Fields of Production and Streams of Conscious: Negotiating the Musical and Social Practices of Improvised Music in London, England. The object of my research for this work was a group of musicians living in London who self-identified as improvisers, and who are part of a distinct music scene that emerged in the mid-1960s based on the idea of free improvisation. Most of this research was conducted between Sept 2006 and June 2007, during which time I lived in London and conducted interviews with both older individuals who were involved in the creation of this scene, and with younger improvisers who are building on the formative work of the previous generation. This chapter addresses the practical aspects of how improvised music is produced in London, and follows a more theoretical analysis in the previous chapters of why the music sounds like it does. Before moving on to the main content, it will be helpful to give a brief explanation of two of the key terms that occur throughout this chapter: “free improvisation” and the “improvised music field.” “Free improvisation” refers to the creation of musical performances without any pre- determined materials, such as form, tonality, melody, or rhythmic feel. This practice emerged out of developments in jazz in the late 1950s and early 1960s, particularly in the work of Ornette Coleman and Cecil Taylor, who began performing music without using the song-forms, harmonic progressions, and steady rhythms that characterized jazz until that time. -
Jazz and the Cultural Transformation of America in the 1920S
Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 2003 Jazz and the cultural transformation of America in the 1920s Courtney Patterson Carney Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations Part of the History Commons Recommended Citation Carney, Courtney Patterson, "Jazz and the cultural transformation of America in the 1920s" (2003). LSU Doctoral Dissertations. 176. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations/176 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please [email protected]. JAZZ AND THE CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION OF AMERICA IN THE 1920S A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Department of History by Courtney Patterson Carney B.A., Baylor University, 1996 M.A., Louisiana State University, 1998 December 2003 For Big ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The real truth about it is no one gets it right The real truth about it is we’re all supposed to try1 Over the course of the last few years I have been in contact with a long list of people, many of whom have had some impact on this dissertation. At the University of Chicago, Deborah Gillaspie and Ray Gadke helped immensely by guiding me through the Chicago Jazz Archive. -
Music Outside? the Making of the British Jazz Avant-Garde 1968-1973
Banks, M. and Toynbee, J. (2014) Race, consecration and the music outside? The making of the British jazz avant-garde 1968-1973. In: Toynbee, J., Tackley, C. and Doffman, M. (eds.) Black British Jazz. Ashgate: Farnham, pp. 91-110. ISBN 9781472417565 There may be differences between this version and the published version. You are advised to consult the publisher’s version if you wish to cite from it. http://eprints.gla.ac.uk/222646/ Deposited on 28 August 2020 Enlighten – Research publications by members of the University of Glasgow http://eprints.gla.ac.uk Race, Consecration and the ‘Music Outside’? The making of the British Jazz Avant-Garde: 1968-1973 Introduction: Making British Jazz ... and Race In 1968 the Arts Council of Great Britain (ACGB), the quasi-governmental agency responsible for providing public support for the arts, formed its first ‘Jazz Sub-Committee’. Its main business was to allocate bursaries usually consisting of no more than a few hundred pounds to jazz composers and musicians. The principal stipulation was that awards be used to develop creative activity that might not otherwise attract commercial support. Bassist, composer and bandleader Graham Collier was the first recipient – he received £500 to support his work on what became the Workpoints composition. In the early years of the scheme, further beneficiaries included Ian Carr, Mike Gibbs, Tony Oxley, Keith Tippett, Mike Taylor, Evan Parker and Mike Westbrook – all prominent members of what was seen as a new, emergent and distinctively British avant-garde jazz scene. Our point of departure in this chapter is that what might otherwise be regarded as a bureaucratic footnote in the annals of the ACGB was actually a crucial moment in the history of British jazz. -
Some Notes on John Zorn's Cobra
Some Notes on John Zorn’s Cobra Author(s): JOHN BRACKETT Source: American Music, Vol. 28, No. 1 (Spring 2010), pp. 44-75 Published by: University of Illinois Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5406/americanmusic.28.1.0044 . Accessed: 10/12/2013 15:16 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. University of Illinois Press is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to American Music. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 198.40.30.166 on Tue, 10 Dec 2013 15:16:53 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions JOHN BRACKETT Some Notes on John Zorn’s Cobra The year 2009 marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of John Zorn’s cele- brated game piece for improvisers, Cobra. Without a doubt, Cobra is Zorn’s most popular and well-known composition and one that has enjoyed remarkable success and innumerable performances all over the world since its premiere in late 1984 at the New York City club, Roulette. Some noteworthy performances of Cobra include those played by a group of jazz journalists and critics, an all-women performance, and a hip-hop ver- sion as well!1 At the same time, Cobra is routinely played by students in colleges and universities all over the world, ensuring that the work will continue to grow and evolve in the years to come. -
Jazz in America • the National Jazz Curriculum Test Bank 7 - Avant Garde/Free Jazz and Fusion Select the BEST Answer
Jazz in America • The National Jazz Curriculum Test Bank 7 - Avant Garde/Free Jazz and Fusion Select the BEST answer 1. Free Jazz was a reaction to A. Dixieland B. the yuppies of the 1980s C. the women’s movement D. Rock 'n Roll E. Swing, Cool Jazz, and Hard Bop 2. Free Jazz improvisation was generally A. not predetermined B. easy to listen to C. based on predetermined chord progressions D. based on the Blues E. simple 3. Free Jazz musicians freed themselves by improvising A. for at least three standard choruses B. solely on the emotions of the moment C. ala Kenny G D. infrequently E. according to the composer’s intentions 4. In Free Jazz, traditional values of melody, harmony, and rhythm were A. referred to continually B. used to build the form of a tune C. discarded D. important E. always in the soloist's mind 5. Free Jazz is most closely related to A. the homeless B. improvised 20th century classical and world music C. Rock ‘n Roll D. Funk E. inexpensive jazz 6. Free Jazz allowed for the exploration of A. tonal colors and harmonies B. traditional ways to play Swing C. ideas on how to make jazz more traditional D. ideas on how to make jazz more audience accessible E. expensive jazz 7. Free Jazz A. was highly regarded by all B. pushed the limits of what musicians could play and what audiences could accept C. was popular among musicians D. became the most popular jazz style in the late 1950’s and ‘60s E. -
Unconstituted Praxis
UnconstitutedPraxis PraxisUnconstituted MATTIN MATTIN UnconstitutedPraxis PraxisUnconstituted MATTIN MATTIN Unconstituted Praxis Unconstituted Unconstituted Praxis MATTIN MATTIN 'Noise & Capitalism - Exhibition as Concert' with Mattin is the first part of the project 'Scores' Unconstituted Praxis organised in collaboration by CAC Brétigny and Künstlherhaus Stuttgart. The second part with Beatrice Gibson: The Tiger's Mind will be presented from November 6th to December 31st in Stuttgart, Germany. www.kuenstlerhaus.de By Mattin 'Scores' is part of the project 'Thermostat, cooperations between 24 French and German art centres', With contributions by: an initiative from the Association of French centres d'art, d.c.a., and the Institut Français in Germany. addlimb, Billy Bao, Marcia Bassett, Loïc Blairon, Ray Brassier, Diego Chamy, Janine Eisenaecher, Barry Esson, The project is generously supported by the German Federal Cultural Foundation, the French Ministry Ludwig Fischer, Jean-Luc Guionnet, Michel Henritzi, Anthony Iles, Alessandro Keegan, Alexander Locascio, of Culture and Communication, Culturesfrance Seijiro Murayama, Loty Negarti, Jérôme Noetinger, Andrij Orel & Roman Pishchalov, Acapulco Rodriguez, as well as by the Plenipotentiary for the Franco-German Cultural Relations. Benedict Seymour, Julien Skrobek, Taumaturgia and Dan Warburton. is initiated by Edited by: Anthony Iles Cover Illustration: Epilogue by Howard Slater Metal Machine Illustrations: Metal Machine Theory I-V, questions by Mattin answers by With support of Ray Brassier, commissioned and published 2010-2011 by the experimental music magazine Revue et Corrigée. Drunkdriver concert photographs: Drunkdriver/Mattin live at Silent Bar, Queens 3 January 2009 Olivier Léonhardt, Président de la Communauté d'agglomération du Val d'Orge/ by Tina De Broux. President of the community of agglomeration Val d’Orge Patrick Bardon, Vice-Président de la Communauté d'agglomération du Val d'Orge/ Noise & Capitalism - exhibition as concert documentation: photographs by Steeve Beckouet. -
A More Attractive ‘Way of Getting Things Done’ Freedom, Collaboration and Compositional Paradox in British Improvised and Experimental Music 1965-75
A more attractive ‘way of getting things done’ freedom, collaboration and compositional paradox in British improvised and experimental music 1965-75 Simon H. Fell A thesis submitted to the University of Huddersfield in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy The University of Huddersfield September 2017 copyright statement i. The author of this thesis (including any appendices and/or schedules to this thesis) owns any copyright in it (the “Copyright”) and he has given The University of Huddersfield the right to use such Copyright for any administrative, promotional, educational and/or teaching purposes. ii. Copies of this thesis, either in full or in extracts, may be made only in accordance with the regulations of the University Library. Details of these regulations may be obtained from the Librarian. This page must form part of any such copies made. iii. The ownership of any patents, designs, trade marks and any and all other intellectual property rights except for the Copyright (the “Intellectual Property Rights”) and any reproductions of copyright works, for example graphs and tables (“Reproductions”), which may be described in this thesis, may not be owned by the author and may be owned by third parties. Such Intellectual Property Rights and Reproductions cannot and must not be made available for use without the prior written permission of the owner(s) of the relevant Intellectual Property Rights and/or Reproductions. 2 abstract This thesis examines the activity of the British musicians developing a practice of freely improvised music in the mid- to late-1960s, in conjunction with that of a group of British composers and performers contemporaneously exploring experimental possibilities within composed music; it investigates how these practices overlapped and interpenetrated for a period.