Bebop a Controversial Transition to Modern Jazz - 2363 Words

Bebop: A Controversial Transition to Modern Jazz Nathan Marketich Music 0711 Professor Leon Dorsey Recitation TA: Alton Merrell 1:00 December 10, 2010 The decade of the 1940’s was an important era in the history of jazz. The 1940’s was a transition from traditional jazz into modern jazz. Leading this transition was the introduction of the Bebop period in Jazz. Bebop created controversy in the jazz world for being a contradiction to traditional jazz and was widely disliked by many audiences across America. Despite its controversy, Bebop, also referred to as â€Å"Bop,† was one of the most important eras in the history of Jazz. The technical creations by some of Bebop’s greatest musicians influenced future generations of jazz musicians†¦show more content†¦With the leadership of three of the most famous jazz musicians, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Thelonious Monk, Bebop reached its height in the mid 1940’s. Charlie Parker was one of the most influential and important soloists in Jazz history and was important to the development of the Bebop style. Parker was born in Kansas City, Ka nsas on August 29, 1920. In 1927 Charlie Parker’s family moved to Kansas City, Missouri, an influential center for African American jazz music in the 20th century. The rich musical culture in Kansas City fostered the development of the young Charlie Parker who began playing alto saxophone in 1933. After Parker left school in 1935 he pursued a career as a professional musician in Kansas City and played among various blues and jazz groups. In 1939 Parker visited New York, the national center for the music business at the time, for a year and participated in jam sessions with other musicians. Parker’s time spent in New York left him bored with the clichà ©s of the popular Swing style still very common in America. He envisioned a new style of music, contrary to Swing jazz, that emphasized a new set of techniques. This new style of music which became Bebop would finally reach maturity in the mid 1940’s led by Charlie Parker (Patrick). In December 1942 Parker joined Earl Hine’s big band along with other young jazz musicians such as Dizzy Gillespie.Show MoreRelatedMiles Davis as the Influence of Jazz Essay1777 Words   |  8 Pageswas one of the greatest and most important figures in jazz history. Miles Dewey Davis III was a musician, composer, arranger, producer and bandleader all in one. Davis was at the forefront of almost every major development in jazz after World War 2. He was one of the most influential and innovative musicians of the twentieth century along with Charlie Parker and Louis Armstrong. His versatility landed him at the forefront of bebop, cool jazz, modal, hard bop and fusion (Kirker, 2005:1). His soundRead MoreLangston Hughes: A Poet Supreme Essay1879 Words   |  8 Pagesthe Langston Hughes, the prolific Duke Ellington of black poetry. Hughess output alone is staggering. During his lifetime, he published over eight hundred poems. Moreover, he single-handedly defined blues poetry and is arguably the first major j azz poet. Early in his career he realized the importance of reading his poetry to receptive audiences. When Alain Locke arranged a poetry reading by Hughes before the Playwriters Circle in 1972 in Washington, a blues pianist accompanied him, bringingRead MoreLangston Hughes Research Paper25309 Words   |  102 Pagesafter the freighter became iced in, Hughes read Samuel Butlers The Way of All Flesh, Joseph Conrads Heart of Darkness, and other classic novels. During this time, he wrote fifteen poems, among them, My People, and Three Poems of Harlem, about jazz music, street women, and emotion-charged religion. In a poem entitled F.S. Hughes expresses sadness that a friend he loves has gone away. Inspired by a black piano player in a Harlem cabaret, Hughes wrote The Weary Blues. The musician rocked