History of Jazz
Terms
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- Beat
- same as pulse. (Heartbeat)
- Changes
- see Harmonic Progression
- Chops
- Technical facility, endurance (Slang)
- Blue Note
- A note, part of a particular scale, that gives a bluesy quality to the musical line. Includes flat 3,5, and 7. Also, a very famous jazz club in NYC.
- Call & Response
- A generic term used in composition and improvisation, it originates from black church music.
- Antiphonal
- A form of musical response, i.e. one choir answering another; music characterized by the alternation of two or more parts.
- Chromatic Notes
- that are "foreign" to a given key, and the free utilization of altered notes.
- Crescendo
- Musical term meaning get louder
- Diminuendo
- Musical term meaning get softer
- Discography
- A listing of recordings, usually categorized by genre, player, or band
- Flat
- 1) To play below the pitch. 2) A chromatic alteration to a pitch
- Harmonic Progression
- A series of chords, or harmonies. Referred to as the changes
- Head
- The melody of the tune. A jazz performance usually begins by playing the "head".
- Lick
- similar to a riff - a pattern of notes, in all keys, used as the basic vocabulary of jazz
- Measure
- Same as bar. A group of pulses
- Meter
- The groupings of these pulses or beats. It can be caused by accenting certain beats.
- Mode
- Similar to a scale. A sequence of acoustic relationships. Not the same as key
- Mute
- An accessory to a brass instrument, it changes the sound, making it brassier, softer, etc...
- Obligato
- An accompanying line or part, used to enhance a melody.
- Pentatonics
- a five note scale, with no 4th or 7th. Used as vocabulary for the jazz language.
- Pizz
- "Pizzicato" - the strings are plucked instead of bowed (arco)
- Tempo
- Relative speed of the pulse
- Plunger
- A common rubber toilet plunger used as a muting device by trumpet and trombone players.
- Release
- 1) to stop a note. 2) The bridge
- Riff
- a short repetitive figure usually played by a section behind a soloist
- Rhythm
- The pattern that goes on top of the beat (pulse)
- Rubato
- free in tempo
- Scale
- a series of acoustical relationships that divide the octave into tones and semitones
- Sharp
- 1) To play above the pitch. 2) A chromatic alteration to a pitch
- Tag
- A colloquial expression, meaning an added or "tagged" on ending.
- Timbre
- Tone color. Caused by relative strength of the overtone series
- Shake
- An instrumental effect sounding like a trill but with a wider intervallic range. Produced by "shaking" the mouthpiece against the lips.
- Syncopation
- A temporary shifting or displacement of a regular metrical accent; emphasis on a weak or unaccented note so as to displace the regular meter
- Tonality
- Key area. Certain chords have more strength and "pull" than others, setting up a hierarchy or chords.
- Triplet
- three notes, played such that they equal two notes of the same value. Three equal notes played within one beat, two beats, or four beats.
- Vibrato
- Rapid up and down motion of the pitch. Gives warmth to a sound. From the verb "vibrate"
- Voicing
- Manipulation of certain chord tones, putting them in different order
- Walking Bass
- A bass line or quarter notes on the pulse, that just "walks along." They can be stepwise or scalar.
- Diatonic
- found naturally in given key
- AABA
- Form of many standard tunes. 32 bars long. 4 sections of 8 bars each. Includes a BRIDGE.
- Blues
- A feeling. Also a form of music. 12 bars, 3 sections of 4 bars each
- Bridge
- The middle section of an AABA tune. Different key area usually. It leads back into the A section. Also part of a stringed instrument that holds up the strings
- Chorus
- One pass through the form of the tune. Similar to going around the board in monopoly. Most people play too many choruses. See VERSE
- Solo Break
- A spot where the band stops playing in order to let the soloist get started
- Stop Time
- The soloist is the only timekeeper. The rhythm section and/or band usually plays a note every two or four bars.
- Trading fours
- alternating four (X) bar phrases between the rest of the band and the drummer. A type of drum solo.
- Vamp
- a short section (usually 2 bars) repeated over and over
- Verse
- Introductory section of a popular song or ballad, as distinguished from the chorus. Irregular number of bars. See CHORUS
- ASCAP
- American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers. A licensing agency. (BMI)
- Gig
- A musician's job, engagement. (Slang
- Jam Session
- an informal gathering of musicians, playing on their own time and improvising on one or two numbers. After hours. Not found anymore
- Sideman
- A musician in a band, different from the leader
- Attack
- To start a note. Different shapes