# Guitar/Jazz

## Jazz basics

**Jazz chords:**

Early jazz bands used the banjo as an accompaniment instrument because
its loud volume gave it the ability to be heard, unamplified, against
brass and percussion. As an acoustic instrument, the banjo was limited
to a rhythmic role.

The electric guitar eventually replaced the banjo mainly due to its
extended range and improvements in timbre and the volume boost provided
by amplification. The early jazz guitarists played block chords to
provide the rhythmic support that was once the role of the banjo. They
had to adopt an economic chordal style to match some of the fast tempos
they were expected to play. This involved three or four note chords and
this legacy is to be found in all jazz guitar styles. Here are three
movable exercises illustrating the basic jazz chord vocabulary:

_**Exercise one: Four note jazz chords in root
position**_

<File:G> major jazz chord for guitar
(root).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**G
major**`</span>`{=html} <File:G> major7 jazz chord for guitar
(root).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**G
maj7**`</span>`{=html} <File:G7> jazz chord for guitar
(root).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**G7**`</span>`{=html}
<File:G6> jazz chord for guitar
(root).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**G6**`</span>`{=html}

_**Exercise two: four note jazz chords in first
inversion**_

<File:E> major jazz chord for guitar (first
inversion).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**E
major**`</span>`{=html} <File:E> major7 jazz chord for guitar (first
inversion).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**E
maj7**`</span>`{=html} <File:E7> jazz chord for guitar (first
inversion).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**E7**`</span>`{=html}
<File:E6> jazz chord for guitar (first
inversion).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**E6**`</span>`{=html}

_**Exercise three: three note jazz chords in second
inversion**_

<File:C> major jazz chord for guitar (second
inversion).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**C
major**`</span>`{=html} <File:C> major7 jazz chord for guitar (second
inversion).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**C
maj7**`</span>`{=html} <File:C7> jazz chord for guitar (second
inversion).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**C7**`</span>`{=html}
<File:C6> jazz chord for guitar (second
inversion).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**C6**`</span>`{=html}

Note that in each of the above exercises there is a change of only one
note to form the next chord and that this change takes place on one
string.

## Jazz forms

The two main forms in Jazz are the twelve bar blues and the
thirty-two-bar ballad. The \"rhythm
changes\" chord progression is a 32-bar form.

The thirty-two-bar ballad will normally take the sectional formː

**A - A - B - A**

Each section consisting of eight bars. Section B is sometimes described
as the bridge and will usually modulate to a related key eventually
returning to the home key towards the end of the section. Each section
can respectively be labelledː

**Statement - Statement - Development - Recapitulation (Return of
Statement)**

A famous thirty-two bar ballad is \"Misty\" by Erroll Garner with lyrics
written by Johnny Burke. Using the lyrics from the Sarah Vaughan version
of \"Misty\" and taking into account the four bar instrumental
introduction we can separate the sections into their respective
componentsː

**A (Statement)ː**

\"Look at me. I\'m as helpless as a kitten up a tree. And I feel like
I\'m clinging to a cloud. I can\'t understand. I get misty just holding
your hand\"

**A (Statement)ː**

\"Walk my way. And a thousand violins begin to play. Or it might be the
sound of your hello. That music I hear. I get misty the moment you\'re
near\"

**B (Development)**ː

\"You can say that you\'re leading me on. But it\'s just what I want you
to do. Don\'t you notice how hopelessly I\'m lost. That\'s why I\'m
following you\"

**A (Recapitulation)ː**

\"On my own. Would I wander through this wonderland alone. Not knowing
my right foot from my left. My hat from my glove. I\'m too misty and too
much in love\"

## Jazz style

Jazz rhythms are meant to swing. While not all jazz consists of swinging
rhythms, some may have a straight eighth note feel, it is important to
become familiar with this style of playing. Swing is a difficult style
to notate because it involves pulling and pushing against the beat and
therefore students approach jazz by listening to the music first. If you
are new to jazz then the song \"My Favorite Things\" from the musical
`<i>`{=html}The Sound Of Music`</i>`{=html} is a good place to start.
Listen to John Coltrane\'s jazz version and compare it against the
original soundtrack version. You will notice that the original version
swings less and that Coltrane\'s version lasts longer. Jazz musicians
are expected to be able to improvise and this is exactly what Coltrane
does by extending the song\'s harmony and melody beyond its original
form. The drums and piano in Coltrane\'s version swing in comparison to
the backing instruments of the original. Swing may be difficult to
notate on manuscript paper but it is easy to hear in performance.

The use of octaves is a common technique in jazz guitar. Once a jazz
guitarist has learned the notes to a melody they will then play the same
melody using octaves. Audiences hear octaves as a single melodic line
and therefore using octaves is a highly effective technique for
reinforcing the melody line. Jazz guitarists are also very adept at
playing scales backwards. The jazz guitarist Kenny Burrell on the album
`<i>`{=html}Midnight Blue`</i>`{=html} uses simple minor pentatonic
scales to great effect starting on their highest note and descending
through the scale to the lowest note. Playing scales backwards is a
technique that provides for surprise openings, unusual bridges and
tension releasing.

Many famous early jazz guitarists cited horn players as a major
influence. The rise of jazz coincided with the development of the radio
and gramophone and early recordings of jazz played a major role in
developing the main stylistic elements of the genre. Louis Armstrong\'s
\"West End Blues\" (Louis Armstrong and his Hot Five - 1928) is
considered one of the masterpieces of early jazz and cemented the role
of the brass soloist. Jazz guitarists from that period took note and
soon it became standard practice for guitarists to copy horn riffs.

Charlie Christian (Benny Goodman Band 1939 - 1941) is still considered
by many as one of the great players of the instrument with many of his
riffs displaying horn-like qualities. Christian also played a role in
the development of Be-Bop participating in jams with Dizzy Gillespie and
Theolonius Monk at Minton\'s Playhouse in New York (1941) which were
recorded by a jazz fan. These recordings represent the transition from
Swing to Be-Bop and offer a rare chance to hear the informal after-hours
meetings of some of the greatest players in jazz.

A good jazz guitarist will normally have a few horn riffs in his
vocabulary. Try playing along to a Miles Davis or John Coltrane
recording and preferably choose a slow tempo ballad which will allow you
time to hear and emulate. Brass instruments are melodic instruments and
therefore, unlike the guitar, horn players cannot form chords. This
means that horn players develop very strong melodic capabilities and
this provides an ideal opportunity for a guitarist to improve their solo
lines.

The sound of the city. The age of the automobile. The wireless radio and
electric neon lights. Jazz must be placed in its social context. Duke
Ellington\'s \"Take the A Train\" invokes a New York train journey and
the pace of urban life. A listener\'s response to the Miles Davis and
Gil Evans interpretation of the slow movement from \"Concierto de
Arunjuez\", the most popular guitar concerto in the Classical
repertoire, can only conclude that the style is jazz but the themes are
Spanish. Music transcends geography and time offering the listener\'s
imagination new ground to traverse.

The study of jazz styles is the study of context. The importance of this
should be borne in mind to avoid dismissing certain jazz styles. The
validity of \"Early Autumn\" by Woody Herman is equal to the validity of
\"Take The A Train\" by Duke Ellington. The soulful sound of \"Mercy
Mercy Mercy\" by Cannonball Adderley is no less jazz than the live
performance in Berlin of \"How High The Moon\" by Ella Fitzgerald.
Context must be extended to take into account the length of career and
the artist\'s complete output. The later work of Billie Holiday was
marred by personal problems and is not a true indication of her
artistry. The popularity of Louis Armstrong and his later commercial pop
music does not tell you why he was so important to the development of
Jazz.

The black-tie Sinatra singing \"My Way\" in his later years masks the
original vocal phrasing that he developed with the Tommy Dorsey Band
that Miles Davis based his own trumpet style upon. To know that Benny
Goodman acquired some of his music charts from Fletcher Henderson
provides the opportunity to discover Chu Berry and Coleman Hawkins.
Context provides the means to see that jazz style is not exclusively or
independently developed by genius or any one group or person. Two
versions of \"Sugar Foot Stomp\", as performed by Fletcher Henderson,
will illustrate the style analysis of early Jazz stated in the
introduction - block chords, fast tempos, and the change from banjo to
guitar - \"Sugar Foot Stomp\" recorded in 1925 by Fletcher Henderson
with banjo played by Charlie Dixon and the 1931 version recorded by
Fletcher Henderson under the name Connie\'s Inn Orchestra with guitar
played by Clarence Holiday.

### Exercise one

The following exercise is a single chorus of the twelve bar blues with a
solo in the style of Charlie Christian. It is a simplified version of
the first chorus from \"Profoundly Blue\" and is transposed down a
semi-tone from the original key of E flat.

!This exercise is in the style of Charlie
Christian{width="800"}

\
You can tune your guitar up a semi-tone to compensate for the
transposition. Play the Charlie Christian version and tune your open D
string up a semi-tone to E flat which is the key of the original
recording. Tune the rest of the strings to the open D string.

### Movement exercises

These three exercises lend themselves to the 12-bar blues form. They are
designed to aid movement along the fretboard and to give the student the
chance to practice applying one chord on each beat of a bar.

_**Exercise one**_

<File:1> - G major jazz guitar chord (3rd
fret).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**G
major**`</span>`{=html} <File:2> - C major jazz guitar chord (5th in
bass).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**C
major**`</span>`{=html} <File:3> - G7 jazz guitar chord (3rd
fret).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**G7**`</span>`{=html}
<File:4> - C major jazz guitar chord (5th in
bass).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**C
major**`</span>`{=html}

_**Exercise two**_

<File:5> - C major jazz guitar chord (5th
fret).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**C
major**`</span>`{=html} <File:6> - F major jazz guitar chord (5th in
bass at 7th
fret).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**F
major**`</span>`{=html} <File:7> - C7 jazz guitar chord (8th
fret).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**C7**`</span>`{=html}
<File:8> - F major jazz guitar chord (5th in bass at 7th
fret).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**F
major**`</span>`{=html}

_**Jazz Movement Exercise Three**_

<File:9> - D major jazz guitar chord (10th
fret).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**D
major**`</span>`{=html} <File:10> - G major jazz guitar chord (5th in
bass at 9th
fret).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**G
major**`</span>`{=html} <File:11> - D7 jazz guitar chord (10th
fret).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**D7**`</span>`{=html}
<File:12> - G major jazz guitar chord (5th in bass at 9th
fret).png\|`<span style="font-family:Courier New;">`{=html}**G
major**`</span>`{=html}

## Essential guitarists and recordings

!The jazz guitarist Pat Metheny; whose understated guitar style drew
not only praise from jazz fans but also gained him a following from many
who had no experience of
jazz.
The following list of influential jazz guitarists illustrates the major
stylistic changes in Jazz ranging from Swing to Progressiveː

-   Django Reinhardt was gypsy
    guitarist born in Belgium who played swinging jazz lines on a
    Maccaferri acoustic guitar. His signature tune was the Debussy
    inspired \"Nuages\" whose opening motif alludes to the Impressionist
    composer\'s \"Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun\".
-   Charlie Christian was the first
    guitarist to popularize the electric guitar as a solo instrument in
    jazz. Listen to the recordings he made with Benny Goodman in the
    late 1930s, including \"Solo Flight.\"
-   Tal Farlow brought the harmonic and
    melodic innovations of the Bebop style of jazz
    to the guitar. His mid-1950s recordings are recommended listening.
-   Jim Hall brought a motif-based style of
    improvisational development to the jazz guitar. His recordings with
    Bill Evans are an excellent starting point.
-   Wes Montgomery is renowned for his
    horn-like single lines, innovative octaves, and chord solos. The
    three essential Wes Montgomery recordings, all from the early 1960s,
    are `<i>`{=html}The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes
    Montgomery`</i>`{=html}, `<i>`{=html}Full House`</i>`{=html}, and
    `<i>`{=html}Smokin\' At The Half Note`</i>`{=html}.
-   George Benson is known for his
    improvisation as well as his more popular later works. Listen to his
    work with organists Jack McDuff and Dr.
    Lonnie Smith or the album
    `<i>`{=html}Live At Casa Caribe`</i>`{=html}.
-   Pat Martino is known for his fluid
    single-line improvisation. A good introduction to his playing is
    `<i>`{=html}Live At Yoshi\'s`</i>`{=html}, featuring organist Joey
    DeFrancesco and drummer Billy
    Hart.
-   Joe Pass was a great improvisor, but he is
    known especially for his solo chord-melody arrangements of jazz
    standards. Essential listening includes the Virtuoso series of
    recordings which showcases his solo pieces.
-   John McLaughlin is known as a
    pioneering jazz-rock guitarist. His work in the 1970s with the
    Mahavishnu Orchestra should be
    considered essential listening.
-   John Scofield is known for his angular
    lines and use of dissonance. For new jazz listeners, his two
    recordings with Medeski Martin and
    Wood are probably the best
    introduction to his playing.
-   Allan Holdsworth is a jazz-rock
    guitarist known for his peerless technique and his unique approach
    to harmony. *Believe It*, a mid-1970s jazz-rock album by the New
    Tony Williams Lifetime, and *None Too Soon*, a more straight-ahead
    jazz album by Holdsworth, are both essential listening.
-   Pat Metheny is a modern Jazz guitarist
    whose popularity has never diminished his art. His collaboration
    with Steve Reich on \"Electric Counterpoint\" is a notable example
    of his commitment to creativity. The Pat Metheny Group debut album,
    *Bright Size Life*, features the electric bassist Jaco
    Pastorius.

