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A grammatical Conundrum the Using “” and “” Glossary to denote sadness is not recent BACKBEAT—a rhythmic emphasis on the second and fourth beats of a measure. English slang. The word blue BAR—a musical measure, which is a repeated rhythmic pattern of several beats, usually four quarter notes (4/4) for the blues. The blues usually has twelve bars per was associated with sadness verse. and melancholia in Eliza- —the slight lowering downward, usually of the third or seventh notes, of a . Some blues , especially singers, guitarists and bethan England. The Ameri- players, bend notes upward to reach the blue note. can writer Washington Irving CHOPS—the various patterns that a plays, including basic scales. When blues musicians get together for jam sessions, players of the same instrument used the term the blues in sometimes engage in musical duels in front of a to see who has the “hottest chops” (plays best). 1807. Grammatically speak- CHORD—a combination of notes played at the same time. ing, however, the term the —the use of a series of chords over a verse that is repeated for each verse. blues is a conundrum: should FIELD HOLLERS— that African-Americans sang as they worked, first as it be treated grammatically slaves, then as freed laborers, in which the workers would sing a phrase in response to a line sung by the song leader. as a singular or plural noun? GOSPEL —a style of heard in some black churches that The Merriam-Webster una- contains call-and-response similar to field hollers. Many blues and R & B singers, such as , , and , came out bridged dictionary says it is of the tradition. a plural noun but “sometimes —the part of a containing the wind instruments, usually , trumpets, and trombones. singular in construction.” IMPROVISATION—the musical act of playing something not previously planned, Because the blues can mean usually in the course of a singer’s or soloist’s part. While other musi- cal forms have occasional parts designed for improvisation, it is this spontaneity “sad feelings” the term can that distinguishes blues and from other musical genres. JAM—to improvise with other musicians, whether in the planned context of a be a collective noun that usu- group’s performance or in a gathering of musicians () for the purpose ally gets a singular status, as of improvising and interacting musically. MINSTREL SHOWS—traveling musical programs that featured black musicians in “I’ve got the blues and it or white musicians made up to look like black musicians. sure gets me down.” The blues R & B—an abbreviation for “”, the label used for much of black American music (except jazz) during the and 1960s. R & B had its own is singular when describing recording companies and sales charts. It included blues and vocal groups, such as the Moonglows, the Platters, and the Drifters, a style known as this musical genre, but occa- “doo-wop.” , which today includes and , comes out of the sionally it gets a plural refer- R & B tradition.

RHYTHM SECTION—the part of a band, usually consisting of drums, bass, 03-0105 ence in songs, as in “These rhythm , and keyboards, that plays the rhythms and chord progressions of blues are killing me.” As an a song. RIFFS—similar to chops, but more often referring to special musical tricks and adjective, blue refers to the techniques that a soloist might use. feeling of sadness, whereas —a style of playing using a metal or glass tube placed over a fin- ger on the left hand to slide along the strings over the instrument’s neck. blues refers to the style of SOUL—To say that someone has “soul” is to say that he or she has the ability to music, for example, “Albert feel things deeply, a feeling often gained by experiencing hardship. “Soul” also refers to a genre of American music, usually performed by blacks, that contains King is a great blues guitarist.” expressive vocals, frequent vocal , and strong rhythmic backbeats. 56 blue J ANUARY 2003 E NGLISH T EACHING F ORUM