Spring 2009 Jazz and Blues in America

"Jazz washes away the dust of everyday life."

Art Blakey

Instructor: Dr. Martin Rokeache-mail:

Office: Syufy 220Office phone: 631-4682

Office hours: T/Th 3-4; W 2-3 and by Appt.

Textbook: none

Videos: Sections of Ken Burns' ten-part series: "Jazz" and “American Roots Music”

This course will examine the evolution of jazz and blues from their precursors in West Africa, Europe and nineteenth century America to the present. We will become familiar with both the music and the social milieu from which it arose. The artists we will become familiar with include:

Blues

Robert Johnson, Furry Lewis, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Muddy Waters, Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, Howlin’ Wolf, John Lee Hooker, Big Mama Thornton, B. B. King, Little Walter, James Cotton, Aretha Franklin, Jimi Hendrix

Jazz

Jelly Roll Morton, Louis Armstrong, Bix Beiderbecke, Sidney Bechet, Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Teddy Wilson, Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Charlie Christian, Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, Miles Davis, the Modern Jazz Quartet, Dave Brubeck, Art Blakey, Wayne Shorter, Charles Mingus, McCoy Tyner, Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderly, Bill Evans, Ornette Coleman, Stan Getz, Tito Puento, Pete Escovido, Pancho Sanchez, Weather Report, Cecil Taylor, Marcus Roberts, Wynton Marsalis, Josh Redman, Regina Carter, John Zorn, James Carter.

Learning Outcomes -- by the end of the semester you will:

  • be familiar with the greatest artists of jazz and blues.
  • be able to hear jazz and blues with more depth and understanding, and articulate what you hear in writing with specific, jazz-appropriate vocabulary.
  • distinguish by ear the two most common forms in jazz, 12-bar blues and 32-bar form.
  • perceive the form and follow the phrases to access a work’s core content, i.e. its ‘meaning.’
  • identify the style and historical era of unfamiliar jazz.
  • acquire an enriched understanding of American history through its music.

Tentative Schedule

week of: 2/10 some techniques of listening to jazz; jazz precursors: West African songs, work songs,

spirituals, folk songs, country blues, ragtime

2/17 the blues proliferate: barrelhouse, boogie woogie; city blues, stride

2/24 Dixieland

3/10 The Swing era; great video: "The Velocity of Celebration”

3/17 midterm exam

3/24 Bebop; Urban Blues

4/7 Spring Break

4/14 Cool, 3rd Stream, Modal Jazz

4/21 hard bop; great video: "The Adventure"

4/28 Hard Bop; Latin jazz

5/5 Free Jazz, Avant-Garde, Bossa Nova, Fusion; Rhythm and Blues and Rock and Roll

5/12 jazz and blues today

5/17 jazz and blues today; final exam review

5/22 final exam

over

Three Required Concerts

1. The Josh Redman Trio

Yoshi’s at Jack London Square (Oakland)

Thursday, April 2 8 p.m.

2. The Saint Mary’s College Jazz Band, directed by John Maltester

Thursday, April 30 8 p.m. Soda Center

3. Your choice of one of the following:

  • The SMC NightinGaels, directed by Mark Tuning, Wed. May 13, 1 p.m., or May 14,

8 P.M., SMC Chapel

  • The SMC Chamber Musicians, directed by Martin Rokeach, featuring classical repertoire performed by student musicians; Mon. May. 11, Noon or 8 P. M., SMC Chapel

Grading

Two analytical papers 25%

Midterm Exam 25%

Final Exam 25%

Quizzes 25% (almost weekly; lowest one will be dropped)

Homework will consist of focused, concentrated listening, light reading, watching videos.