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big bands  Popular dance ensembles of the 1930s and 1940s, consisting of from twelve to eighteen players.
swing  A term with many meanings, including ( a) a mood of lilting spontaneity; ( b) a danceable music played by the big bands in the 1930s and 1940s.
reeds  Wind instruments in which the player causes small, flexible pieces of material called reeds to vibrate. Clarinets and saxophones are singlereed instruments; oboes and bassoons have double reeds.
jam  To improvise together with other members of an ensemble.
Kansas City jazz  A light, spacious, relaxed style based on melodic riffs.
riff  A repeated melodic or rhythmic pattern that provides unity in a jazz composition.
walking bass  A steadily moving pattern in the plucked string bass, having melodic as well as rhythmic implications.
bebop  A complex, highly improvised jazz style, largely developed by Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie.
concerto  A multimovement work for orchestra plus solo instrument.
progressive jazz  A symphonic approach to jazz, introduced by Stan Kenton.
atonal  With no tonic note and no tonal relationships.
polytonal  In two or more keys at the same time.
irregular meters  Meters other than duple, triple, or quadruple. (Usually five or seven beats to the bar.)
cool  A jazz style introduced about 1950 for large bands including some symphonic instruments.
vibrato  A slight variation in pitch adding warmth and intensity to vocal or instrumental sounds.
hard bop  A style combining rock-related rhythms with gospel.







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