Jazz Composition

Course#: MUSI 3343, section 1.  Two credits.
Instructor: Professor Earl MacDonald

The exploration and application of composition strategies involving the manipulation of form, melody, harmony and rhythm to create short form works for small group improvisational jazz contexts.

Prerequisites: MUSI 1601, Introduction to Jazz Improvisation
Recommended Preparation: MUSI 1314, Harmony 2

Text Book: (required) “Jazz Composition: Theory & Practice” by Ted Pease.
Berklee Press. SBN 978-87639-001-6

Instructional Pattern: The course will be taught as two 50-minute classes per week during the spring semesters.

­­Melodic factors, motivic devices, harmonic considerations, blues & song form, and metric modulations constitute the study units. Below is a 14-week timetable with corresponding assignments.

To acquire an understanding of the compositional contributions and lineage of jazz masters, students will listen to two jazz albums each week. After listening, students will select one album and write a few phrases describing each song on it. Beyond overarching impressions, students should make observations pertaining to harmonic rhythm, form, orchestration, melodic considerations, motivic devices, and the function of the rhythm section. Most importantly, students should catalog ideas they might want to borrow or develop further in their own compositions.

The instructor has chosen recordings to represent works of notable composing jazz musicians like: Jelly Roll Morton, Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, Tadd Dameron, Benny Golson, Horace Silver, Gerry Mulligan, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Carla Bley, Bob Brookmeyer, Muhal Richard Abrams, Kenny Wheeler, Fred Hersch, Maria Schneider, etc.

Because it is important for developing composers to experience their music being rehearsed and performed, performance dates will be scheduled within Music Convocation (MUSI 1101).

Schedule and Assignments:

Week 1: Introduction, Orientation & Review

Week 2: Melodic Considerations

  • melodic rhythm, scale resources, interval patterns, melodic variation via modal interchange
  • assignments: p. 3, 7, 13 – 15, 17
  • listening: Art Blakey – Free for All, Bill Holman – Big Band in Jazz Orbit

Week 3: Motivic Devices

  • melodic repetition, sequence, motivic transformation, motivic embellishment, motifs based on intervallic patterns, melodies based on guide tones, melodies based on compound lines
  • assignments: p. 22 – 25, 27, 29, 32 – 33
  • listening: Vanguard Jazz Orchestra – Thad Jones Legacy, Herbie Hancock – Maiden Voyage

Week 4:

  • antecedent and consequent phrases, pitch contour and range, apex, melodic tension
  • assignments: p. 36, 40 & 41, 43, 45
  • listening: Charles Mingus – Mingus Ah Um, Fred Hersch – Forward Motion

Week 5: Harmonic Considerations

  • tonal harmony, modal harmony
  • assignments: p. 55, 56, 60 – 61, 72 – 75
  • listening: Miles Davis – Kind of Blue, Chick Corea – Three Quartets

Week 6:

  • modal interchange, chromatic harmony, harmonic rhythm, modulations, ostinato, slash chords, pedal point and constant structures
  • assignments: p. 79, 86, 87, 89, 93
  • listening: Clifford Brown – Study in Brown, Vanguard Jazz Orchestra – Up from the Skies

Week 7:

  • pedal point and pandiatonicism, harmonization, reharmonization
  • assignments: p. 96, 101 – 103, 107 – 108
  • listening: Kenny Wheeler – Music for Large & Small Ensembles, Miles Davis – Milestones

Week 8: Blues and Song Form

  • the blues – harmonic form and melodic form
  • assignments: p. 123 – 124
  • listening: John Coltrane – Love Supreme, Carla Bley – Fleur Carnivore

Week 9:

  • “Rhythm Changes”
  • assignments: p. 125
  • listening: Duke Ellington – Far East Suite, Wayne Shorter – Ju Ju

Week 10:

  • AABA song form
  • assignments: p. 131 – 136
  • listening: Ornette Coleman – Shape of Jazz to Come, McCoy Tyner – The Real McCoy

Week 11:

  • AABA song form, continued
  • assignments: p. 137, Convo performance
  • listening: The Best of Gerry Mulligan Quartet with Chet Baker, Thelonious Monk – At the Five Spot

Week 12:

  • AABC song form
  • assignments: p. 142
  • listening: Larry Young – Unity, Maria Schneider – Evanescence

Week 13:

  • Ostinatos, ABCA song form, through-composed tunes
  • assignments: p. 145, 148, 158 – 163
  • listening: Miles Davis – Complete Birth of the Cool, John Coltrane – My Favorite Things

Week 14: Metric Modulations

  • Metric Modulations
  • assignments: p. 183
  • listening: Bob Brookmeyer & Clark Terry – With Mel Lewis Orchestra Live at the Village Vanguard, Eric Dolphy – Out to Lunch

Grading:

  • Listening reports: 28% (14 assignments; each valued at 2% of the total grade)
  • Music preparation & rehearsal engagement for the Music Convocation performance: 12%
  • Text book assignments: 50%*
  • Classroom participation: 10%

*Each of the above-listed text book assignments will be equally weighted and will receive a grade out of 10 points (for example, 8 points = 80%). The cumulative sum will be averaged and apportioned 50% of the total grade.

Late and incomplete assignments will generally not be accepted and will receive a grade of zero. If the student has extenuating circumstances (for example, they are hospitalized) that prevent them from submitting their assignments on time, please notify the instructor. These instances will be evaluated on an individual basis.

A mid-semester progress report will be e-mailed from the instructor. There will be no final exam. The course content and schedule are subject to change at the instructor’s discretion and will be properly communicated to students as changes arise.

Grading Scale:

Grade Letter Grade GPA
93-100 A 4.0
90-92 A- 3.7
87-89 B+ 3.3
83-86 B 3.0
80-82 B- 2.7
77-79 C+ 2.3
73-76 C 2.0
70-72 C- 1.7
67-69 D+ 1.3
63-66 D 1.0
60-62 D- 0.7
<60 F 0.0

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