All Topics  
Jazz band

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Jazz band
 
 
  Topics Jazz band Topic Home

A jazz band (or jazz ensemble) is a musical ensemble
Musical ensemble

A musical ensemble is a group of two or more musicians who perform instrumental or vocal music. In each musical style different norms have developed for the sizes and composition of different ensembles, and for the repertoire of songs or musical works that these ensembles perform....
 that plays jazz
Jazz

Jazz is a primarily American musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
 music
Music

Music is an art form whose media is sound organized in time. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics , and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture ....
 usually without a conductor. Jazz bands usually consist of a rhythm section
Rhythm section

A rhythm section is the musicians in a popular music musical band or musical ensemble who establish the rhythmic pulse of a song or musical piece, and who lay down the chordal structure....
 and a horn section
Horn section

In music, a horn section refers to two separate groups of musicians. In can refer to the musicians in a symphony orchestra who play Horn . In modern music, it can also refer to a small group of wind instrumentalists who augment a band....
. During the jazz and swing eras in the mid-twentieth century, the most successful jazz orchestras also employed strings and harp in expanded arrangements, but their presence on the bandstand was more for visual impact and not as a key component of the ensemble, although the unique timbres of the strings and harp combined with the band as a whole provided an extra layer of ear-pleasing sonorities.

The rhythm section
Rhythm section

A rhythm section is the musicians in a popular music musical band or musical ensemble who establish the rhythmic pulse of a song or musical piece, and who lay down the chordal structure....
 of a jazz band consists of the percussion
Percussion instrument

A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound by being hit with an implement, shaken, rubbed, scraped, or by any other action which sets the object into vibration....
, double bass
Double bass

The double bass or contrabass is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow string instrument used in the modern orchestra. It is a standard member of the string section of the orchestra and smaller string musical ensembles in European classical music....
 or bass guitar
Bass guitar

The electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum.The bass guitar is similar in appearance and construction to an electric guitar, but with a larger body, a longer neck and Scale length, and usually four strings tuned to the same pitches as those of the double bass, whic...
, and usually at least one instrument capable of playing chord
Chord (music)

In music and music theory a chord is a set of two or more different note that sound simultaneously. Most often, in European-influenced music, chords are tertian Sonority that can be constructed as stacks of thirds relative to some underlying musical scale....
s, such as a piano
Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard instrument. Widely used in Western music for solo performance, ensemble use, chamber music, and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to musical composition and rehearsal....
, guitar
Guitar

The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
, Hammond organ
Hammond organ

The Hammond organ is an electronic organ which was invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to Church as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s, it became a standard keyboard instrument for jazz, blues, Rock and r...
 or vibes
Vibraphone

The vibraphone, sometimes called the vibraharp or simply the vibes, is a musical instrument in the mallet subfamily of the percussion instrument family....
.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Jazz band'
Start a new discussion about 'Jazz band'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


A jazz band (or jazz ensemble) is a musical ensemble
Musical ensemble

A musical ensemble is a group of two or more musicians who perform instrumental or vocal music. In each musical style different norms have developed for the sizes and composition of different ensembles, and for the repertoire of songs or musical works that these ensembles perform....
 that plays jazz
Jazz

Jazz is a primarily American musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
 music
Music

Music is an art form whose media is sound organized in time. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics , and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture ....
 usually without a conductor. Jazz bands usually consist of a rhythm section
Rhythm section

A rhythm section is the musicians in a popular music musical band or musical ensemble who establish the rhythmic pulse of a song or musical piece, and who lay down the chordal structure....
 and a horn section
Horn section

In music, a horn section refers to two separate groups of musicians. In can refer to the musicians in a symphony orchestra who play Horn . In modern music, it can also refer to a small group of wind instrumentalists who augment a band....
. During the jazz and swing eras in the mid-twentieth century, the most successful jazz orchestras also employed strings and harp in expanded arrangements, but their presence on the bandstand was more for visual impact and not as a key component of the ensemble, although the unique timbres of the strings and harp combined with the band as a whole provided an extra layer of ear-pleasing sonorities.

The rhythm section
Rhythm section

A rhythm section is the musicians in a popular music musical band or musical ensemble who establish the rhythmic pulse of a song or musical piece, and who lay down the chordal structure....
 of a jazz band consists of the percussion
Percussion instrument

A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound by being hit with an implement, shaken, rubbed, scraped, or by any other action which sets the object into vibration....
, double bass
Double bass

The double bass or contrabass is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow string instrument used in the modern orchestra. It is a standard member of the string section of the orchestra and smaller string musical ensembles in European classical music....
 or bass guitar
Bass guitar

The electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum.The bass guitar is similar in appearance and construction to an electric guitar, but with a larger body, a longer neck and Scale length, and usually four strings tuned to the same pitches as those of the double bass, whic...
, and usually at least one instrument capable of playing chord
Chord (music)

In music and music theory a chord is a set of two or more different note that sound simultaneously. Most often, in European-influenced music, chords are tertian Sonority that can be constructed as stacks of thirds relative to some underlying musical scale....
s, such as a piano
Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard instrument. Widely used in Western music for solo performance, ensemble use, chamber music, and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to musical composition and rehearsal....
, guitar
Guitar

The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
, Hammond organ
Hammond organ

The Hammond organ is an electronic organ which was invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to Church as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s, it became a standard keyboard instrument for jazz, blues, Rock and r...
 or vibes
Vibraphone

The vibraphone, sometimes called the vibraharp or simply the vibes, is a musical instrument in the mallet subfamily of the percussion instrument family....
. Large early jazz bands such as Paul Whiteman
Paul Whiteman

Paul Whiteman was an United States orchestral leader. He was born in Denver, Colorado. After a start as a classical violinist and viola, Whiteman then led a jazz-influenced dance band, which became locally popular in San Francisco, California in 1918....
’s employed two pianos, an accordion
Accordion

The accordion is a portable box-shaped musical instrument of the hand-held bellows-driven free reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox....
 and banjo
Banjo

The banjo is a stringed instrument developed by Slavery in the United States Africans in the United States, adapted from several African instruments....
. The rhythm section is the foundation for the band; it sets the feel for the piece.

The horn section
Horn section

In music, a horn section refers to two separate groups of musicians. In can refer to the musicians in a symphony orchestra who play Horn . In modern music, it can also refer to a small group of wind instrumentalists who augment a band....
 consists of wind
Wind instrument

A wind instrument is a musical instrument that contains some type of resonator , in which a column of air is set into vibration by the player blowing into a mouthpiece set at the end of the resonator....
 and brass instrument
Brass instrument

A brass instrument is a musical instrument whose tone is produced by vibration of the lips as the player blows into a tubular resonator. They are also called labrosones, literally meaning "lip-vibrated instruments" ....
s, which play the melody
Melody

In music, a melody , also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones which is perceived as a single entity....
 and main accompaniment
Accompaniment

In music, accompaniment is the art of playing along with a solo ist or Musical ensemble, often known as the lead, in a supporting manner as well as the music thus played....
. Typical horns found in a big jazz band include 4 to 5 trumpet
Trumpet

The trumpet is a musical instrument with the highest Register in the brass instrument family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BC....
s, saxophone
Saxophone

The saxophone is a conical-Bore transposing instrument musical instrument considered a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and are played with a Single-reed instrument mouthpiece similar to the clarinet....
s (2-3 altos
Alto saxophone

The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented by the Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax. The alto, with the Tenor saxophone, is the most common size of saxophone....
, 2 tenors
Tenor saxophone

The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor, with the Alto saxophone, is the most common size of saxophone....
, and a baritone
Baritone saxophone

The baritone saxophone, often called "bari sax" , is one of the larger and lower pitched members of the saxophone family. It was invented by Adolphe Sax....
), 3-4 trombones, and a bass trombone. The saxophones may also double on flute
Flute

The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike other woodwind instruments, a flute is a reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air against an edge....
, clarinet
Clarinet

The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The name derives from adding the suffix -et meaning little to the Italian word clarino meaning a particular type of trumpet, as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet....
,bass clarinet
Bass clarinet

The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common Soprano clarinet, it is usually pitched in B , but it plays notes an octave below the soprano B clarinet....
 and soprano saxophone
Soprano saxophone

The soprano saxophone was invented in 1840 and is a variety of the saxophone, a woodwind instrument. The soprano is the second in size of the saxophone family which consists, as generally accepted, of the sopranino saxophone, soprano, Alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, bass saxophone, and contrabass saxophone....
, the trumpets on flugel horn, and the bass trombone on tuba
Tuba

The tuba is the largest and lowest pitched brass instrument. Sound is produced by vibrating or "buzzing" the lips into a large cupped Mouthpiece ....
.