SCALE RESOURCES

Note the rhythmic displacement

When rhythmic repetition is combined with pitchrepetition, a distinguishing motivic “hook” usually emerges

fragmentation

Harmonic Considerations

MELODIES BASED ON GUIDE TONES

MOTIFS BASED ON INTERVALLIC PATTERNS

MOTIVIC TRANSFORMATION

Motivic sequence

Phrase repetition—four measures

Motivic repetition

Melodic Variation via Modal Interchange

Scale Resources

Modal tunes alternate back and forth from low to medium rhythmic density

Bebop tunes contain a high degree of rhythmic density

Melodic Rhythm Density as a Function of Style

Melodic Rhythm

Breath Phrase=Grammatical Phrase=Antecedent:A musical “proposal” (open ended, as if with a comma)Consequent:A musical “response” (closed, as if with a period)Form Phrase

Melodic Considerations

JAZZ COMPOSITION

Pandiatonicism is produced by strictly confining harmonic material to a given scale (i.e.,with no chromatic, or out-of-scale, intrusion). This concept can be applied to any scale,but it is most commonly used in tonal and modal contexts. The technique is similar toconstant structures, but the intervals of all voicings are adjusted so as to conform to thescale of the moment. The spacing may be uniform or variable.

Scales

The expressiveness of the blues comes from the melodic inflections added to particularnotes. When we listen to various vocal or guitar renditions of the blues, these inflectionsare easily recognizable; they stand out because of their emotional charge and slightly “outof tune” sound. 1 The so-called blues scale approximates the sound of these pitchinflections by altering ^3, ^5, and ^7 of the major scale. Figure 9.3 illustrates the content ofthe blues scale and its derivation from the major scale.The blues scale is a six-note collection with the “blue” notes on ≤3, ≤5, and ≤7. Althoughthe presence of ≤7th suggests a chord–scale relationship with the dominant 7th chord,the use of the blues scale is not limited to this chord only. In the context of the bluesscale, the pitches ≤3 and ≤5 constitute expressive embellishments not bound by anyparticular harmonic function or chord type. The blues scale, then, is an androgynous

rhythmic displacement using different improvisationalstrategies, such as phrase displacement, metric displacement, manipulation of phraseaccents, and melodic interpolations. Phrase displacement occurs when the phrase is shiftedby a beat (or more) and creates a dissonance with the underlying harmonic and metricstructure. Probably the most effective use of this technique occurs in m. 77 where theline begins on beat 2 with a downward arpeggiation of the E major upper-structure triadover the structural B≤7 and is further emphasized with a strong accent on the first quarternote, EΩ4. The manipulation of phrase accents shifts regular metrical accents, therebycreating metric ambiguity. This technique occurs when the phrase temporarily rendersbeats 2 and 4 as beats 1 and 3. The phrase in mm. 159–160 illustrates these features.Notice how beat 4 in m. 159 influences the perception of beat 2 in the next measure.Metric displacement implies the use of cross rhythm to create a characteristic rhythmic joltand increase in tension within the phrase. The phrase in mm. 81–83 displays thesecharacteristics. The distribution of accents and phrase groupings in mm. 81–83 createsan interesting superimposition of 3/4, 3/8, 2/4, and 4/4 respectively. Notice how theuse of 3/8 influences the metric location of sub-phrases in 2/4 and 4/4 in mm. 82–83,and how the perception of the meter in the ensuing measures is constantly beingchallenged

These seven models of harmonic realization get progressively more advanced, but eventhe initial ones—provided that they are performed in time and with a good rhythmicfeel—can convincingly express the majority of jazz progressions. As you get morecomfortable at realizing harmonic progressions using these models, experiment withdifferent metric placements and variations of the Charleston rhythm

The ability to realize harmonic progressions on the keyboard is an essential skill for thecontemporary jazz musician, regardless of her/his primary instrument. The forthcomingmodels of keyboard playing will help to accomplish this objective

invertible potential of the guide tones.

Various chords realized in “chorale style” with equal distribution of notes in bothhands.Model VII uses two voices per hand and employs different four-, five- and larger-partharmonic structures. Since this model uses only four-voice textures, larger formations needto be reduced to their essential harmonic frameworks. In reducing chords to their four-part frameworks certain notes are retained and others omitted. Typically, the root isretained, the 5th is omitted, and—depending on the context—the remaining three voicesare selected from the related guide tones, pitch alterations, or extensions. Figure 12.7demonstrates different Model VII realizations of the II–V–I progression. The selectionof chords differs from one realization to the next and depends both on the voicing of theopening chord and on the voice-leading forces initiated by the initial two chords

Rootless five-part chords in the R.H. realized with good voice leading.• Roots, thirds, or fifths in the L.H. in 2:1 ratio with the R.H.The motion between chords in Model VI shown in Figure 12.6 is controlled by theprinciples of good voice leading

Rootless five-part chords in the R.H. (NO voice-leading considerations.)• Roots of chords in the L.H. in 1:1 ratio with the R.H.Broadly speaking, so-called rootless formations omit the root of the chord from theirstructure. With rootless five-part chords, the upper four-part structure is placed in theR.H. and the root in the L.H. Some of the R.H. shapes should look, sound, and feelfamiliar, since they have already been encountered in the four-part chords in the contextof Model III and Model IV. Similar to Model III, we will first acquaint ourselves withfour rotations of the rootless formation. Figure 12.5 provides four Model V realizationsof the major and minor versions of the II–V–I progression, with each realization beginningon a different R.H. shape

Root position and inversions of four-part chords in the R.H. (NO voice-leadingconsiderations.)• Roots of chords in the L.H. in 1:1 ratio with the R.H.The focus of Model III, shown in Figure 12.3, is to explore only one position or inversionof the four-part chord throughout the progression

Root position and inversions in the R.H. realized with good voice leading.• Roots, 3rds, or 5ths in the L.H. in 2:1 ratio with the R.H

Guide-tone lines in the right hand (R.H.).• Roots of chords in the left hand (L.H.) in 1:1 ratio with the R.H.Figure 12.1 demonstrates Model I using the major and minor versions of the II–V–Iprogression. Notice that the R.H. explores the invertible potential of the guide tones

Rhythmicized guide tones in the R.H.• Roots, thirds or fifths in the L.H. in 2:1 ratio with the R.H.Figure 12.2 illustrates the use of Model II. The R.H. distributes the Charleston rhythmat different locations within the measure

Figure 12.2 illustrates the use of Model II. The R.H. distributes the Charleston rhythmat different locations within the measure

In addition to the ii 7–V7–Imaj7 and ii≤57–V7–i progressions, there are other harmonicprogressions that often occur in standard tunes. Probably the most recognizableprogression is a turnaround, also known as a turnback. The turnaround is a two- orfour-bar progression, usually with a faster harmonic rhythm, that typically occurs at theend of 8- or 16-bar phrases. One of the formal functions of the turnaround is to effectivelyprepare the arrival of the “top of the chorus” by ushering in a familiar chord progression. 1Just as the ii 7 –V 7 –Imaj 7 progression can be transformed with different harmonicsubstitutions, so too can turnarounds

Tag endings are somewhat related to turnarounds in their basic harmonic structure, butplay different roles in tunes and complete performances. A tag ending occurs at the veryend of a tune, repeats a chord sequence (which in the course of subsequent repetitionsbecomes harmonically transformed), and has an indeterminate duration. Only the finalrepetition of the tag ending progression is harmonically closed with a clear confirmationof the tonic. Its basic role in the performance is to provide a satisfactory, coda-like endingwith a final improvisational flair. As Miles Davis demonstrated on his many recordings,tag endings may take on a life of their own—especially with Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter,and Tony Williams in the rhythm section—and frequently exceeded the length of his solos.2Tag endings and turnarounds often share similar chord progressions: the only differencebetween the Imaj7–vi7–ii7–V7 and the iii7–vi7–ii7–V7 is that the former begins on the tonicand the latter on the mediant chord. These two chords, Imaj7 and iii7, are said to befunctionally equivalent and are frequently used to substitute for one another. Figure 13.6illustrates a iii7–vi7–ii7–V7 tag ending progression realized with Model II of keyboardplaying. Each measure displaces the Charleston rhythm by a half beat.Each of these chords can be further substituted by a secondary dominant 7th and,subsequently, by a TR/X7. Since a tag ending progression is usually four bars long, wecan demonstrate the use of two harmonic techniques that will double the rate of harmonicrhythm in each measure. The technique of dominant saturation combines two dominant7th chords, diatonic or chromatic and its TR/X 7 (or vice versa) next to each other. Theuse of ii7–V7 diminution technique expands any dominant 7th chord into a local ii 7–V7

Chapter 21 introduces 13 phrase models that illustrate the essential harmonic, contrapuntal,and structural properties of the different eight-bar phrases commonly found in standardtunes.

During the Baroque Era, the “Rule of the Octave” was a practical tool that enabledmusicians to gain harmonic flexibility at the keyboard.5 The rule prescribed how toharmonize a scale in the bass using stylistic tonal progressions. In jazz, a similar rule canalso be developed. Instead of placing the scale in the bass, the major scale is placed in thesoprano voice. The jazz rule of the octave explains how to harmonize a descending majorscale with idiomatic jazz progressions. By examining different harmonic outcomes, therelationship of melodies to chords and chords to melodies becomes clear. The jazz ruleof the octave also helps us to realize the harmonic potential of different melodic segmentsand examines their behavior in the context of underlying chord progressions. Figures21.3a–21.3d illustrate four distinct harmonizations of the descending major scale

Chapter 13 investigates two- and four-bar idiomatic jazz progressions. It also focuses onaural identification and keyboard realization of non-modulatory and modulatoryprogressions with various ii7–V7 or ii≤57–V7 interpolations, as well as miscellaneous four-bar phrases

Chapter 5 expands the repository of harmonic structures to 35 five-part chords. They aredivided into five categories: major, minor, dominant 7th, suspended dominant, and inter-mediary

Chapter 23 examines the 32-bar ABAC form and its two tonal variants: on-tonic and off-tonic. As an example of this formal design, “All Of You” is analyzed

Chapter 22 undertakes a study of song forms and its most common type: the 32-barAABA. Two tonal variants, on-tonic and off-tonic, are examined and, as an example ofthe on-tonic AABA formal design, “Have You Met Miss Jones?” is analyzed.

John Coltrane’s recording of Giant Steps in 1959 epitomized his three-year period ofharmonic explorations, most notably with symmetrical intervallic cycles. 3 Hiscomposition “Countdown,” which is based on Miles Davis’s “Tune Up,” illustrates theuse of so-called “Coltrane” substitutions. Characterized by fast harmonic rhythm, thissubstitution projects a major-third cycle in which each local major 7th chord is tonicizedwith the corresponding dominant 7th. In the context of the Dmin7–G7–CMaj7progression shown in Figure 13.10, the first member of the major-third cycle, ≤VImaj7,is accessed through its dominant 7th that follows the structural predominant, ii 7. Thenext member of the major-third cycle, IIImaj7, is also preceded by its dominant, V 7/III,before the progression completes its trajectory with the structural dominant 7th resolvingto the tonic.

Dorian Family of Voicings

Roman numerals are context-sensitive and indicate the exact position of chords with respectto the underlying tonic. This style of notation is very powerful in explaining the tonalbehavior of chords and is mostly used in analysis. Some jazz musicians, however, havefound a useful niche for this type of notation. By translating the lead-sheet notation of astandard tune into Roman numerals, jazz musicians can easily transpose and learn thattune in all 12 keys. But Roman numerals, too, have their disadvantages. Problems withthis style of notation arise when a tune modulates away from the underlying tonic orfrequently tonicizes new key areas. With the addition of Arabic numbers borrowed fromthe figured-bass tradition, Roman numerals are capable of expressing complex five-,six-, or seven-part chords. When using Roman numerals, however, complex five-, six-, orseven-part formations will be translated to their essential four-part framework. For instance,F7(≤13) in the key of C major will be simply notated as IV7.

any melodic line can be represented by a chord and/or harmonicprogression and, conversely, any chord or harmonic progression can be horizontalizedwith a melodic line

In modal jazz theory, there are 14 modes: seven diatonic and seven chromatic. Modes inmodal jazz typically function as independent scalar formations that are devoid of traditionaltonal relationships. For instance, a complete section of a tune might feature only a singlemodal scale (e.g. John Coltrane’s “Impressions” or McCoy Tyner’s “Passion Dance”).5In tonal jazz, however, modes exhibit similar functional behaviors comparable to thoseof four-, five-, or larger-part structures. In Chapter 8, diatonic and chromatic modes willbe combined and their tonal functional associations shown

PARENT-SCALE DERIVATION OF CHROMATIC MODESThe

Chapter 7 introduces seven diatonic modes from the major scale and seven chromaticmodes from the melodic minor scale

Chapter 2 identifies the main characteristics of jazz rhythm

SYNCOPATIONFigure 2.1

THE ROLE OF GUIDE TONESIn

voice leading

motivic development

Swing

Anticipation

Delayed Attack

List of Modal Chord Scales

List of Tonal Chord Scales

Notation and Labeling of Chord Scales

How Tensions Affect Chord Scales

How Melody Affects Chord Scales

Chord Scale Theory

eC re Voicings

Rhythmic and Harmonic Anticipation

Diminished Scales and Harmony

In Prelude IV, Kapustin intensifies the Garner strumming effect by instructingthat the chords can be arpeggiated, simulating jazz guitar. Another aspect of Garner’sstyle, the offbeat “kicks” from the bass end of the keyboard, are also captured in bars 2and 4 of ex. 13.21

Like the diminished chord, the diminished scale is symmetrical, an eight-note (octotonic)collection of alternating whole and half steps, or half and whole steps.21 As Stefan Koskastates, “The octotonic scale is a rich source of melodic and harmonic material. It containsall of the intervals, from minor 2nd up to major 7th. All of the tertian triads except for theaugmented triad can be extracted from this scale, as can four of the five common 7th-chord types (the major-7 th cannot). 22Diminished scales and patterns derived from them are now part of modern jazzharmonic vocabulary and are used primarily to complement altered dominant chords. Forexample, a half-whole diminished scale over a G7 chord will include most of thecommon extensions and alterations:  9, 11, and 13

Another common hybrid scale, thediminished-whole tone, is usually implied by the “alt” chord symbol. This scale includesa 9, both major and minor thirds (also referred to as a 9), and a 5. It starts out like ahalf-whole diminished scale and ends like a whole-tone scale. A diminished-whole tonescale in C would be C, D, E, E, G, A, B

The modal approach de-emphasized the tonic-dominant axis of Bebop, leadingto a more pan-diatonic approach to harmony

Chords that are not built on superimposed layers of thirds are still to be in-vestigated. They are of three kinds in principle:Fig. 5.1. Infrastructure, superstructure, and developed chord

Harmonic substitution—Harmonic substitution consists of changing the qualityof a chord, that is to say altering one or several notes of the infrastructure. Themost common use of this rule produces secondary dominants: in sequencesbased on fifth relations expressed by functional degrees (I-IV-vii-iii-vi-ii-V-I),this consists of transforming any of the chords preceding V (except IV), that isto say either vii, iii, vi, or ii (all chords with minor thirds) into a seventh chord:

a saxophonist may decide to double orhalve the tempo

A pianist may use stride

Smooth Voice Leading

JAZZ VOICINGS

AMERICAN STANDARD PITCH NOTATION

VI. JAZZ

SWING RHYTHMS

Backbeat

Syncopation

CHORD SYMBOLS

Added Notes (add) and Suspensions (sus)

Chord Symbols vs. Roman Numerals

SUBSTITUTIONS

Mode Mixture

CHORD-SCALE THEORY

Spacing

BLUES HARMONY

BLUES MELODIES AND THE BLUES SCALE

Typical Jazz Voicing

EMBELLISHING CHORDS

Phrase and Lyric Structure

The Blues Scale

DIATONIC MODES

In the 20th and 21st centuries, composers sometimes used the diatonic collection, but without making anyattempt to make a specific pitch sound like the the pitch center. Such examples are not tonal, nor are theymodal; instead, they are considered pandiatonic. Igor Stravinsky often wrote pandiatonic passages; manycan be heard throughout the opening of his ballet Petrushka

Texture

Turnarounds

ii–V space

II–V–I

Jazz Reharmonization

Jazz Reharmonization

The Blues Progression

Standard Chord Progressions

Count Basie and His Orchestra, “London Bridge is Falling Down”

Harmonizing the Bebop Scale

Chord Labels

“Salt Peanuts” (Gillespie/Clark) and “Passport” (Parker)

This sample bassline was performed by Joseph Makwela of Mahlathini and the Mahotella Queens8. The bass is played with a plectrum and the notes are played staccato. The drum set plays a steady kick drum9 on all four beats in the bar and plays a syncopated snare drum10 pattern that accentuates the staccato notes of the bass

more commonly used mbaqanga basslines used throughout the transcription. To describe mbaqanga derived basslines in terms of their construction is difficult as the basslines’ main focus is feel and groove while harmonically the bass only plays roots and sometimes the third degree of a chord. Mostly the bassline will focus on phrasing similar to those which might be sung by performers of this genre. As I understand it, as much inflection as possible is utilized in these basslines in order to mimic the nuances of the human voice. The first example of this kind of playing is in bars 10-13

The analysis

My attempt to answer the question “What is mbaqanga?” in terms ofits musical influences is that it is a vocal and instrumental genre of music that emerged in the early 1960s from a fusion between kwela, marabi, isicathamiya and jazz coupled with indigenous and traditional melodies of the Zulu-speaking people of South Africa. My attempt to answer the question “What is mbaqanga?” as it relates tomusical performance is that it is a vibrant, punchy genre of music where the drum set, bass guitar and electric guitar or electric organ are the primary instruments. A basic description of a mbaqangasong is where the drum set plays a kick drum and snare drum (rim) on all four beats while the hi-hats play up-beats or in an eighth-note division. The electric bass plays the root on the first beat of the bar while interjecting small melodic phrases within the harmonic rhythm. The electric guitar or electric organ plays the main melodic and cyclical phrase that the song will be based on. The basic harmonic rhythm has a chord changing at four beat intervals and the chord structure is based on a I-IV-V-I chord progression.

The symbiotic relationship between the bass guitar and drum set in mbaqanga is not always an obvious one. In the examples of mbaqanga the drum set usually plays the same groove for the duration of the song

This groove creates a more relaxed or open feel which allows for it to be performed at faster tempos

Figure 1.1

Contextualizing and Defining Mbaqanga and Ghoema

Bassists of iKapa (the Cape)

ICKETY SPLIT: Modern Aspects of Composition and Orchestration in the Large Jazz Ensemble Compositions of Jim McNeely:An Analysis of EXTRA CREDIT, IN THE WEE SMALL HOURS OF THE MORNING, andABSOLUTION

MELODIC RHYTHMS»

Hemiolas

TWO WEB APPLICATIONS FOR EXPLORING MELODIC PATTERNS INJAZZ SOLOS

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South African Jazz: Mbaqanga

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Jazz Improvisation

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AsSchullerpointsout:“Thereisnoquestioninmymindthat theclassicalworldcanlearnmuchabout timing.rhythmicaccuracyand subtlety fromjazzmusicians,asjazzmusicianscanindynamics.structureandcontrastfromthe classical musicians.”

kwela ('get up' in Zulu) in the 1950’s

MbaqangaSouth African Music

there is some evidence that microtiming patterns are genre-specific.

Jazz Scales

Jazz Chord Voicings

Modal Jazz Improvisation & Harmony

Jazz Genres

azz Style and Articulation: How to Get Your Band or Choir to Swing

The music style Marabi was characterized by a repeating, ostinato accompaniment, usually in the harmonic pattern I–IV–I64–V, upon which potentially endlessly melodies were improvised. These melodies often consisted of sections of popular pieces of any provenance (folk music, religious music, US jazz, dance music such as Vastrap, etc.) which, like the underlying pattern, could also be repeated at will. Marabi was mostly played on electric organs or pianos, with a percussive accompaniment of cans filled with stones

Like that of itsantecedents, the harmonic base of mbaqanga is the cyclical repetition of four primary chords. Shortmelodies, usually the length of the harmonic cycle, are repeated and alternated with slight variations, andcall-and-response generally occurs between solo and chorus parts. The characteristics that differentiatembaqanga from previous styles are a driving, straight beat, rather than swung rhythms; melodicindependence between instrumental parts, the bass and lead guitars providing particularly strongcontrapuntal lines; and electric rather than acoustic guitars and bass guitar

A rhythmically propulsive dance music,marabi was forged principally by unschooled keyboard players who were a notorious part of theculture and economy of illegal slumyard liquor dens. Harmonically, it rested upon a cyclical patternstretched over four measures, with one measure per chord: I–IV–I6-4–V. The cyclical nature of this styleclearly derived from indigenous sources, repetitive harmonic patterns being typical of traditionalAfrican musics

In the early 1940s, he said, many black bands — among them the newly-formed Harlem Swingsters as well as the veteran Jazz Maniacs — started playing in what he termed an African stomp style: We call it African stomp because there was this heavy bealt... There’s more of the beat of Africa in it... the heavy beat of the African, the Zulu traditional...’ The rhythm of this stomp, as he demonstrated it, is immediately recog- nisable as the typical indlamu rhythm:

The term mbaqanga — commonly the Zulu word for a stiff, mielie-based porridge — has designated different kinds of music during the course of the last 40-odd years; but its first musical usage was as a synonym for African Jazz.

he cyclical harmonic structure of marabi, a slow, heavy beat probably derived from the traditional (and basically Zulu) secular dance-style known as indlamu, and forms and instrumentation adapted from American swing. With these was combined a languorous

INARARD ALY TS early south ofrican jazz and vaudeville

The very best players compress enormous inventiveness into that four-bar mbaqangathing. It can also be an eight-bar sequence in which the melody sits only over the third beatof the first bar to the first beat of the second bar. That same bit of melody might happenin a 16-bar sequence, you see.

Embodied Mind, Situated Cognition, and Expressive Microtiming in African-American Music

Reddy, as he writes in thecomposer’s notes precedingthe piece, this piece is a matureexample of his clazz style.

Toccata for Madiba wascommissioned by the SouthAfrican Music RightsOrganisation Endowment forthe National Arts in 1996 forform part of the firstinternational organ competitionin 1998.In this piece influences oftraditional South African musiccan be observed. Kwela andmbaqanga-styles can beobserved in separate sections.South Africa’s national anthem,Nkosi Sikelele is also quoted

What separates mbaqanga from previous styles is the straight beat. Previously urbanblack music was rhythmically swung in general

the American swing style combined with the repetitive blues-like marabi style gavebirth to mbaqanga – also referred to as ‘African jazz’ in the 1940s and a style thatReddy incorporated into his clazz style from the 1980s onwards

According to Ballantine Isicathamiya is the most important vocal style to have emergedin South Africa this century.186 Parallel to the importance of this pure vocal style, aninstrumental style called marabi developed around the time of the First World War andremained prominent throughout the second and third decades of the 20th century.187In Marabi Nights, one of the first books that explored the development and impact ofSouth African jazz, Ballantine describes it as “[a] rhythmically propulsive dance music”that draws “its melodic inspiration eclectically from a wide variety of sources, whileharmonically it rested – as did blues – upon an endlessly repeating chord”.188Furthermore, Ballantine argues that the correlation between marabi (South Africa) andblues (America) extended further in that both had influences on the societies practisingthe above genres

From the fusion of marabi music and the American element ofswing, developed a style sometimes referred to as “African Jazz”, a term which Ballantineuses interchangeably with “mbaqanga” (Ballantine, 1993:6; Ballantine 2012:7). However,there is some discrepancy about the interchangeable use of these terms. Authors, such asAllen (1993: 26) and Thorpe (2018:36), distinguishes between the two terms, mentioning thatthe former developed before the latter as a description of a style of music that contain elementsof both African music and jazz. According to Allen, mbaqanga was also used to describe acompletely different musical style, which became popular during the 60s, and therefore Allenprefers the term “African jazz” to avoid confusion. She states, however:The most popular and long-lasting name for this style (African jazz), however, wasmbaqanga, which is Zulu for the maize bread which constitutes the staple diet of themajority of South Africans. (Allen 1993:26, 27).Thorpe mentions, the name developed as an expression of “an independent and valuableblack South African urban identity” (Thorpe, 2018:36; Allen, 1993:26, 27). Since marabi wasalready waning in popularity and performance, this new style acted almost as a “regenerationof marabi” (Ballantine 1993:61). Ballantine, similarly, describes the ideological importance ofthis style:The explicit and conscious acceptance of aspects of a social and political philosophy – inthis case New Africanism – into the very constitution of music, was a turning-point in thehistory of black South African jazz (Ballantine 1993:62)

Marabi became a popular dance music in these urban ‘ghettos’ between the 1920s and 1940s(Ballantine, 2012:6,7). It is characterized by a repeating a cyclical chord sequence of I-IV-I6/4-V played over four measures. Marabi was mostly played on pianos, organs, handmadedrums or percussion and whatever other instruments were available (Ansell, 2005:29). Themelodies, which were sometimes improvised, were derived from ‘a mixture of Sotho music,Xhosa music, Zulu music and African Christian hymns as well as popular music’ (Ballantine,2012:34).Figure 1.1 Typical Marabi rhythmic accompaniment (Ballantine, 2012:35)The basic rhythmic accompaniment (see figure 1.1 above) would often be played by someoneshaking a tin filled with small stones and constitutes an important stylistic trait of marabi(Ballantine, 2012:35).

Apart from mbaqanga and marabi, other styles also developed due to the amalgamation oflocal styles and American jazz. One of these is Cape jazz, which Coplan (2013) describes asfollows:I use the term ‘Cape jazz’ knowingly, because the Mother City has its owncharacteristic style, strongly indebted to the American tradition starting with African-American minstrelsy, but mixed with old indigenous rhythms and melodies, mission

Mbaqanga incorporates the instrumentation and musical references of American big band jazzsuch as the use of swing rhythms, multiple brass and/or woodwind instruments (includingarranged parts for brass and woodwind sections), as well as aspects of marabi, mostnoticeably the I-IV-V progression and rhythms from traditional Zulu dances, notably indlamu(see Figure 1.2) (Sepuru, 2019:12; Ballantine, 2012:7, 80). Mbaqanga was also called ‘AfricanJazz’ in colloquial settings, as it contained more identifiable jazz elements than marabi.Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za

As Chapter One pointed out, ‘South African jazz’ derives from the amalgamation oftransnational (mainly American) jazz and indigenous South African musics. Although this stylehas many ‘dialects’, there is some conceptual consensus regarding elements that historicallycame to signify a South African jazz sound. These include marabi (with its distinctive I-IV-Vchord progression), mbaqanga (this was especially felt in the importance of the rhythmicaldrive and interest and repeating harmonic progressions, rather than the other formal attributes

the use of the ghoema beat which is strongly associated with the music of the Cape(e.g. ‘Siqhagamshelane Sonke’ or ‘Our House, Our Rules’ by Shepherd)

In this way Dyer’s music is representative of a more extended, pan-African sensespace, reflecting not only his geographical locality, but also a broader sense of belonging.An exploration of various music spaces and traditions is prevalent throughout his oeuvre(signalled, for instance, in an album title like World Music), and could be read (or heard) in hisapproach to compositional form and material, as well as his approach to his instrument. Hisuse of short rhythmical patterns and cyclical forms reminiscent of the organisational principlesof the respective African practices he evokes (as, for instance, in African Piano Suite) as wellas the imitation of instruments such as the mbira, balafon, kora or marimbas in hispiano/keyboard playing could be construed as the means through which he conducts theseexplorations

Makhathini’s verbal and written commentaries on his music, connoteshis identification with and situatedness in Nguni cultural practices). Makhathini’s music oftencontains forms, rhythmic and harmonic approaches that invoke Nguni music practices,including the use of episodic and cyclical formal principles and the use of modalities. Whilethese musical gestures in themselves are not unambiguous markers of particular culturalpractices, they become clearer as spatial coordinates when read together with Makhathini’sdiscourses on his practice.

Shepherd’s music also contain American jazz elements, including as bebop linesin his improvisations and his approach to harmonic progressions reminiscent of Keith Jarrett’s.His experiments with irregular meter connect with West African music practices. Theseattributes preclude a simple reading of the artists’ work ‘South African’ in a singular sense,and rather reminds us that the notion of a ‘South African’ jazz is in a continuing dialogue othermusic practices – whether this is with American jazz (which has historically powerfullyinformed South African jazz and continues to do so) or musics from other places or genres

Shepherd’s use of marabi and marabi-style harmonic progressions are

Elements of indigenous musics featured in Shepherd’s work include the use of the ghoemabeat in compositions such as ‘Zimology’ and ‘Spirit of Hanover Park’, or his use of the uhadiin this ‘Xam Premonitions (Cape Genesis – Movement 1, 2012)’

Indlamu, the type of traditional dance music the track is based on (andincidentally one of the styles that influenced mbaqanga), is usually played at a faster tempo.Makhathini recounts that he was trying to capture how it would be to dance with the veryancient forefathers and mothers, thus accounting for the slower tempo (Makhathini, 2020).The track titles ‘Ehlobo’ and ‘Okhalweni’ are Zulu expressions meaning ‘in the summer’ and‘from the waist’ respectively

Bebop

Bebop spoken here

Blues notes: a discourse of race

In the third chapter, ‘Modes of experience: modal jazz and the authority of experience in Ishmael’s Reed’s Mumbo Jumbo, Morrison’s The Bluest Eye and Song of Solomon’, I examine different emphases in notions of ethnic identity that takes place in the middle of the twentieth century.

Cross-RhythmsJazz Aesthetics in African-American Literature

Circles and Time: A Theory of StructuralOrganization of Rhythm in African Music

t can be argued that it was the use of these short harmonic cycles that then led tocertain styles of melodic and rhythmic phrasing which mirrored the short, repetitive harmonicmovement, thus resulting in characteristics common to much South African jazz, such asshort repetitive motivic melodies, basslines and drum grooves

s the name suggests, mbaqanga is viewed as a morecommercially appealing style than African Jazz and has been popularised in South Africa byartists such as Simon ‘Mahlatini’ Nkabinde and internationally by Paul Simon’s heavilymbaqanga influenced Graceland album. The roots of mbaqanga lie in traditional Zulu musicmixed with influences of marabi and kwela. Rhythmically, mbaqanga is, like tsaba tsaba,generally based on a straight-eighth note feel with a driving bass drum on all four downbeatsof the bar. This quarter note bass drum pattern, commonly referred to as “four on the floor”,is complemented by the hands performing various orchestrations of the rhythm below. Thisuniversal rhythm is known as the Charleston in American jazz, the Habanera in Cuban Latinmusic, and the Ghoema in South Africa

Although, mbaqanga became exceptionally popular both locally and internationally, it willnot be a key focus of the analysis presented in this dissertation as, like tsaba tsaba, its musicaltraits reveal it as being more of a hybrid, sub-genre of the original styles of South Africanjazz: marabi, African Jazz and kwela

However, in the case of marabi, the three chords were usuallyplayed in short two or four bar phrases, and were most commonly voiced as triads in thesequence I-IV-I-V. Due to the preference for diatonic tonality in marabi, few chord extensiontones were used other than the occasional addition of a major 6th to chord IV and the use ofthe dominant 7th on chord V. The resulting progression is the iconic I-IV6-Ic-V7 whichbecame the harmonic foundation of the South African sound.

MbaqangaAllen suggests that the term “mbaqanga”, which refers to the staple maize-meal diet of manyof the working-class musicians who played the music to earn a living wage, stems from “theneed to define and express an independent and valuable black South African urban identity”by renaming what had become generally referred to as African Jazz (Allen 1993, 26).Although the terms are sometimes used interchangeably by musicians and musicologists,Allen arguest that the style of mbaqanga developed in the 1960s is markedly different fromAfrican Jazz (Allen 1993, 26). As the name suggests, mbaqanga is viewed as a morecommercially appealing style than African Jazz and has been popularised in South Africa byartists such as Simon ‘Mahlatini’ Nkabinde and internationally by Paul Simon’s heavilymbaqanga influenced Graceland album. The roots of mbaqanga lie in traditional Zulu musicmixed with influences of marabi and kwela. Rhythmically, mbaqanga is, like tsaba tsaba,generally based on a straight-eighth note feel with a driving bass drum on all four downbeatsof the bar. This quarter note bass drum pattern, commonly referred to as “four on the floor”,is complemented by the hands performing various orchestrations of the rhythm below. Thisuniversal rhythm is known as the Charleston in American jazz, the Habanera in Cuban Latinmusic, and the Ghoema in South Africa.Figure 1.2 Charleston/ Habanera/ Ghoema rhythm

The three-chord harmonic system ofmarabi is derived from the harmonic root movementof the European diatonic major scale

In including trombonist Malindi BlythMbityana and Mackay Davashe, a prolific composer in thembaqanga jazz style, acontingent of the Blue Notes

The underlying harmonic structure inmarabitypically uses the major (I), the subdominant major (IV), and the dominant (V) in aperpetually repeating structure suited to dance. In its advanced form inmbaqanga(African jazz), the simple three-chordmarabi harmonic structure was consolidated in alengthened cyclic form in which the (V) root was preceded with the tonic major in itssecond inversion (I 6/4 ). In comparing themarabi harmonic structure and its seminalposition in vernacular jazz improvisatory practice in South Africa to that of the AfricanAmerican blues in its relationship to jazz, Ballantine explained its basis ‘on a cyclicpattern’ as ‘stretch[ing] over four measures, with one measure for each of the followingchords: I – IV - I 6/4 - V’ (Ballantine 1993:26)

The revival in South Africa in the 1980s of the long-forgotten traditions of 1950s big-bandmbaqanga – most notably in the form and repertoires of Ntemi Piliso’s African JazzPioneers – filled the vacuum created by the effective disappearance of the practice duringthe long years of apartheid

use a cyclic structure

recordings by the Blue Note

List of Chord-Scale Relationships

How to Determine Chord-Scale Relationships

Jazz Chord Voicings

Chapter 31 Introduction to Jazz Theory

TWLIOSY AGGSY NVYGNSYNS

Standard

Why did Adorno "Hate" Jazz?

Groove

BLUESTHE BASICS

ODES, SCALES, FUNCTIONAL HARMONY, AND NONFUNCTIONAL HARMONY IN THE COMPOSITIONS OF HERBIE HANCOCK

What is Modal Jazz?

Blues

ThembelaVokwanaInterviewwith Christine Lucia by e-mail (November 2021)

TOWARD A PERCEPTUAL-COGNITIVE ACCOUNTOF DOUBLE-TIME FEEL IN JAZZ

The opposite situation is what Krebs calls metrical dissonance.I will argue that in jazz styles where swing rhythm is pervasive, halvingthe prevailing note-value can produce metrical dissonance, and that this dissonance is one of the main factors contributing to listeners’ perception of double time.To consider the idea of swing eighth notes in terms of Krebs’ metrical layers, I will callthe quarter-note level of rhythm the “beat layer” and the level at which quarter notes have been subdivided into swing eighths the “sub-beat layer.” The beat layer and sub-beat layer can be regarded as two different ways of grouping a third layer of

Music theorists have long been aware that different levels of beat are often simultaneously available to the listener. Harald Krebs (1999) uses the term “metrical layers” to describe this phenomenon. In the normal case, metrical layers nest neatly insideone another; they are metrically consonant with each other. This occurs, for example, in Pachelbel’s Canonas the prevailing note-values are repeatedly halved. Figure 3.1 shows this nesting relationship between layers. There is no need for a separate micropulse layer because the layers are metrically consonant: both eighth notes and quarter notes can be expressed as groupings of sixteenth notes.