McLaughlin

2008

Service

Monk’s solo is particularly tasteful because he carries the “disagreeable” notes along the melody so that it’s profound enough to keep the audience listening and gradually accept these peculiar tones. On an unrelated note (pun intended), listening to Monk reminded me of Harry Partch, the late American composer that worked in microtones.

Desk Cleaning

What stands out the most about Chano Pozo and Dizzy Gillespie's Manteca is the conga. It adds a distinct color to the sound and makes the eighth notes a bit less swung. This may be just because the conga is a bit softer than the hi-hat. There seems to be a salsa influence hiding in the melody.

Gay Marriage

Monk’s notes did not sound like mistakes to me—thanks for the loaded question though! I understand where the question is going… some of the notes seem to blend incorrectly with each other. I like this particular style when it’s done with flavor and good taste; I am referring to the dissonance.

Global Warming

I didn’t care for swing, and bop seems to take the headache further. Cool jazz (even though no one asked me) is my favorite out of the latest genres we’ve been studying. It contains the roots of jazz and expands on it, without creating a nervous feeling like bop does. Bop sounds too pompous and swing sounds too spoon-fed. Cool jazz is where it’s at.

Pornography

Bebop contains fast tempos, harmonic structures, and is more jarring than swing. Swing was created with dancers in mind, whereas bebop’s audience was snobs. Bop was an introspective genre on the tree of jazz. It was made keeping the complexity of jazz in mind and appeasing the hardcore audience. Swing had a stronger role in pop culture because again, people could dance to it.

Helping

I’m listening to Gerry Mulligan Quartet performs Walkin' Shoes right now. This puts me in a relaxed mood. Cool jazz contains the trifecta of musical personality—you can talk over it, dance to it, or analyze it. Only a few types of music can do all these for me.