This Is Gary Mcfarland Analysis

For this analysis on Louis Armstrong’s West End Blues, I am going to concentrate on Louis Armstrong and how influential he was in the birth of Swing. He was extremely innovative in the way he played his instrument. Louis Armstrong had a brilliant trumpet sound. His power, range, and his rhythmic approach are all trademarks of his playing in the 1920s and 1930s. West End Blues is still considered one of the most influential and classic pieces in the Jazz Industry. I will explain why by breaking down the song utilizing the five elements of music; form, harmony, texture, melody, and rhythm.

Dizzy Gillespie deservedly ranks amongst the most influential and innovative jazz musicians of all times. Every note played with his trumpet captivated a legion of devout followers from all different age demographics and cultural backgrounds. Only Miles Davis and Louis Armstrong can tread the waters of his talent and his ever-growing legend, which was propelled by his revolutionary style. The Bebop revolution would have been a real yawner without notable Dizzy Gillespie tracks and stunning collaborations with top artists from the time period. He played alongside great musicians like Cab Calloway, Ella Fitzgerald, Earl Hines, Duke Ellington, Billy Eckstine, Charlie Parker, Charlie Christian, Thelonious Monk, Max Roach and Coleman

Miles Davis represents the pinnacle of modern American Jazz. He was one of the foremost pioneers in the inventions of cool jazz, hard bop, free jazz, fusion and techno. He was, arguably one of the most influential figures in music, pushing the boundaries of what was commonly known as jazz into new directions that most people thought was impossible.

Louis Armstrong's diversity and adaptability is widely recognized as one of the most influential aspect in jazz music. Louis Armstrong's musical influence is still the fundamental base for modern jazz today. "Louis Armstrong is jazz. He represents what the music is all about.” — Wynton Marsalis perfectly sums up his contributions. His diversity sets him apart from other jazz artists because he managed to stay relevant throughout different musical eras like, the ENOJ era, The Swing Era, Blues etc., until the end of his career. The accomplishments he has achieved throughout his life and the hardships he has gone through has shaped his persona, contributing to how he will become as an artist. His instrumental style, singing, career throughout musical eras, accomplishments, and etc., contribute to how adaptable and diverse he is.

Louis was born in New Orleans where he grew up and learned to play the trumpet. He also learned to sing. Because of his long improvised solos, he inspired jazz so that long solos became an important part of jazz pieces and performances. (Cayton, 462) Armstrong was the king of jazz trumpet players. The new style that he created gave a voice-like quality to his horn. (Hakim, 58) Although Jazz was very popular itself, a majority of the fans and listeners were younger people. Flappers were commonly known during this time. They danced to the jazz music with a whole new style.

His contributions “ended one jazz era and started a new one” (Louis). Armstrong contributed to jazz by incorporating his own style of music. He was a soloist who played the cornet, trumpet, and sung. He created the Blues scale and incorporated a new feeling called the “Bleusy” feeling to Jazz. Bleusy was different from of music because it was being expressed more than the music itself. His work was also improvised, which means that he did not have a planned piece to play if he was performing. The pieces he played were made up on the spot which makes his pieces more expressive and in the moment. He turned jazz into an individual improvisation which did not break away from the ensemble. While swaying from the standard jazz form, he also transformed jazz from polyphony to solos. One of his most famous songs “Hotter Than That”

new type of music that would later be called jazz. Choosing to base his career

Miles Davis was the primary developer of the cool jazz style. Miles Davis a cool jazz icon who will forever be known for the innovation he brought us today known as the cool jazz style. Miles Davis wasn’t just known for his unique style he had created he was known for his uniqueness in that he brought a new era of using the trumpet. Miles Davis or officially known as Miles Dewy Davis III was born on May, 26, 1926 in Alton, Illinois. Unlike many African Americans of the time miles grew up in a middle class household environment with A Dental surgeon as a father and a school teacher for a mother.

A living jazz legend once exclaimed “jazz has borrowed from other genres of music and also has lent itself to other genres of music.” Herbie Hancock makes it clear that jazz has been an evolving form of art. And just as simple as the notion that music can change the world, music changes in itself. Jazz once evolved into something we call swing. Back in the roaring twenties people got up and danced to this kind of music. However, these simple and playful melodies that everyone were accustomed to transformed into intricate music with a different basis. When jazz was over everyone’s head and people stopped dancing, we call this period bop. Inevitably, new ideas emerged and jazz musicians decided to take a

The Development of Swing Jazz through Benny Goodman Although the conception of jazz occurred well before the 1920s, swing style jazz did not exist until the 1930s. This style was brought about by elaboration on the style of the 1920s era and the use of “big bands” and swung eighth notes. The emergence of this sub-genre is often attributed to individuals such as Benny Goodman, Louis Armstrong, and Glen Miller. The music of Benny Goodman helped develop what we think of as swing jazz today, through the elaboration of diverse styles from collaborations with different artists and personal contributions.

Nps.gov states that some of the greatest musician in America History has come from the jazz side of the world. Artist such as Louis Armstrong, Billy Holiday and Jelly “Roll” Morton, pave the way for jazz to reach its height as it did in the early 20’s with the upbeat tempo and smooth classical sound. These artist brung a unique sound to jazz that was not there. Louis Armstrong contribute to jazz is so remarkable, he played the trumpet like no other. His sound was so soothing to the ears. When you think about jazz, Louis Armstrong is one of the first names most people relate to jazz. Jelly “Roll” Morton was probably the most influence artist there is. An innovative piano stylist and composer, began his odyssey outside of New Orleans as early as 1907. He continue his work throughout the 1920’s and was mainly consider the reason of the swing era.

Duke Ellington's music was hardly known as traditional. With such an elusive amount of skilled musicians, the expertise level allowed for Ellington's compositions to break away from conventional band-section scores. His composition style mixed many individual musician talents to form a conglomerate of sounds and harmonies with an emphasis on the supple flexibility of his ensemble.

Hi Scott, I really liked your comparison of the snow outside and the atmosphere inside. As the snow becomes darker so does the emotions inside. Although they were both fighting for the baby's well being (I assume), they were unintentionally putting him or her in jeopardy. They really were not acting like adults at that moment.

He was involved in the British funk scene in 1980s, and he began to take an interest in the possibility of mixing jazz and other genres. Radio audiences welcomed his attempts such as “After Hours” and an arrangement of “So What” by legendary jazz musician Miles Davis although some jazz purists were against his

With the installation of the Miles Davis Quintet, Davis picked up where his late forties sessions left off. Eschewing the rhythmic and harmonic complexity of the prevalent bebop, Davis was given space to play long, legato and essentially melodic lines, where he would begin to explore modal music, his lifelong obsession. Modal jazz is a new venture for jazz both harmonically and structurally, it no longer used the chord progressions of standard tunes as the basis for improvisation replaced by a succession of scales on which the performer improvised instead (Kingman, 1990:390). Davis had definitely gone a long way in his trumpet playing since collaborating with Parker. No longer dependant on bebop phrasing, he chose a minimalist approach instead. Ornate phrasing gave way to a smattering of tones. He was also utilizing a Harmon mute, sometimes adding reverb, which had a whisper effect and personalised his sound. Elements of texture and silence between notes were becoming more dominant (Kirker, 2005:2). By 1958, he had freed himself by using modal scales and slower moving harmonies. “Milestones” portrayed this example as