Lecture recital:

 Introduce Tristan as ‘auxilary percussion’

 Introduce Ben as ‘contrabass violin’
 Brief introduction of aims of recital – development of
the role of piano in jazz and the broader trends in jazz –
don’t make a definitive statement about the end point
of jazz being the 60’s – created the basis on which jazz
performance has been built –
 Define some broad terms and ground rules: jazz (the
origins of the term cottonfields,
 ‘Jazz will endure just as long people hear it through
their feet instead of their brains.’
 ‘its gotta be cool so people can dig it’), ‘improvised’,
‘form’, ‘head’, ‘tag ending’ ‘vamp’ ‘solo’ ‘calling a chart’
 Brief description of Jelly Roll Morton/Fats Waller, bit of
bio
 Limitations of recording equipment, couldn’t record
low frequencies very well,1 mic in middle of room,
could not capture the detail of many instruments, piano
came across much clearer only when rest of the
instruments drop out – left hand fattens bass because
there are no amps – lots of different jobs
 Get Ben to play a ‘2’ feel bass line on Bb (will become a
blues), then a ‘4’ feel bass line, joke about him playing
little filler bits (dotted crotched, quaver, then he does
it, triplet, then he does it, some complicated one, then
he looks at me funny)
 Demonstrate and build up stride example
(honeysuckle rose) (also in handout) – talk about it –
play very rigid and straight to start, then become freer
 and increase swing as we move further into the
development of jazz – talk about this difference
 Move onto the 40’s-60’s, cool east-coast jazz, Bill Evans,
Dave Brubeck – how this changed the role of the piano
and how jazz itself changed (talk about jazz standards
and standard standard) – example of Bb blues: Just
comping like guitar (Freddie green comping Basie
band_ for 12 bars – off beats, syncopation, - guitar joins
the piano trio, frees up the piano, then bass solo
(playing high then low) comp accordingly, then last bar
Ben walks out of solo into form again, highlight this
blues example - bud powell – faster tempos,
chromatic lines
 Difference between: pretty piano flourishes to add to
the sound when playing stride and the lead bebop lines
of Bud, Oscar and so on
 example – I get a kick out of you – of a musical tune
 Piano starts to get a lead role – whereas before it was
accompanying other players, we now get piano led trio
– such as Art Tatum’s 1940’s group with Tiny Grimes
on guitar and Slam Stewart on bass, Bud Powell ––
from the 1944 film ‘The uninvited – written by Victor
Young – is an example of a popular song taken by a
pianist to become a jazz standard – this allowed much
more freedom for the piano – mention Stella by
Starlight – talk about song form from musicals/music
for film – left hand is freed up to imply more complex
harmoy –
 Oscar Peterson – loses guitarist and adds drums which
allows more freedom – Herb Ellis (guitar) was replaced
by Ed Thigpen in 1958
  Discuss movement of jazz from a dancing idiom, stride
disappears – you can’t dance to these tunes – people
went to sit down and listen to these as concerts
 Then one more time with piano solo after bass solo,
demonstrate tag ending using ‘ beautiful love’
 Demonstrate different sonic landscape with beginning
piano solo, then vamp, of Example Waltz for Debby/
Flamenco sketches emphasis different textures that
piano can create
 The general trend of piano development is importance
of left hand to the importance of the right
 The final point: if you went to the ronnie’s/toyko/new
york now they would be playing similar repertoire as
in the 60’s – ground work laid by these examples –
anywhere you go you can play these tunes and it will
work – relate personal example of being in Spain and
playing a tune

 So now, whether you’re in Poland, Toyko, New York or

Soho, and you may have nothing in common with the
other players, we’re all united by and can express
ourselves through what is, in my opinion, the greatest
manifestion of music; jazz. Thank you very much.

SourcesL 4 Jelly Roll Morton, Benjamin Spikes, John

Spikes, Wolverine Blues, The Jelly Roll Morton Trio
- Piano as an accompanying instrument
Lomax, Alan. Mister Jelly Roll. New York: Grosset & Dunlap,
1950. – On Jelly Roll claiming he invented jazz
Pettinger, Peter. Bill Evans: How My Heart Sings. New Haven:
Yale University Press, 1998. – on the describing the free
nature of Bill Evans technique
Groves, A. and A. Shipton. The Glass Enclosure: The Life of
Bud Powell. Oxford: Bayou Press, 1993 – taking musical
numbers and turning them into jazz standards – song form

Important dates:

Guitar enters and provides left hand freedom:

1943. The Art Tatum Trio is formed in New York, with
guitarist Lloyd "Tiny" Grimes, and bassist Leroy "Slam"
Stewart.

First ever (recorded) piano led trio

December 18, 1944. Eroll Garner records with bassist John
Simmons, and drummer Harold "Doc" West, establishing
a new standard format for the jazz piano trio.