Course overview
Jazz Musicianship 3 builds on the theoretical and practical skills developed in Jazz Musicianship 2A and 2B. Students explore melodic, rhythmic and harmonic features of advanced jazz standards and contemporary jazz tunes through study of relevant texts, audio and video files, musical scores and transcribed solos. This knowledge is applied by way of group exercises which focus on advanced chord progressions (including non-functional harmony and Coltrane changes) extended and altered chords and modified scales (including tetratonics (triad + 1), pentatonics and hexatonics). There is a continued focus on the development of the student's rhythmic awareness through the playing of odd meters, polyrhythms and displacement. Students will be encouraged to compose music in the styles discussed in class.
Course learning outcomes
- To achieve a high level of understanding of the rhythmic, melodic and harmonic devices used in jazz from bebop onwards.
- To improvise over standard jazz and contemporary jazz repertoire demonstrating the internalisation of the devices above on the student's chosen instrument.
- To demonstrate an awareness and control over the stylistic differences within the bebop and post bebop traditions.